Moot Hall, Maldon
| Moot Hall | |
|---|---|
 Moot Hall | |
| Location | High Street, Maldon |
| Coordinates | 51°43′54″N 0°40′38″E / 51.7316°N 0.6773°E |
| Built | c.1420 |
| Architectural style(s) | Neoclassical style |
Listed Building – Grade I | |
| Official name | Moot Hall |
| Designated | 2 October 1951 |
| Reference no. | 1256887 |
  Shown in Essex | |
The Moot Hall is a municipal building in the High Street in Maldon, Essex, England. The building, which was the headquarters of Maldon Borough Council, is a Grade I listed building.[1]
History
The first moot hall was a
The current building was originally part of a town house which was commissioned by the local member of parliament, Sir Robert Darcy: it was designed in the neoclassical style, built in red brick and completed in around 1420.[3] Darcy's son, Roger, inherited the house in 1448, but, after Roger Darcy died in 1508, the house was left to deteriorate.[4]
After the rear part of the house had been demolished on 1536, the building was acquired by the local
Internally, the ground floor of the moot hall was used as a prison before becoming a police station in 1836; it remained in that use until the police service moved to West Square in 1912 and was then converted for use as a committee room and as a mayor's parlour.[3] The first floor was used as a magistrates' court until 1950 while the second floor was used as a council chamber for meetings of the borough council.[3] Meanwhile, the annexe contained a jury room on the first floor and a muniment room on the second floor.[3]
The moot hall continued to serve as the headquarters of Maldon Borough Council for much of the 20th century but ceased being the local seat of government when the enlarged Maldon District Council was formed in 1974.[9][10] It subsequently became a local history museum[11] and a venue for marriages and civil partnership ceremonies.[12]
Works of art in the town hall include a portrait by Godfrey Kneller of King George I[13] and a portrait by Robert Peake the Elder of Elizabeth Raleigh.[14]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f Historic England. "Moot Hall (1256887)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
- ^ Historic England. "21 High Street (1256937)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
- ^ a b c d "About us". The Moot Hall. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
- ^ a b c "Maldon Moot Hall". Britain Express. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
- ^ "Maldon: Blue is the colour". The Daily Gazette. 1 May 2003. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
- ^ "'Maldon All Saints', in An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Essex, Volume 2, Central and South west". London: British History Online. 1921. pp. 170–175. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
- ^ a b Pickford, Chris, ed. (1995). Turret Clocks: Lists of Clocks from Makers' Catalogues and Publicity Materials (2nd ed.). Wadhurst, E. Sussex: Antiquarian Horological Society. pp. 83–85.
- ^ Moot Hall Maldon: On this day in history - 20th October 1881
- ^ "Moot Hall". It's about Maldon. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
- ISBN 0-10-547072-4.
- ^ "Get Involved". The Moot Hall. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
- ^ "Moot Hall Weddings". Visit Maldon District. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
- ^ Kneller, Godfey. "George I (1714–1727)". Art UK. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
- ^ Peake, Robert. "Portrait of a Lady (said to be Elizabeth Throckmorton, d.c.1647, Queen Elizabeth's Maid of Honour and Wife of Sir Walter Raleigh)". Art UK. Retrieved 27 May 2021.