Rochdale Town Hall
Encyclopedia
Rochdale Town Hall is a Victorian-era
municipal building in Rochdale
, Greater Manchester
, England. It is "widely recognised as being one of the finest municipal buildings in the country", and is rated by English Heritage
as a Grade I listed building
. The Town Hall functions as the ceremonial headquarters of Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council
and houses local government departments, including the borough's civil registration office
.
Built in the Gothic Revival style
at a cost of £160,000 (£ as of ), it was inaugurated for the governance of the Municipal Borough of Rochdale
on 27 September 1871. The architect, William Henry Crossland
, was the winner of a competition held in 1864 to design a new Town Hall. It had a 240 feet (73 m) clock tower
topped by a wooden spire with a gilded statue of Saint George and the Dragon
, both of which were destroyed by fire on 10 April 1883, leaving the building without a spire for four years. A new 190 feet (58 m) stone clock tower and spire in the style of Manchester Town Hall
was designed by Alfred Waterhouse
, and erected in 1888.
Art critic Nikolaus Pevsner
described the building as possessing a "rare picturesque beauty". Its stained glass
windows are credited as "the finest modern examples of their kind". The building came to the attention of Adolf Hitler
, who was said to have admired it so much that he wished to ship the building, brick-by-brick, to Nazi Germany
had the United Kingdom been defeated in the Second World War.
since the Industrial Revolution
. Its newly built rail and canal network, and numerous factories, resulted in the town being "remarkable for many wealthy merchants". In January 1856 the electorate of the Rochdale constituency
petitioned the Privy Council for the grant of a charter of incorporation
under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835
, to constitute the town as a municipal borough
. This would give it limited political autonomy via an elected town council, comprising a mayor, aldermen
, and councillor
s, to oversee local affairs. The petition was successful and the charter was granted in September 1856. The newly formed Rochdale Corporation—the local authority for the Municipal Borough of Rochdale
—suggested plans to build a town hall in which to conduct its business in May 1858. The site of an abandoned 17th-century house known as The Wood was proposed. Six months later, in April 1860, Rochdale Corporation arranged to buy the site on the outskirts of the town centre for £4,730 (£ as of ). However, plans were shelved due to lengthy negotiations and increasing land prices. In January 1864 the scheme resumed with a new budget of £20,000 (£ as of ). The wood and surrounding area were cleared, but it is unknown what became of the dispossessed; there was no legal requirement for the authorities to rehouse the former inhabitants. A design competition to find a "neat and elegant building" was held by the Rochdale Corporation, who offered the winning architect a prize of £100 (£ as of ), and a Maltese cross
souvenir. From the 27 entries received, William Henry Crossland
's was chosen. The Rochdale-born Radical
and Liberal
statesman John Bright
laid the foundation stone on 31 March 1866. Construction was complete by 1871 although the cost had, by then, increased beyond expectations from the projected £40,000 to £160,000 (£ as of ).
The Town Hall was one of several built in the textile towns
of North West England
following the Municipal Corporations Act 1835, but is one of only two in Greater Manchester built in the Gothic style. Between the setting of the foundation stone and the building's completion, revisions and additions were made to the original design. Money was "lavished" upon the decor and inventory, and the extra expenditure did not escape the ire of its critics. The cost of the building increased year-on-year through a combination of mismanagement, overspending and "unauthorised work". Public criticism of the high cost was aimed at Crossland and the Mayor of Rochdale, George Leach Ashworth, who oversaw the work. Nevertheless, Rochdale Town Hall was ultimately celebrated as "a source of pride", and its completion prompted celebration and rejoicing; it transformed a "derelict and marshy riverbank in to a huge romantic Gothic plaza". The opening ceremony on 27 September 1871 was performed by Mayor Ashworth, who had been instrumental in the changes made to the building's design.
In 1882 or 1883 dry rot
was found in the 240 feet (73 m) high spire. On the recommendation of Rochdale's Borough Surveyor, contractors were engaged to rebuild it. The spire was to be demolished to clear the way for a replacement. It was rumoured that the workmen who were dismantling the top section of the wooden spire may have tried to speed up the dismantling process with matches and, at 9:20 am on 10 April 1883, a blaze was discovered. Despite the efforts of volunteers and the local fire brigade
, 100 minutes after the discovery of the fire the entire spire, including a statue of Saint George and the Dragon
, had been destroyed. The cause of the fire was never established, but Rochdale's fire service was criticised for taking longer to respond to the blaze than Oldham
's, (based 5 miles (8 km) south), despite the Rochdale Fire Brigade being based in the Town Hall. Alfred Waterhouse
was given the task of designing a 190 feet (57.9 m) stone replacement. His work on the clock tower, which was built between 1885 and 1887 about 15 yards (13.7 m) further to the east than the original, shows many similarities to Manchester Town Hall
, which he also designed. The tower was opened in 1888; an inscribed plaque commemorates the fire of 1883.
On 15 January 1931, at the height of the Great Depression in the United Kingdom
, the Territorial Army was called to guard the Town Hall during a protest against unemployment and hunger.
In May 1938, Rochdale-born actress, singer and comedienne Gracie Fields
was granted Honorary Freedom of the Borough
for her contribution to entertainment. "When the ceremony was over, Gracie went onto the town hall balcony to receive the cheers and good wishes of the thousands of people who were packing the streets below."
Although it is not fully understood how it came to his attention, Rochdale Town Hall was admired by Adolf Hitler
. It has been suggested a visit by Hitler in 1912–13 while staying with his half-brother Alois Hitler, Jr.
in Liverpool
, or military intelligence on Rochdale, or information from Nazi sympathiser William Joyce
(who had lived in Oldham
), brought the building to his attention. Hitler admired the architecture so much that it is believed he wished to ship the building, brick-by-brick, to Nazi Germany
had German-occupied Europe encompassed the United Kingdom. Rochdale was broadly avoided by German bombers during the Second World War.
(53.6156°, −2.1594°), Rochdale Town Hall is the centerpiece of Rochdale, located in Town Hall Square to the south of The Esplanade and the River Roch
. The Parish Church of St Chad is situated by the wooded hillside behind the Town Hall. In Town Hall Square, opposite the Town Hall, is a statue of John Bright
, dated 1891, and the Rochdale War Memorial. Bright was a Rochdale-born orator, pacifist and Member of Parliament
for Birmingham
known for his campaigns to repeal the Corn Laws
as well as his opposition to slavery in the United States and the Crimean War
. Touchstones
art gallery and local studies centre is across The Esplanade.
of three arches intersected by buttresses. Decorating the main entrance are stone crocket
s, gargoyle
s, and finials. Four gilded lions above a parapet around three sides of the portico
bear shields carrying the coats of arms of Rochdale Council and the hundred of Salford
.
Rochdale Town Hall is 264 feet (80 m) wide, 123 feet (37 m) deep, and is faced with millstone grit
quarried from Blackstone Edge
and Todmorden
. Although now blackened by industrial pollution, the building has been described as a "rich example of domestic Gothic architecture". Naturalistic carved foliage on the exterior recalls the style of Southwell Minster
, and the architecture is influenced by Perpendicular Period and medieval town halls of continental Europe. The building has been likened to Manchester Town Hall
, Manchester Assize Courts
, the Royal Courts of Justice
, and St Pancras railway station
, all products of the Gothic Revival architectural movement. The stained glass windows, some of which were designed by William Morris
, have been described as "the finest modern examples of their kind". At each end of the frontage is an octagonal staircase.
In the words of Nikolaus Pevsner
, Rochdale Town Hall has "a splendidly craggy exterior of blackened stone". The building has a roughly symmetrical E-shaped plan, and is broken down into three self-contained segments: a central Great Hall and transverse wings at each end, which have variously been used as debating chambers, corporation-rooms, trade and a public hall. The south-east wing used to house the magistrates' courts, and the north-west wing the mayor's rooms. In the north-east is a tower. Access to the main entrance is through a central porte cochere
. The façade extends across 14 bays
, of which the Great Hall accounts for seven. On both sides, the outermost bays rise to three storeys. They flank asymmetric round-headed arcades—two to the left and three to the right, all of single-storey height—which sit below plain mullion
ed windows, balconies and ornately decorated gable
s.
, which has a stone spire, was built to replace the one destroyed in the 1883 fire. It was designed by Alfred Waterhouse
in a similar style to one of his earlier works, the clock tower of Manchester Town Hall
. The first stone was laid by Thomas Schofield JP
, Alderman
and Rochdale Borough Councillor
, on 19 October 1885 and the tower was declared complete on 20 June 1887, the Golden Jubilee
of Queen Victoria
. It contains five bells which ring on the hour and at 15-minute intervals. The design of the original tower was more elaborate and 50 feet (15.2 m) higher than its successor, which is 190 feet (57.9 m) tall.
The tower rises from a plinth
and has four stages including the gable-headed clock stage, which is also decorated with pinnacles. A small stone spire completes the composition.
, and the Great Hall is adorned with a large fresco of the signing of Magna Carta
by artist Henry Holiday
, although the painting is dirty. Responsibility for the decoration of the interior was given to Heaton, Butler and Bayne
, who incorporated floor tiles that were manufactured by Mintons and decorated with the local insignia and the Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom
. The stone Grand Staircase, which leads from the vestibule to the Great Hall, is decorated with stained glass; such glass windows decorate most of the Town Hall and are considered to be the finest example of the work of Heaton, Butler and Bayne. The medieval style
Great Hall, described by Pevsner as a room of "great splendour and simplicity", has a hammerbeam roof
flanked by statues of angels, in a design that resembles Westminster Hall.
, and 3,701 listed buildings of all grades, in Greater Manchester. Within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
, it is one of only three Grade I listed buildings, and 312 listed buildings of all grades.
Although the majority of local government functions take place in Rochdale's Municipal Offices building, Rochdale Town Hall continues to be used for cultural and ceremonial functions. For instance it is used for the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale's mayor
alty, civil registry
, and for formal naturalisation in British Citizenship ceremonies
.
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
municipal building in Rochdale
Rochdale
Rochdale is a large market town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the foothills of the Pennines on the River Roch, north-northwest of Oldham, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester. Rochdale is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan...
, Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, England. It is "widely recognised as being one of the finest municipal buildings in the country", and is rated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade I listed building
Grade I listed buildings in Greater Manchester
-See also:*Architecture of Manchester*Conservation in the United Kingdom*Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester*List of tallest buildings in Manchester*Scheduled Monuments in Greater Manchester-Bibliography:...
. The Town Hall functions as the ceremonial headquarters of Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council
Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
The Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in North West England. It is named after its largest town, Rochdale, but spans a far larger area which includes the towns of Middleton, Heywood, Littleborough and Milnrow, and the village of Wardle.The borough was...
and houses local government departments, including the borough's civil registration office
Civil registry
Civil registration is the system by which a government records the vital events of its citizens and residents. The resulting repository or database is called civil register or registry, or population registry. The primary purpose of civil registration is to create legal documents that are used to...
.
Built in the Gothic Revival style
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
at a cost of £160,000 (£ as of ), it was inaugurated for the governance of the Municipal Borough of Rochdale
County Borough of Rochdale
Rochdale was, from 1856 to 1974, a local government district coterminate with the town of Rochdale in the northwest of England.-Municipal borough:...
on 27 September 1871. The architect, William Henry Crossland
William Henry Crossland
William Henry Crossland was a nineteenth century architect and a pupil of George Gilbert Scott.-Principal works:Crossland's three most important commissions were:...
, was the winner of a competition held in 1864 to design a new Town Hall. It had a 240 feet (73 m) clock tower
Clock tower
A clock tower is a tower specifically built with one or more clock faces. Clock towers can be either freestanding or part of a church or municipal building such as a town hall. Some clock towers are not true clock towers having had their clock faces added to an already existing building...
topped by a wooden spire with a gilded statue of Saint George and the Dragon
Saint George and the Dragon
The episode of Saint George and the Dragon appended to the hagiography of Saint George was Eastern in origin, brought back with the Crusaders and retold with the courtly appurtenances belonging to the genre of Romance...
, both of which were destroyed by fire on 10 April 1883, leaving the building without a spire for four years. A new 190 feet (58 m) stone clock tower and spire in the style of Manchester Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall is a Victorian-era, Neo-gothic municipal building in Manchester, England. The building functions as the ceremonial headquarters of Manchester City Council and houses a number of local government departments....
was designed by Alfred Waterhouse
Alfred Waterhouse
Alfred Waterhouse was a British architect, particularly associated with the Victorian Gothic Revival architecture. He is perhaps best known for his design for the Natural History Museum in London, and Manchester Town Hall, although he also built a wide variety of other buildings throughout the...
, and erected in 1888.
Art critic Nikolaus Pevsner
Nikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, FBA was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture...
described the building as possessing a "rare picturesque beauty". Its stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
windows are credited as "the finest modern examples of their kind". The building came to the attention of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
, who was said to have admired it so much that he wished to ship the building, brick-by-brick, to Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
had the United Kingdom been defeated in the Second World War.
History
Rochdale had developed into an increasingly large, populous, and prosperous urban mill townMill town
A mill town, also known as factory town or mill village, is typically a settlement that developed around one or more mills or factories .- United Kingdom:...
since the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
. Its newly built rail and canal network, and numerous factories, resulted in the town being "remarkable for many wealthy merchants". In January 1856 the electorate of the Rochdale constituency
Rochdale (UK Parliament constituency)
Rochdale is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Boundaries:...
petitioned the Privy Council for the grant of a charter of incorporation
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835
Municipal Corporations Act 1835
The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 – sometimes known as the Municipal Reform Act, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in the incorporated boroughs of England and Wales...
, to constitute the town as a municipal borough
Municipal borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002...
. This would give it limited political autonomy via an elected town council, comprising a mayor, aldermen
Alderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
, and councillor
Councillor
A councillor or councilor is a member of a local government council, such as a city council.Often in the United States, the title is councilman or councilwoman.-United Kingdom:...
s, to oversee local affairs. The petition was successful and the charter was granted in September 1856. The newly formed Rochdale Corporation—the local authority for the Municipal Borough of Rochdale
County Borough of Rochdale
Rochdale was, from 1856 to 1974, a local government district coterminate with the town of Rochdale in the northwest of England.-Municipal borough:...
—suggested plans to build a town hall in which to conduct its business in May 1858. The site of an abandoned 17th-century house known as The Wood was proposed. Six months later, in April 1860, Rochdale Corporation arranged to buy the site on the outskirts of the town centre for £4,730 (£ as of ). However, plans were shelved due to lengthy negotiations and increasing land prices. In January 1864 the scheme resumed with a new budget of £20,000 (£ as of ). The wood and surrounding area were cleared, but it is unknown what became of the dispossessed; there was no legal requirement for the authorities to rehouse the former inhabitants. A design competition to find a "neat and elegant building" was held by the Rochdale Corporation, who offered the winning architect a prize of £100 (£ as of ), and a Maltese cross
Maltese cross
The Maltese cross, also known as the Amalfi cross, is identified as the symbol of an order of Christian warriors known as the Knights Hospitaller or Knights of Malta and through them came to be identified with the Mediterranean island of Malta and is one of the National symbols of Malta...
souvenir. From the 27 entries received, William Henry Crossland
William Henry Crossland
William Henry Crossland was a nineteenth century architect and a pupil of George Gilbert Scott.-Principal works:Crossland's three most important commissions were:...
's was chosen. The Rochdale-born Radical
Radicals (UK)
The Radicals were a parliamentary political grouping in the United Kingdom in the early to mid 19th century, who drew on earlier ideas of radicalism and helped to transform the Whigs into the Liberal Party.-Background:...
and Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
statesman John Bright
John Bright
John Bright , Quaker, was a British Radical and Liberal statesman, associated with Richard Cobden in the formation of the Anti-Corn Law League. He was one of the greatest orators of his generation, and a strong critic of British foreign policy...
laid the foundation stone on 31 March 1866. Construction was complete by 1871 although the cost had, by then, increased beyond expectations from the projected £40,000 to £160,000 (£ as of ).
The Town Hall was one of several built in the textile towns
Mill town
A mill town, also known as factory town or mill village, is typically a settlement that developed around one or more mills or factories .- United Kingdom:...
of North West England
North West England
North West England, informally known as The North West, is one of the nine official regions of England.North West England had a 2006 estimated population of 6,853,201 the third most populated region after London and the South East...
following the Municipal Corporations Act 1835, but is one of only two in Greater Manchester built in the Gothic style. Between the setting of the foundation stone and the building's completion, revisions and additions were made to the original design. Money was "lavished" upon the decor and inventory, and the extra expenditure did not escape the ire of its critics. The cost of the building increased year-on-year through a combination of mismanagement, overspending and "unauthorised work". Public criticism of the high cost was aimed at Crossland and the Mayor of Rochdale, George Leach Ashworth, who oversaw the work. Nevertheless, Rochdale Town Hall was ultimately celebrated as "a source of pride", and its completion prompted celebration and rejoicing; it transformed a "derelict and marshy riverbank in to a huge romantic Gothic plaza". The opening ceremony on 27 September 1871 was performed by Mayor Ashworth, who had been instrumental in the changes made to the building's design.
In 1882 or 1883 dry rot
Dry rot
Dry rot refers to a type of wood decay caused by certain types of fungi, also known as True Dry Rot, that digests parts of the wood which give the wood strength and stiffness...
was found in the 240 feet (73 m) high spire. On the recommendation of Rochdale's Borough Surveyor, contractors were engaged to rebuild it. The spire was to be demolished to clear the way for a replacement. It was rumoured that the workmen who were dismantling the top section of the wooden spire may have tried to speed up the dismantling process with matches and, at 9:20 am on 10 April 1883, a blaze was discovered. Despite the efforts of volunteers and the local fire brigade
History of fire brigades in the United Kingdom
The history of fire brigades in the United Kingdom is complex due to many re-organisations having taken place.The first fire engines and crews were provided by voluntary bodies, parish authorities or insurance companies. James Braidwood founded the world's first municipal fire service in Edinburgh...
, 100 minutes after the discovery of the fire the entire spire, including a statue of Saint George and the Dragon
Saint George and the Dragon
The episode of Saint George and the Dragon appended to the hagiography of Saint George was Eastern in origin, brought back with the Crusaders and retold with the courtly appurtenances belonging to the genre of Romance...
, had been destroyed. The cause of the fire was never established, but Rochdale's fire service was criticised for taking longer to respond to the blaze than Oldham
County Borough of Oldham
Oldham was, from 1849 to 1974, a local government district in the northwest of England coterminate with the town of Oldham.-Improvement Commissioners:...
's, (based 5 miles (8 km) south), despite the Rochdale Fire Brigade being based in the Town Hall. Alfred Waterhouse
Alfred Waterhouse
Alfred Waterhouse was a British architect, particularly associated with the Victorian Gothic Revival architecture. He is perhaps best known for his design for the Natural History Museum in London, and Manchester Town Hall, although he also built a wide variety of other buildings throughout the...
was given the task of designing a 190 feet (57.9 m) stone replacement. His work on the clock tower, which was built between 1885 and 1887 about 15 yards (13.7 m) further to the east than the original, shows many similarities to Manchester Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall is a Victorian-era, Neo-gothic municipal building in Manchester, England. The building functions as the ceremonial headquarters of Manchester City Council and houses a number of local government departments....
, which he also designed. The tower was opened in 1888; an inscribed plaque commemorates the fire of 1883.
On 15 January 1931, at the height of the Great Depression in the United Kingdom
Great Depression in the United Kingdom
The Great Depression in the United Kingdom, also known as the Great Slump, was a period of national economic downturn in the 1930s, which had its origins in the global Great Depression...
, the Territorial Army was called to guard the Town Hall during a protest against unemployment and hunger.
In May 1938, Rochdale-born actress, singer and comedienne Gracie Fields
Gracie Fields
Dame Gracie Fields, DBE , was an English-born, later Italian-based actress, singer and comedienne and star of both cinema and music hall.-Early life:...
was granted Honorary Freedom of the Borough
Honorary Freedom of Boroughs Act 1885
The Honorary Freedom of Boroughs Act 1885 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that gave the councils of municipal boroughs in England and Wales the power to award the title of honorary freeman to "persons of distinction and any persons who have rendered emininent services to the...
for her contribution to entertainment. "When the ceremony was over, Gracie went onto the town hall balcony to receive the cheers and good wishes of the thousands of people who were packing the streets below."
Although it is not fully understood how it came to his attention, Rochdale Town Hall was admired by Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
. It has been suggested a visit by Hitler in 1912–13 while staying with his half-brother Alois Hitler, Jr.
Alois Hitler, Jr.
Alois Hitler, Jr., born Alois Matzelsberger , was the son of Alois Hitler and Franziska Matzelsberger, and was the half-brother of Adolf Hitler.-Early life:...
in Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, or military intelligence on Rochdale, or information from Nazi sympathiser William Joyce
William Joyce
William Joyce , nicknamed Lord Haw-Haw, was an Irish-American fascist politician and Nazi propaganda broadcaster to the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He was hanged for treason by the British as a result of his wartime activities, even though he had renounced his British nationality...
(who had lived in Oldham
Oldham
Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amid the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers Irk and Medlock, south-southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of the city of Manchester...
), brought the building to his attention. Hitler admired the architecture so much that it is believed he wished to ship the building, brick-by-brick, to Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
had German-occupied Europe encompassed the United Kingdom. Rochdale was broadly avoided by German bombers during the Second World War.
Location
At OS Grid ReferenceBritish national grid reference system
The Ordnance Survey National Grid reference system is a system of geographic grid references used in Great Britain, different from using latitude and longitude....
(53.6156°, −2.1594°), Rochdale Town Hall is the centerpiece of Rochdale, located in Town Hall Square to the south of The Esplanade and the River Roch
River Roch
The River Roch is a river in Greater Manchester in North West England, a tributary of the River Irwell that gives Rochdale its name.-Course:...
. The Parish Church of St Chad is situated by the wooded hillside behind the Town Hall. In Town Hall Square, opposite the Town Hall, is a statue of John Bright
John Bright
John Bright , Quaker, was a British Radical and Liberal statesman, associated with Richard Cobden in the formation of the Anti-Corn Law League. He was one of the greatest orators of his generation, and a strong critic of British foreign policy...
, dated 1891, and the Rochdale War Memorial. Bright was a Rochdale-born orator, pacifist and Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Birmingham
Birmingham (UK Parliament constituency)
Birmingham was a parliamentary constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the city of Birmingham, in what is now the West Midlands Metropolitan County, but at the time was Warwickshire.-Boundaries and History:...
known for his campaigns to repeal the Corn Laws
Corn Laws
The Corn Laws were trade barriers designed to protect cereal producers in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland against competition from less expensive foreign imports between 1815 and 1846. The barriers were introduced by the Importation Act 1815 and repealed by the Importation Act 1846...
as well as his opposition to slavery in the United States and the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
. Touchstones
Touchstones
Touchstones Rochdale is an art gallery, museum, local studies centre, tourist information centre and café in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England....
art gallery and local studies centre is across The Esplanade.
Exterior and layout
The frontage and principal entrance of the Town Hall face the River Roch, and comprises a porticoPortico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
of three arches intersected by buttresses. Decorating the main entrance are stone crocket
Crocket
A crocket is a hook-shaped decorative element common in Gothic architecture. It is in the form of a stylised carving of curled leaves, buds or flowers which is used at regular intervals to decorate the sloping edges of spires, finials, pinnacles, and wimpergs....
s, gargoyle
Gargoyle
In architecture, a gargoyle is a carved stone grotesque, usually made of granite, with a spout designed to convey water from a roof and away from the side of a building thereby preventing rainwater from running down masonry walls and eroding the mortar between...
s, and finials. Four gilded lions above a parapet around three sides of the portico
Portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
bear shields carrying the coats of arms of Rochdale Council and the hundred of Salford
Salford (hundred)
The hundred of Salford was an ancient division of the historic county of Lancashire, in Northern England. It was sometimes known as Salfordshire, the name alluding to its judicial centre being the township of Salford...
.
Rochdale Town Hall is 264 feet (80 m) wide, 123 feet (37 m) deep, and is faced with millstone grit
Millstone Grit
Millstone Grit is the name given to any of a number of coarse-grained sandstones of Carboniferous age which occur in the Northern England. The name derives from its use in earlier times as a source of millstones for use principally in watermills...
quarried from Blackstone Edge
Blackstone Edge
Blackstone Edge is a gritstone escarpment at 1,549 feet above sea level in an area of moorland on the Greater Manchester–West Yorkshire county boundary, England....
and Todmorden
Todmorden
Todmorden is a market town and civil parish, located 17 miles from Manchester, within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, England. It forms part of the Upper Calder Valley and has a total population of 14,941....
. Although now blackened by industrial pollution, the building has been described as a "rich example of domestic Gothic architecture". Naturalistic carved foliage on the exterior recalls the style of Southwell Minster
Southwell Minster
Southwell Minster is a minster and cathedral, in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, England. It is six miles away from Newark-on-Trent and thirteen miles from Mansfield. It is the seat of the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham and the Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham.It is considered an outstanding...
, and the architecture is influenced by Perpendicular Period and medieval town halls of continental Europe. The building has been likened to Manchester Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall is a Victorian-era, Neo-gothic municipal building in Manchester, England. The building functions as the ceremonial headquarters of Manchester City Council and houses a number of local government departments....
, Manchester Assize Courts
Manchester assize courts
The Manchester Assize Courts were law courts once located on Great Ducie Street in Strangeways, Manchester in England. From 1864 to 1877, the 85 metre building was the tallest in Manchester before being overtaken by the Manchester Town Hall...
, the Royal Courts of Justice
Royal Courts of Justice
The Royal Courts of Justice, commonly called the Law Courts, is the building in London which houses the Court of Appeal of England and Wales and the High Court of Justice of England and Wales...
, and St Pancras railway station
St Pancras railway station
St Pancras railway station, also known as London St Pancras and since 2007 as St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus celebrated for its Victorian architecture. The Grade I listed building stands on Euston Road in St Pancras, London Borough of Camden, between the...
, all products of the Gothic Revival architectural movement. The stained glass windows, some of which were designed by William Morris
William Morris
William Morris 24 March 18343 October 1896 was an English textile designer, artist, writer, and socialist associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and the English Arts and Crafts Movement...
, have been described as "the finest modern examples of their kind". At each end of the frontage is an octagonal staircase.
In the words of Nikolaus Pevsner
Nikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, FBA was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture...
, Rochdale Town Hall has "a splendidly craggy exterior of blackened stone". The building has a roughly symmetrical E-shaped plan, and is broken down into three self-contained segments: a central Great Hall and transverse wings at each end, which have variously been used as debating chambers, corporation-rooms, trade and a public hall. The south-east wing used to house the magistrates' courts, and the north-west wing the mayor's rooms. In the north-east is a tower. Access to the main entrance is through a central porte cochere
Porte-cochere
A porte-cochère is the architectural term for a porch- or portico-like structure at a main or secondary entrance to a building through which a horse and carriage can pass in order for the occupants to alight under cover, protected from the weather.The porte-cochère was a feature of many late 18th...
. The façade extends across 14 bays
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
, of which the Great Hall accounts for seven. On both sides, the outermost bays rise to three storeys. They flank asymmetric round-headed arcades—two to the left and three to the right, all of single-storey height—which sit below plain mullion
Mullion
A mullion is a vertical structural element which divides adjacent window units. The primary purpose of the mullion is as a structural support to an arch or lintel above the window opening. Its secondary purpose may be as a rigid support to the glazing of the window...
ed windows, balconies and ornately decorated gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
s.
Clock tower
The present clock towerClock tower
A clock tower is a tower specifically built with one or more clock faces. Clock towers can be either freestanding or part of a church or municipal building such as a town hall. Some clock towers are not true clock towers having had their clock faces added to an already existing building...
, which has a stone spire, was built to replace the one destroyed in the 1883 fire. It was designed by Alfred Waterhouse
Alfred Waterhouse
Alfred Waterhouse was a British architect, particularly associated with the Victorian Gothic Revival architecture. He is perhaps best known for his design for the Natural History Museum in London, and Manchester Town Hall, although he also built a wide variety of other buildings throughout the...
in a similar style to one of his earlier works, the clock tower of Manchester Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall is a Victorian-era, Neo-gothic municipal building in Manchester, England. The building functions as the ceremonial headquarters of Manchester City Council and houses a number of local government departments....
. The first stone was laid by Thomas Schofield JP
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
, Alderman
Alderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
and Rochdale Borough Councillor
Councillor
A councillor or councilor is a member of a local government council, such as a city council.Often in the United States, the title is councilman or councilwoman.-United Kingdom:...
, on 19 October 1885 and the tower was declared complete on 20 June 1887, the Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee
A Golden Jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 50th anniversary.- In Thailand :King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world's longest-reigning monarch, celebrated his Golden Jubilee on 9 June 1996.- In the Commonwealth Realms :...
of Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
. It contains five bells which ring on the hour and at 15-minute intervals. The design of the original tower was more elaborate and 50 feet (15.2 m) higher than its successor, which is 190 feet (57.9 m) tall.
The tower rises from a plinth
Plinth
In architecture, a plinth is the base or platform upon which a column, pedestal, statue, monument or structure rests. Gottfried Semper's The Four Elements of Architecture posited that the plinth, the hearth, the roof, and the wall make up all of architectural theory. The plinth usually rests...
and has four stages including the gable-headed clock stage, which is also decorated with pinnacles. A small stone spire completes the composition.
Interior
Murals in the former council chamber depict the inventions that drove the Industrial RevolutionIndustrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, and the Great Hall is adorned with a large fresco of the signing of Magna Carta
Magna Carta
Magna Carta is an English charter, originally issued in the year 1215 and reissued later in the 13th century in modified versions, which included the most direct challenges to the monarch's authority to date. The charter first passed into law in 1225...
by artist Henry Holiday
Henry Holiday
Henry Holiday was an English historical genre and landscape painter, stained glass designer, illustrator and sculptor. He is considered to be a member of the Pre-Raphaelite school of art.-Early years and training:...
, although the painting is dirty. Responsibility for the decoration of the interior was given to Heaton, Butler and Bayne
Heaton, Butler and Bayne
Heaton, Butler and Bayne is the name of an English firm who produced stained glass windows from 1855 onwards.-History:Clement Heaton originally founded his own stained glass firm in 1852, joined by James Butler in 1855. Between 1859-61 they worked alongside Clayton and Bell and were joined by...
, who incorporated floor tiles that were manufactured by Mintons and decorated with the local insignia and the Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom
Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom
The Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom is the official coat of arms of the British monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II. These arms are used by the Queen in her official capacity as monarch of the United Kingdom, and are officially known as her Arms of Dominion...
. The stone Grand Staircase, which leads from the vestibule to the Great Hall, is decorated with stained glass; such glass windows decorate most of the Town Hall and are considered to be the finest example of the work of Heaton, Butler and Bayne. The medieval style
Medieval architecture
Medieval architecture is a term used to represent various forms of architecture common in Medieval Europe.-Characteristics:-Religious architecture:...
Great Hall, described by Pevsner as a room of "great splendour and simplicity", has a hammerbeam roof
Hammerbeam roof
Hammerbeam roof, in architecture, is the name given to an open timber roof, typical of English Gothic architecture, using short beams projecting from the wall.- Design :...
flanked by statues of angels, in a design that resembles Westminster Hall.
Heritage status and function
The Town Hall was listed at Grade I by English Heritage on 25 October 1951. Such buildings are defined as being of "exceptional interest, sometimes considered to be internationally important". As of February 2001, it was one of 39 Grade I listed buildingsGrade I listed buildings in Greater Manchester
-See also:*Architecture of Manchester*Conservation in the United Kingdom*Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester*List of tallest buildings in Manchester*Scheduled Monuments in Greater Manchester-Bibliography:...
, and 3,701 listed buildings of all grades, in Greater Manchester. Within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
The Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in North West England. It is named after its largest town, Rochdale, but spans a far larger area which includes the towns of Middleton, Heywood, Littleborough and Milnrow, and the village of Wardle.The borough was...
, it is one of only three Grade I listed buildings, and 312 listed buildings of all grades.
Although the majority of local government functions take place in Rochdale's Municipal Offices building, Rochdale Town Hall continues to be used for cultural and ceremonial functions. For instance it is used for the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale's mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
alty, civil registry
Civil registry
Civil registration is the system by which a government records the vital events of its citizens and residents. The resulting repository or database is called civil register or registry, or population registry. The primary purpose of civil registration is to create legal documents that are used to...
, and for formal naturalisation in British Citizenship ceremonies
British nationality law
British nationality law is the law of the United Kingdom that concerns citizenship and other categories of British nationality. The law is complex because of the United Kingdom's former status as an imperial power.-History:...
.