Rochdale Town Hall [leisure trust, arts heritage, sports centres, fitness health, rochdale, link4life, entertainment, Rochdale Boroughwide Cultural Trust, museum, middleton arena, gallery, touchstones, local studies, central, bowlee, springhill, marland, heywood, littleborough,]
Rochdale Town Hall, raising principal beam (1868)
Rochdale Borough's old town crest.
Rochdale Town Hall with its original tower (c.1871)
Building the new tower in 1886.
The Wood, site of Rochdale Town Hall (c.1860)
Town Hall, etching of grand staircase by W.H Crossland, architect. 1871
Town Hall, grand staircase 1969
Etching of the Great Hall, Rochdale Town Hall (1871)
Corbel of Edward Taylor in the Mayor's Reception Room, Rochdale Town Hall.
Tiled floor in the Exchange, Rochdale Town Hall
ROCHDALE TOWN HALL IN 1871
Taken from Rochdale Jubilee. A Record of fifty years of Municipal Work. 1856 to 1906.
AMONG the Town Halls of England there are few, if any, which surpass that of Rochdale. Its outward beauty and its internal decorations are remarkable, the accommodation is ample, and the situation is admirably chosen. A stranger entering Rochdale by Manchester Road is confronted with a scene that few Lancashire towns can equal : on one hand the Park Slopes, with their buildings and memorials, and the Town Hall in the middle distance ; and on the opposite side of the broad thoroughfare the Art Gallery and Free Library, the Orchard (the town house of the Lord of the Manor), and the line of the river parapet stretching away to the Central Square.
The building of town halls in the last half century is properly regarded as an outcome of the reform of Municipal government; it is not less true that the movement for the better housing of the people is responsible for the improved environment of these often stately buildings. A great change has been made in the vicinity of the Town Hall in recent years. Much old property of evil reputation has been cleared away; substantial buildings flank the easterly side of the Square, and the once dangerous path through the “Wood” is now a spacious Esplanade sufficiently wide to enable the proportions and the engaging lines of the civic hall to be appreciated by the onlooker.
It is interesting to recall the description of the “Wood” given by Mr. Ruskin after a visit to Rochdale :—
“Set close under the hill and beside the river, perhaps built somewhere in the Stuart times, with mullioned windows and a low arched porch, round which, in the little triangular garden, one can imagine the family as they used to sit in old summer times; the ripple of the river heard faintly through the sweetbriar hedge, and the sheep on the far off wolds shining in the evening sunlight. There uninhabited for many and many a year, it had been left in unregarded havoc of ruin; the garden gate still swung close to its latch, the garden blighted utterly into a field of ashes, not even a weed taking root there; the roof torn into shapeless rents the shutters hanging about the windows in rags of rotten wood; before its gate the stream that had gladdened it, now soaking slowly by, black as ebony, and thick with curdling scum; the banks above it trodden into unctuous, sooty slime ; far in front of it, between it and the old hills, the furnaces of the city foaming forth perpetual plagues of sulphurous darkness ; the volumes of the storm clouds coiling low over a waste of grassless fields, fenced from each other not by hedges, hut by slabs of square stones, like gravestones, rivetted together with iron.” (* Quoted in “History of the Parish of Rochdale,” Lieut. Colonel Fishwick, pages 335- 6).
To the same imaginative writer is credited a share in the influence of that romantic movement and craving for the beautiful, which is exemplified especially in the Church building and restoration of the last half century. Regarding the use and care of buildings he says :—
“Buildings are not ours. They belong partly to those who built them, and partly to all the generations of mankind who are to follow us. The dead have still their right in them. . . . What we have ourselves built, we are at liberty to throw down; but what other men gave their strength, and wealth, and life to accomplish their right over does not pass away with their death; still less is the right to the use of what they have left vested in us only. It belongs to all their successors.” (Lamps of Architecture, c. VI, Sec. 20)
Public buildings are among our best symbols; they are evidences of what a people is; and one of the most gratifying signs of the times is that in domestic as well as municipal and national architecture there is a growing regard paid to beauty and comfort as well as utility. In old cities where clearances have not yet been made in obedience to the modern spirit, a cathedral or a town hail generally presents a study in contrasts, standing as it often does in the midst of dwellings of the most pitiable description. The work of the reformer consists not only in the removal of these purlieus, but also in the creation of more tolerable conditions for the dwellers who are displaced. So that the provision, as in Rochdale, of open spaces round public buildings is an indication that progress is probably being effected in the housing of the people.
The determination of the Town Hall site has been amply justified. Half a century ago the question excited much controversy. Mr. Kelsalls’ house in the Butts, the Orchard, the Wellington Hotel, and others were mentioned as affording better positions. It must have seemed like taking the Town Hall out of the town, to set it in the place of the “Wood.” But a site had to be found somewhere. The town had just been incorporated, times were prosperous, and the civic dignity must be maintained. The scheme was mooted in May 1858; a few weeks later definite proposals were considered, and in October of the following year the “Wood” site with some adjoining plots was recommended to the Council. In April 1860 authority was given for the purchase of the land at a cost not exceeding £4,73O. The negotiations were suspended, however, in November, owing to difficulties over the price having arisen, and the scheme then lay in abeyance for four years. The differences were eventually amicably disposed of, and at the beginning of 1864 the Council advertised for plans for a building which was to cost about £20,000. A prize of £100, with a Maltese cross as a souvenir, was offered, and twenty-seven designs were entered for competition. Mr. W. H. Crossland, of Leeds, gained the award, and his plans were subsequently adopted.
By the end of the year contracts were let, the work of excavation was begun, and, on March 31st 1866, the corner stone of the superstructure was laid by the Right Honourable John Bright. Five and a half years elapsed before the undertaking was completed, and during that time constant additions were made to the early estimates. The town rose to its opportunity. Money was lavished upon the decoration and equipment of the place, and though the expenditure, which increased from the insignificant £20,000 at first mentioned to £155,000, did not escape without criticism, in the end the town possessed a building which will be a source of pride as long as the fabric endures. There were great rejoicings when the hail was completed. The opening ceremony on September 27th 1871, was performed by the Mayor, Alderman George Leach Ashworth, J.P., who, as Chairman of the General Purposes Committee, had carefully watched the progress of the work, and suggested many valuable improvements of the original scheme* (1)
The building is a rich example of domestic Gothic architecture. It comprises most of the chief peculiarities of the style, pointed arches, pinnacles and spires, great buttresses, clustered pillars, vaulted roofs, profusion of ornament, predominance of the perpendicular, and general boldness of design. It has been not inaptly likened to a cathedral, but it is more fittingly compared with the Manchester Town Hall and Assize Courts, the London Law Courts, and St. Pancras Station, which are products of the same movement. Many of its features may be perceived also in the public buildings of old continental towns, which were a favourite study of the architect.
The extreme length of the building is ninety-two yards, its greatest width forty-one yards, and it covers an area of 3,000 square yards, the plan having the form of the letter E, with the front elevation to the north. To the left of the main entrance are the Council Chamber and the mayor’s apartments, with the various Municipal Offices, and the Art School which is also for the present located in the east wing. To the right are the Magistrates’ room, the Police Station, and the Court of Justice. The great hall occupies the centre of the building and is accessible from all parts. It is a magnificent apartment and is enriched with a priceless collection of stained glass windows with portraits of the sovereigns of England.
The idea of using the main entrance hail as an Exchange was abandoned, and other changes have come about through lapse of time and the growing needs of the town’s business. The Free Library which was on the second floor at the east end has been occupied by the Art School, and the Library itself removed to the handsome building designed by the Borough Surveyor and erected on the opposite side of the Esplanade. The Fire Station, formerly occupying a portion of the building on the south-west side, is now located in splendidly equipped premises in Alfred Street , and other uses have been found for the extreme south-west wing which was originally intended as a residence for the Chief Constable.
The most imposing external feature of the new hall was the north-east tower with its. carved and panelled octagonal spire and symbolical group of St. George and the Dragon. The tower and spire which were destroyed by fire in 1883, rose to a height of 240 feet, and the rich gilding of the spire made it a conspicuous object wherever a view of Rochdale could be obtained from the hillsides above the valley of the Roch. The tower itself was 134 feet high and was built in five stages, the third providing a muniment room and the uppermost containing the clock. Over the entrance space for statues of statesmen and scientists was provided in thirteen niches, with carved gargoyles representing animals bearing shields. Larger shields with the Arms of the County and Borough were also displayed. The clock, with dials eleven feet in diameter, was enclosed in a cast-iron framework, and the bells were hung in the lower stages of the spire. There were twelve bells which chimed the hours and quarters as at Westminster, and they were furnished with a carillon of fourteen tunes.
Early in 1882 dry rot was discovered in the woodwork of the spire and the Borough Surveyor recommended its reconstruction. Without deciding upon the manner in which the spire should be replaced the Council agreed to its demolition, and this work had been begun when a disastrous fire occurred on the night of April 10th 1883. The cause of the outbreak was never satisfactorily established. It destroyed the spire and the great figure of St. George, the fall of which into the Square was witnessed by vast numbers of people. So much injury was also done to the tower that it had to be razed to within thirty feet of the ground. Subsequently, on the advice of Mr. A. Waterhouse, R.A., a new tower was erected about fifteen yards further to the east, leaving a porte cochère between it and the main building.
The new tower is of simpler design than its predecessor, and the spire or lantern is built entirely of stone. The total height is 190 feet, fifty feet less than the former structure. The clock has been replaced at the same height of 117 feet from the ground, and there are five bells which announce the hours and the quarters. But the carillon has not been reinstated, nor has any heroic device been employed upon the summit of the spire. The cost of the work was about £16,985, towards which £16,500 was received from the insurance companies, including £1,400 for damage to the Free Library.*(2)
The new tower was completed on June 20th 1887, on the occasion of Queen Victoria’s Jubilee, the Mayor, Alderman J. R. Heape, J.P., affixing to the wall a tablet with the following inscription :—
THE ORIGINAL TOWER OF THE
TOWN HALL WAS DESTROYED BY FIRE
ON THE 10TH APRIL 1883
THE FIRST STONE OF THIS TOWER
WAS LAID BY
ALDERMAN THOS. SCHOFIELD, J.P.
CHAIRMAN OF THE GENERAL PURPOSES
COMMITTEE ON THE 19TH OF OCT. 1885
AND THIS TABLET WAS PLACED HERE
BY THE MAYOR, JOSH. ROBT. HEAPE, J.P.
UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE TOWER
ON THE 20TH JUNE 1887, THE 50TH
ANNIVERSARY OF THE ACCESSION OF HER MAJESTY QUEEN VICTORIA
A. WATERHOUSE, R.A., ARCHITECT
W. A. PETERS & SONS, BUILDERS
ZACH. MELLOR, TOWN CLERK
The Town Hall is faced with millstone grit obtained from the neighbourhood of Blackstone Edge and Todmorden, and much carving and many symbolical devices have been employed in the decoration of the north elevation facing the Esplanade. In front of the Mayor’s parlour on the ground floor is an arcade with two arches and a groined canopy. Above this is a carved spire giving access to the roofs, and a balcony supported by a moulded corbel table. The line of the gable roof is broken up with corbel steps. A similar scheme is carried out on the right side of the portico. A balcony over the arcade in front of the police parade room leads to the Magistrates’ room and the private staircase giving access to the balcony is surmounted by a tapering roof and gilded vane. A stone battlement runs from this point along the front of the main hail until it meets the spire over the Mayor’s parlour. It is interrupted, however, over the centre window of the hall where is a niche that was intended for a statue of the late Queen Victoria. The supporting corbel is carved with the royal arms. On the roof of the great hall is a large gilded ventilating spire, capped with a vane. At either end of the building there is an octagonal staircase.
The portico provides the principal entrance to the building and is the same width as the Exchange. Its three arches fronting the roadway are intersected by buttresses, and a parapet is carried ro1ind the three sides of the portico. The general ornamentation consists of crockets, gargoyles, and finials, and above the parapet are the four gilded lions, the outer pair bearing shields with the arms of the Borough, and the inner pair those of the County and the Salford Hundred.
The entrance hall beyond the portico is still known as the Exchange, though it has never been used for this purpose. It is a large vestibule, seventy-two feet in length and thirty-nine feet in width, and it suggests at once something of the wealth and completeness of the internal decoration. The groined ceiling in red and white Mansfield stone is supported by polished columns of red and grey granite. The caps and bosses of the ceiling are in bath stone, carved to imitate oak, ivy and maple leaves intermingled with native birds and animals. The mouldings over the doors leading to the Council Chamber and elsewhere are terminated in heads of celebrated men and women including Henry IV and his Queen. The windows engage attention as the beginning of a wonderful series which constitute perhaps the chief glory of the building. Here are appropriately found the arms of the chief countries with which the town deals. Sweden, Norway, Switzerland. Denmark, Prussia, Austria, Greece, Belgium, Turkey, Russia, and Portugal, and others are represented. The tracery in the windows is suggested by the principal plants of commerce: wheat, tobacco, flax, hemp, jute, vine, indigo, tea, coffee, indiarubber, pimento, bark, orange, hop, &c. The floor is covered with heraldic designs executed in Minton tiles. It is divided into large squares in each of which is a diamond filled alternately with the Royal Arms, the Arms of the Duchy of Lancaster, and the Arms of the Borough. On each side of the shield o the Duchy is a feather ermine, the badge of John o’ Gaunt. The crest of the Duchy within a wreath of the livery colours of the House of Lancaster, blue and white, is repeated at the four corners, and all arc intertwined with Lancaster roses. The Arms of the Borough are surrounded by cotton plant foliage. A very curious error has crept into the motto, which is given as Credo Signo instead of Crede Signo.
Access is obtained from the Exchange to the Council Chamber, .the entrance to which is disfigured by an ugly screen, and to the Mayor’s apartments, to the gentlemen’s cloak room and the large hall, also to the ladies’ cloak room, the lavatories, and to the mezzanine quarters of the hall-keeper.
The grand staircase also leads from this vestibule to the large hall and is one of the noblest features of the building. The broad flight of steps is carried on massive stone piers, and is flanked on either side with a marble handrail on a panelled balustrading of traceried bathstone. The staircase is returned both to the left and right before it reaches the hail, and is then supported on arches, the spandrils of which are filled with shields set in foliage and bearing the Arms of the Borough and County alternately. The doorways leading into the hail have carving symbolising the four seasons, with oak and maple leaves in the moulding and caps. The ceiling, which is groined, is formed of red and white Mansfield stone, and rests on clustered marble shafts.
On the landing are marble busts of John Fenton (first member of Parliament for Rochdale, December 1832 to June 1835, and again from April 1837 to July 1841); Richard Cobden (returned to Parliament for Rochdale without a contest in April 1859 and representing the town until his death in April 1865); Thomas Bayley Potter (Member for Rochdale from April 1865 until his retirement in 1895); and John Bright, “the Tribune of the People.”
The head of the staircase is lighted by three great windows and these are supplemented by three others on either side the landing. The three principal windows are separated by mullions and transoms into nine lights each, and are filled with richly coloured glass containing a full blazon of the Arms of Great Britain, of the County, and of the Borough. In the middle light of the central window are the Royal Arms and the Imperial Crown with the motto of the Order of the Garter, “Honi soit qui mal y pense,” a crowned V in the dexter and a crowned R in the sinister light, with the monogram V.R. frequently repeated. In the lower middle light appears “ Dieu et mon droit,” the ancient English war cry, and the regular motto of England since the time of Henry VI, supported in the dexter and sinister by the lion and the unicorn respectively. In the three upper lights are the Rose, Shamrock, and Thistle, all crowned; and throughout the window these well-known badges, arms, and crests are intertwined with red and white roses. The left window has the County Anus in the centre, the supporters issuing from Lancaster roses surrounded by the S.S. collars, supposed to represent the word Soveraygne, the motto of Henry IV. In the window to the right is the finest illustration of the Borough Arms which is to be seen in the hall.
In the lights of these two windows, above and below the Arms of the County and the Borough, and in some of the side windows, are the Arms of the corporate towns in the Duchy. Each Coat of Arms is suspended from white and yellow foliage, and the ground colour is a subdued green. In addition to the towns thus represented are many of the principal cities, ports, and manufacturing centres of the kingdom, as well as Australia, Canada, the United States, the East India Company, the West India Merchants, the Levant Merchants, and Trinity House, the design being to demonstrate the extent of the town’s business relations and the interdependence of the great industrial and trading communities. A deep impression is produced by the combined harmony of glorious colouring in these windows, their beauty and suggestiveness, and the noble proportions and richness of the vestibule and stairway.
But they form only a prelude to the still greater richness and beauty of the hall itself. A generation after its erection and in the midst of a period characterised by much originality in the designing of public buildings, this apartment still remains one of the most magnificent municipal assembly rooms in the kingdom. It is usual to speak of it in the same breath with Westminster Hall and the House of Lords. In one respect at least it stands alone, in its possession of a series of historical portraits which are unique of their kind and cannot now be reproduced. But the hall is not only remarkable because of this display of painted glass. Its dimensions and its decorations are worthy of these treasures. The length of the room, exclusive of the orchestra, is ninety feet, and the breadth fifty-eight feet, and this great area is covered by a noble roof of single span, whose ridge is sixty-eight feet above the floor. This hammer-beam roof is supported by sixteen huge wooden levers which have been carved so as to represent angels, and are themselves reinforced by corbels in the fashion of various animals. The lateral pressure of such a roof must be enormous, and some few years ago it was found advisable to introduce tie-rods which have been so skilfully manipulated that the eye is not conscious of any incongruity even when the obtrusive members are pointed out. The artificial lighting of the hall is obtained from massive pendants from the angels, and here again a change from gas to electricity has been effected by a simple device, which has avoided the heavy expense that such a substitution might reasonably have involved. In the roof panels, which are of deal, the arms, badges, and legends of England and Ireland are painted in black and white, and the principals are decorated with the roses of Lancaster. The soffits of the principals are treated with gold to secure lightness and relief, while the Royal red and blue livery colours form an ornamental stringcourse. The labels round the hail are terminated in the heads of male and female characters of the 14th century. The wall diaper is still in good condition. It consists of a fine pattern which is painted in black and Indian red and extends to the mouldings and jambs of the windows. The hall is surrounded with an oak dado with carved drapery panels, and seating is carried all the way round. The floor is of Dantzic oak. The heads of the doorways leading to the staircase, the moulding over the seats, and the divisions between them are all richly carved. Behind the platform is an elegant arcade, the effect of which is somewhat marred by the heavy sounding board. Here again appear the Royal Arms and the British badges and legends.
At the opposite end of the hall is Mr. Henry Holiday’s well-known and striking fresco of the signing of Magna Charta. Over a score of figures appear in the picture and a number of the portraits are from life, while one friend of the artist posed for several of the studies. The primate and the barons stand expectant, while the King with his right hand on the document which was to consolidate the reforms of Henry I, delays, hesitating and unwilling, as though he were pondering the fact that he was soon to put into words “They have given me five and twenty Over-Kings.” “From the records which we possess it appears that the council lasted three or four days, and was held in an open field at Runnymede. It is therefore at least probable that tents were erected, and it has been assumed, in the treatment of the subject for the Town Hall, that the barons met the King in the royal pavilion. The form and arrangement of this tent have in the picture been determined chiefly by artistic consideration but with the endeavour to preserve at the same time the historical probabilities of the case. For the costume of the period there is fortunately abundant authority in the monumental effigies which still exist in excellent preservation. Stothard’s monumental effigies have supplied many of the portraits. Many of these represent persons actually engaged in this council, and make us acquainted, not merely with the features of the individuals, but with every detail of their arms and accoutrements, even to the patterns on their dress. Wherever such aid was to be obtained it has been made use of in giving to this picture as much historical accuracy as possible. The number of barons, bishops, squires, and other attendants present at the council must have been very great; but as probably a small portion only of these could have been assembled at any one time in the royal tent, it was thought desirable to represent only so many of the leading actors as could be included in the space, without a sense of confusion. On the King’s right is Stephen Langton, the Archbishop of Canterbury, whose crosier is borne by a chaplin behind him. On the left of the King stands one of his most faithful adherents, Richard Longespee, who wears a blue surcoat, emblazoned with his arms. On the extreme right are William Mareschal, Earl of Pembroke, and his son, both friends of King John. The earl is distinguished by his arms, a rampant lion gules upon a field vert and or; these appear also upon his shield, which is borne by his son. The shields were ordinarily carried by armour bearers; but as this would have involved the introduction of a number of uninteresting persons into the picture, it has been supposed, and with reasonable probability that, when assembling in the royal tent, the barons dispensed. with their attendants. It may be mentioned that it was not till the reign of King John that the custom of wearing heraldic arms became at all general—it was not universal till a later period. The centre figure in the picture, who places one hand on the charter which lies on the table between him and the King, is Robert Fitzwalter, styled by his party ‘The General of the Army of God.’ He and Roger Bigod (the foremost of the group behind the table) may he considered the most active leaders of the movement. The young knight, on whose red surcoat and shield appear the Bridgewater bougets, is the Baron de Ross, and near him in the foreground stands Robert de Vere, Earl of Oxford. It will be remembered that, as the result of this meeting, the King was compelled to accede to all the demands of the barons, who assembled in such overwhelming numbers that resistance was impossible. John being persuaded of this was obliged to make the best of the situation, and yield the various points with an appearance of good grace, though secretly determined at the first opportunity to recover the privileges he then signed away. In consequence of this behaviour, any appearance of violent opposition or passionate discussion on the part of the members.
The series begins at the platform end of the hall and on the north side. Generally one figure is in each light, but occasionally, as in the third light of the first window, two figures are introduced.
FIRST WINDOW. WILLIAM I, the Conqueror (1o66--1o87), succeeded by
WILLIAM II (1087—1100), his second son, in the absence of the eldest son Robert with the first crusade.
HENRY I (1100—1135) and STEPHEN (1135—1154). Henry was the third son of the Conqueror. An effort of Robert’s to gain the crown was repulsed, and the Conquest was “avenged,” Normandy, after the battle of Tenchebray, becoming a dependency of England. On Henry’s death London welcomed Stephen as King, grandson of the Conqueror on the maternal side.
In the upper lights of the windows are blazoned the Arms assigned to the sovereigns.* (3) The shields of William I and William II simply bear two lions passant-guardant or. The higher shield in the third light is similar. Stephen added a third lion for his wife, Matilda of Boulogne. Three golden centaurs which constituted his badge, are also ascribed to him as arms, and these appear in the lower shield.
SECOND WINDOW. HENRY 11(1154—1189). The direct line was restored in this grandson of HENRY I. In this reign town charters were granted, and for the first time the people began to feel their power while that of the barons was curtailed.
RICHARD I (1189—1199), son. The Crusading King.
JOHN (1199—1216), brother. Inroads on baronial and ecclesiastical power, disastrous wars, submission of John to the Pope, and the wresting of the Great Charter in 1215, marked the reign.
The shield of Henry II bears the three lions of England that have continued to be used until the present day. He added the third lion, the arms of his wife, on his marriage with Eleanor of Aquitaine. Through his mother’s marriage with Geoffrey of Anjou he was the first of the Plantagenets, and his badge the broom, or plantagenista, appears in the lights. Richard wears the cross of the crusader upon his breast, or it may be as the arms of his wife Berengaria of Navarre. In the third light are the usual arms and John holds a Magna Charta scroll in his hands.
THIRD WINDOW. HENRY lll (1216—1272), son, succeeded at the age of ten years. He confirmed and broke the Charter as it suited him; the barons resorted to arms and the period was one of great turbulence.
EDWARD I (1272—1307), son, restored civil administration and introduced many ameliorations. Justices of the Peace were appointed in 1285. “The King’s English policy, like his English name, was the sign of a new epoch. With the reign of Edward begins modern England, the constitutional England in which we live.” He reduced Wales and died at Carlisle while leading an army against the Scots. (“History of the English People,” J. R. Green, Vol. I, page 322).
EDWARD II (1307—1327), son, was without the ambitions of his father in regard to Scotland; hence the independence of the country was secured in 1314. In the background of the third light the triple castle of Castile will be recognised as the badge of Edward II. It appears on the sculptured shield of his mother, Eleanor of Castile, on her tomb in Westminster Abbey.
FOURTH WINDOW. EDWARD III (1327—1377), son. This vigorous reign was chiefly marked by the French wars, nearly all the advantages of which were lost before its close.
RICHARD 11(1377—1399), grandson. An eventful reign with many claims for redress of grievances, as in the rising of Wat Tyler. The Duke of Lancaster’s effort to regain his patrimony seized by the King was successful, and Richard on surrendering was deposed, and the Duke was proclaimed King as Henry IV.
HENRY IV (1399—1413) established himself on the throne by strong measures. The Welsh rising of Owen Glendower and the persecution of heretics were notable events of the reign.
This window is over the doorway leading from the hall to the balcony above the portico, and its height is in consequence somewhat reduced. The figures have accordingly been placed in the upper lights, and the heraldic devices below. The latter are of special interest. The arms of France appear upon the shield of Edward III, consequent upon his claim to the crown of that country in 1340, and of his marriage with Philippa of Hainault. The French Ancient fleurs de lys and the English lions are exhibited quarterly, and remained part of the shield until the 1st January 1801, when they were removed by proclamation of George I. The shield known as” France Ancient “was originally adopted by Louis VII (1137—1180) and consisted of fleurs de lys scattered freely over the field. About 1365 the number was reduced to three by Charles V and this shield is now known as “France Modern.” In England the “ France Ancient “ appears in the shield until 1405 or 1406, when Henry IV adopted the “ French Modern “ usage. In the imposing device of this first light will also be found a lion and a griffin introduced as supporters, the griffin being one of the badges of Edward III. The arms of Richard II repeat the “France Ancient “and England quarterly, but with these he impaled a cross fleurie between five martlets or, the arms attributed to the Confessor. The badges include a sun in splendour and the plantagenista. Richard’s favourite badge “the white Hart, ducally gorged and chained or, which he is supposed to have adopted from his mother Joan, ‘the fair maid of Kent,’ daughter of the Earl of Kent, whose cognisance was a white Hind,” (“Handbook of Heraldry,” John E. Cussans, page 208. f Ibid) is used as a supporter on either side the shield. These are also sculptured upon the Houses of Parliament, “but it is doubtful whether supporters, properly so called, are to be found in Regal Heraldry before the reign of Henry VI.” In the shield of Henry IV the change to “France Modern” is noticed, and a swan and a hart appear as supporters, Henry holds the rose of Lancaster, and the flower is freely used in the decoration of the window. His motto “Soveraygne” is supposed to be preserved in the S which is used in the blazon of the Duchy of Lancaster.
FIFTH WINDOW. HENRY V (1413—1422), son. HENRY VI (1422—1461), son. Henry revived the claim of Edward III to the crown of France and won notable victories. He died shortly after his marriage to the French Princess Katherine, and their son Henry VI became King at the age of nine months. The great civil war between the houses of York and Lancaster agitated the reign, and Henry was driven from the throne. His rival, Richard, Duke of York, who also claimed his descent from Edward III, was killed in battle; but his son came to the throne as
EDWARD IV (1461—1483) and with a short interval ruled until his death.
EDWARD V (1483), Son. RICHARD III (1483—1485), brother of Edward IV.
The fifth Edward reigned for eleven weeks, and Richard was defeated and slain on Bosworth Field by Henry Tudor, of the House of Lancaster, who then reigned as Henry VII.
From the time of Henry VI, the motto “ Dieu et mon droit,” the parole of Richard I at the battle of Gisors 1198, has been used as the motto of England. It does not, however, find a place in the window which contains the simple shields, the lower one with a bordure of red roses. In the centre light the white rose of York is conspicuous as the badge of Edward. Above the shield is a white lion crowned, which reappears with a bull as supporter.
SIXTH WINDOW. HENRY VII (1485—1509). With a view to ending the feud Henry married Elizabeth, sister of Edward V and heiress of York. The troubles, however, were long in subsiding. The power of the nobles was diminished by the King’s method, and Henry proved a capable, if an exacting, ruler.
HENRY VIII (1509—1547), son. Capricious and extravagant, Henry broke away from the power of the papacy and was recognised by Parliament as head of the English Church. He dissolved the religious houses and seized their revenues. Each of his surviving children, Mary, Elizabeth, and Edward VI came to the throne.
EDWARD VI (1547—1553), son. He died at the age of sixteen, or two years before the time appointed by will for his assuming sole power. Above the crest of Henry VII appears the Tudor badge, a rose combining the red and white of the rival houses. The supporters are the white greyhound of the Nevilles and the red dragon of Wales. The legend, “ Honi soit qui ma! y pense,” surrounds the shield of Henry VIII and is continued in the subsequent devices. The supporters are a lion guardant and a red dragon.
SEVENTH WINDOW. MARY (1553—1558), daughter of Henry VIII. She was twenty-one years older than Edward VI, and seventeen years older than Elizabeth. Her reign was signalised by the exertions of Bonner against the reformed Church.
ELIZABETH (1558—1603), daughter of Henry VIII. Her splendid reign was stained by her action towards Mary, Queen of Scots, and she was hated by the Catholic sovereigns of Europe. The defeat of the Spanish Armada occurred in 1588.
JAMES I (1603—1625), son of Mary, Queen of Scots, and descended from Henry VII on the maternal side, was named by Elizabeth as her successor. By this step the union of the crowns of England and Scotland was brought about, and the name of Great Britain was applied to the two countries.
The armorial bearings of this window are important. With the arms of France and England Mary impaled those of Philip of Spain, with a lion and an eagle which she adopted as supporters after her marriage. The arms of Elizabeth correspond with those displayed on a banner in the Tower of London. On a circle of the Tudor colours, white and green, are three shields: on one France and England, the second Ireland, and the third Wales. The supporters are a lion and a dragon. On the accession of the Stuarts the arms took the form which they have substantially retained to the present day. In the first and fourth quarters are France and England quarterly; in the second a lion rampant within a bordure fleury-counterfleury for Scotland; and in the third a harp for Ireland. The supporters also are as they have ever since remained, a lion rampant-guardant or, imperially crowned, and a unicorn armed. unguled or hoofed, and crined (i.e., having a main or hair), gorged or encircled round the throat, with a coronet to which a chain is attached and passed between the forelegs and reflexed over the back.
EIGHTH WINDOW, south side. CHARLE I (1625—1653), son. The long contest with the Parliament and people ended in the beheading of Charles and the triumph of the Parliamentary party.
CROMWELL (1653—1658) was appointed Lord Protector and was succeeded by his son Richard, until the Restoration of 1660 brought the son of Charles I to the throne.
CHARLES 11(1660—1685) signalised the later years of his reign by ruling without a Parliament.
On the great Seal of Cromwell appears a shield with the cross of St. George in the first and fourth quarters; the cross of St. Andrew in the second, and the harp of Ireland in the third. In the window the harp is replaced by a cross, and the shield is supported by the lion of England and a sea horse or dragon. Charles II restored the arms of his father along with the Stuart ascendancy.
NINTH WINDOW. JAMES 11(1685—1688), brother of Charles II, fled to France at the Revolution. The Bill of Rights was framed.
WILLIAM III and MARY (1689—1702). The Prince of Orange declining the Regency was crowned King when his wife, Mary, daughter of James, became Queen. She died in 1694.
William retained the shield of his immediate predecessors with the addition of an inescutcheon bearing his paternal arms of Nassau, a lion rampant. This is of course absent from the shield of Mary in the third light.
TENTH and ELEVENTH WINDOWS. ANNE (1702—1714), second daughter of James II, and last of the Stuarts. In her reign the union of Scotland and England was completed by the absorption of the Scotch Parliament. (1707).
GEORGE I (1714—1727). By the Act of Succession the descendants of Elizabeth, the daughter of James I, were entitled to the crown. This Princess had married Frederick the Elector Palatine, and her only surviving child, Sophia, was the mother of the then Elector of Hanover. He was accordingly called to the throne on the death of Anne, and thus commenced the line which still rules.
The succeeding sovereigns have been George II (1727—1760), George III (1760-1820), George IV (182o-183o), William IV (1830-1837), Victoria (1837—1901), Edward VII (1901).
Until the union with Scotland Anne bore the arms of the Stuarts, but afterwards a change was made. The window shows the way in which this was effected by combining the arms of England and Scotland in the first and fourth quarters, with those of France and Ireland in the second and third. The badge of the Queen, a rose and thistle growing from the same stem, and crowned, is also worth noting, as this was the last personal badge borne by an English sovereign. George I added the arms of Hanover in the fourth quarter of this shield, represented on a shield divided per pale and per chevron, I, two lions passant guardant ; 2, a lion rampant, armed; 3, a horse courant ; and as an inescutcheon the crown of Charlemagne. A change is noted in the arms of George III owing to the disappearance of the fleurs de lys in i8oi. From then until the accession of Victoria the Royal Arms have been : first and fourth quarters, England; second, Scotland; third, Ireland; with the arms of Hanover as an inescutcheon, ensigned with an Imperial crown. These family arms were relinquished by Queen Victoria under the Salic law, which precludes a Queen from reigning in Hanover.
The late Queen’s portrait does not occur in the series of windows just described, nor is there any picture of King Edward VII. The two large wheel windows at the west and east ends of the hail have, however, not yet been mentioned. One of these high up over the organ chamber contains a painting of Queen Victoria surrounded by the collars and badges of the noble orders ; the other at the opposite end has a picture of the late Prince Consort similarly surrounded by the emblems of painting, sculpture, science, architecture, commerce, manufacture, and agriculture.
After the lengthy notice of the windows, which have not hitherto been described in detail, and which are worthy of more adequate treatment than they have even now received, it is only possible to devote a short space to other principal parts of the building, not less noteworthy, but which have more than once been very carefully specified.
To the left of the Exchange lies the Council Room, sixty feet long and twenty-four feet wide. It is fitted with incongruous and temporary seats for the members owing to the difficulty of deciding upon a suitable permanent arrangement. Otherwise, it is a handsome chamber effectively decorated and containing painted illustrations of invention and industry, which serve both as parable and stimulus to the student. There are five handsome arches in bathstone with carved pateras in the mouldings and foliage in the spandrils. The frieze is formed of a wreath of cotton foliage with designs of the plough, shuttle and spindle interspersed. In the windows are the Arms of the Duke of Bridgewater, Sir Richard Arkwright, Sir Robert Peel, and Sir Titus Salt, who have materially assisted the development of textile manufactures. Running round the walls.are a series of subjects illustrating the inventions which have affected the staple industries of the town. A list of them is subjoined : 1. Ancient Spinning. 2. Egyptian Weaving. 3. Indian Weaving. 4. European Weaving. 5. John Kay and the Fly Shuttle. 6. Edmund Cartwright, the inventor of the Power Loom. 7. The Woollen Machine. 8. Thomas Wood and the Wool Carding Engine. 9. Paul’s Roller Spinning Machine.10. James Hargreave and the Spinning Jenny. 11. Crompton’s Mule. 12. Power Loom for Flannel Weaving. 13. Roberts’ Self-actor Mule. 14. Radcliffe’s Sizing and Dressing Machine. 15. Twining Machine for Wool. 16. Jacquard Loom. 17. Teazling by the Gig Mill. 18. Wool Washing Machine. 19. Bleaching. 20. Steam Printing. 21. Wool Combing by Machinery. 22. Bowing Cotton for Cleaning. Between the subjects are the plants used in the manufacture of textiles, alternating with the cotton plant and the teazle, and the plants used in colouring and dyeing.
Provision is made for the attendance of the public who are admitted to a corridor separated from the chamber by a handsome screen.
The Mayor’s parlour is richly decorated. Over the roof panels there spread the trees of the fabled orchard with the golden fruit guarded by the dragons. Birds of paradise and humming birds plume themselves as they perch in the boughs. English songsters are represented in the frieze, and storks seem to be the most fitting denizens of the beams or rafters where trailing vines have found their way. The sculpture represents the praise of wine. There is elaborate carving on the stonework of the fireplace. The floor is covered with Turkish carpet and the windows hung with French tournay. Sideboard, table and chairs in Dantzic oak, elaborately carved, with the chairs covered with blue Morocco, and the Borough Arms stamped on them, constitute the furniture. The glass represents the seasons and months of the year.
The Mayor’s Reception Room completes the suite. Here the decorations are scarcely less rich, but their character is different. The ceiling is a sky of turquoise blue, clustered with golden stars, wherein swallows and butterflies disport themselves. The tracery of the windows in obedience to the same idea symbolises morning, noon, evening, and night; while the same motif is perceived in the frieze where day is represented by an owl worried by small birds; and night with its compensations, by the sufferings of the small things themselves. The sides of the beams convey some of Aesop’s fables, and the story of Jack and the Bean Stalk is introduced into the quoins of the windows. The humour of the scheme is completed by four grotesque likenesses in the stone supports of the beams, which are intended to represent the Mayor (Alderman G. L. Ashworth) who carries a miniature Town Hall in his hand; Mr. Crossland, the architect; an Alderman in his gown (Mr. E. Taylor), and a Councillor (Mr. W. A. Scott).
In these two rooms are many oil paintings of eminent citizens. A number of these have been privately contributed and others are the result of public testimonials to men who have deserved well of their fellows. Among them may be mentioned Mr. John Fenton, the first member for the borough; Mr. Jacob Bright, its first Mayor; Mr. Zach. Mellor, its first Town Clerk. There is a fine double study of John Bright and Richard Cobden. Other portraits include Alderman T. Livsey, Alderman G. L. Ashworth, Alderman E. Taylor, Alderman R. T. Heape, Alderman W. J. Petrie, Alderman Baron, and others.
The reception room opens into a large vestibule which communicates with the porte cochère adjacent to the tower, and with the octagonal staircase and corridor leading to the official departments. At the Mayor’s entrance stands a replica of a lifelike statue of the late Bishop Fraser of Manchester. In the vestibule the decoration has been determined by one of the obvious uses of such an apartment. Various styles of head-dress are illustrated, monarchical, knightly, ecclesiastical, legal, and civil, the labels of the inner porch representing a young swell and a young girl of the period respectively. The frieze has figures of the bear, beaver, lion, tiger, panther, goat, fox, stag, and tailor bird. Handicrafts to the number of twenty-seven are represented in the ceiling panels. The windows are filled with the shields of the four countries, and in the traceries are the crosses of the patron saints and the badge of Wales. The Borough Crest is also frequently exhibited, and there are two splendidly carved miniature lions holding the shield of the borough.
At the west end of the building are the various offices connected with the judicial department, and on the first floor the Police Court. It is fifty-one feet long and thirty-four feet wide, and has a spacious gallery in addition to the bench, solicitors’ well, dock, and public seats. The ceiling is ornamented with the shields of the County and Borough, and the Tudor rose en soleil. Over the oak dado and supporting the Arms of the Duchy are figures of greyhounds and crowned Lancaster roses. The three large windows above the bench are filled with full length portraits of men to whom the laws ot the country are indebted. In the three lights of the central window are represented three great administrators JOHN SOMERS who drew up the Declaration of Rights presented to William and Mary, reciting the misgovernment of James II, his abdication, and the resolve of the Lords and Commons to assert the ancient rights and liberties of the subject; WILLIAM MURRAY, Earl of Mansfield, whose decisions on questions relating to commerce earned for him the title of “ Founder of the Commercial Law of England ;“ LORD ELLENBOROUGH, Chief Justice for fifteen years, and defender of Warren Hastings. In the window to the right are three great jurists : JEREMY BENTHAM, politician and jurist, fount of the utilitarian philosophy, and advocate of a thorough revision criminal and civil legislation; FRANCIS BACON, one of the most extraordinary men of all time, Lord High Chancellor of England, whose philosophy was founded upon the observation of nature, and who was twice arrested for debt; Sir EDWARD COKE, speaker of the House of Commons under Elizabeth, and who framed the Petition of Rights, one of the greatest declaration of English liberty. In the third window are three great defenders of rights: ALFRED, who has given us the best definition of law; JOHN PYM distinguished for his eloquence in the Long Parliament, his impeachment of Stratford, and his zeal in the remonstrance with Charles I; JOHN HAMPDEN, “patriot,” distinguished in the struggle against shipmoney.
It only remains to add that in the vicinity of the Court is a pleasant apartment known as the Magistrates’ room with its oriel window overlooking the park, and with a prospect that may well invoke that spirit which would temper justice with mercy; that in this chamber, with its elegant appointments, is gradually being accumulated the armorial bearings of a worthy line of men who have filled the office of Mayor, whose faithfulness to their office, as well as the faithfulness of those who shall come after them, consists not least in their habitual obedience to the old motto Crede Signo.
*(1) Full accounts of the opening ceremony and the public rejoicings are contained in the local papers, which also published careful and authentic descriptions of the building. Much of the information contained in this chapter is obtained from these sources, and from the Town Hall section in Rochdale Past and Present,” by Mr. William Robertson. A useful notice of the building also appears in “Some of the Municipal Works of Rochdale,” a paper read by the Borough Surveyor, Mr. S. S. Platt, and reprinted from the “Proceedings of the Incorporated Association of Municipal and County Engineers” t897. The illustrations in the text are from photographs prepared by the Rochdale Liberal Forwards, to accompany a lecture by the writer, entitled, “A Tour of the Town Hall.”
* (2) The work of the restoration of parts of the Town Hall damaged by fire, and the erection of the new tower and spire has been completed, and on the first of December last His Worship the Mayor (Councillor j. E. Petrie) set the new clock in motion, which, by its correct time-keeping, it is hoped will give universal satisfaction.—Vide report of General Purposes Committee, May 9th 1888.
*(3) “There is one class of early arms that were invented after Heraldry had been established, and then were assigned to personages of historical eminence who had lived and died before the true heraldic era . No proof can be shown that the arms said to have been borne by William the Conqueror are not of this order.”— English Heraldry, by Charles Boutell, M.A., page 18.
