Victoria Law Courts

Coordinates: 52°29′0.75″N 1°53′36″W / 52.4835417°N 1.89333°W / 52.4835417; -1.89333
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Victoria Law Courts, Birmingham
Grade I listed
Listed Building – Grade I
Designated21 January 1970
Reference no.1075605

The Victoria Law Courts is a red brick and terracotta judicial building, which accommodates Birmingham Magistrates' Court, on Corporation Street, Birmingham, England. It is a Grade I listed building.[1][2]

History

The Great Hall of Birmingham's Victoria Law Courts; serves as the main public entrance to the building

For much of the 19th century, criminal court cases were heard in the Public Office in Moor Street.[3] However, in the early 1880s, as the number of court cases in Birmingham grew, the judicial authorities decided it was necessary to have a dedicated courthouse.[4][5] The site they selected on Corporation Street had been occupied by the old Birmingham Workhouse, which had been built in 1734[6] and cleared away as part of a larger scheme by the mayor, Joseph Chamberlain, to demolish old slums.[7]

The foundation stone was laid by

assize courts in Birmingham, it is faced entirely in deep red terracotta from the clay of Ruabon in North Wales[10] and covered in intricate terracotta ornamentation. The design involved an asymmetrical main frontage facing Corporation Street, with a symmetrical centre section, a long wing with two gables to the left and a single gabled bay to the right. The central section featured a large round headed main entrance with multiple hood moulds flanked by turrets and, beyond that, by octagonal towers with conical roofs. A statue of Queen Victoria by Harry Bates surmounts the main entrance.[10] Other figures are by sculptor William Silver Frith to designs by Walter Crane.[10]

Built by Birmingham firm John Bowen and Sons, the courts were opened by the Prince and Princess of Wales on 21 July 1891.[8] Additions were made adding a projecting bow window on the left between 1891 and 1894 and extensions were erected along Newton Street in 1914.[10]

The interior, including the Great Hall, is faced with sandy-yellow terracotta and intricate ornamentation. The terracotta used for the interior was produced by Gibbs and Canning of Tamworth.[10]

Crown Court trials, i.e. criminal cases involving trial by judge and jury, moved to the Queen Elizabeth II Law Courts in Dalton Street in 1987.[11]

A proposal was made, prior to the 2010 UK General Election, to move the magistrates' court to a new purpose-built building nearby.[12] The project was subsequently abandoned after HM Courts Service had its budget cut and after magistrates indicated their desire to remain in the Victoria Law Courts complex.[13]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Victoria Law Courts.
  1. ^ Historic England. "Victoria Law Courts (Grade I) (1075605)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  2. ^ Historic England. "Photograph and details from listed building text (1075605)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 June 2006.
  3. ^ Dent, Robert Kirkup (1894). The Making of Birmingham: Being a History of the Rise and Growth of the Midland Metropolis. J. L. Allday. p. 301. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  4. ISBN 978-1782227021
    .
  5. ISBN 978-1445626949
    .
  6. ^ "Records of City Hospital, Birmingham, previously known as Birmingham Workhouse Infirmary and Dudley Road Hospital". Calmview. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
  7. ^ "Birmingham's Hidden Spaces: Victoria Law Courts became jewel in 'terracotta city'". Business Live. 17 December 2014. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
  8. ^ a b McCarthy, Nick (27 December 2008). "Uncertain future for Birmingham courts landmark". Birmingham Evening Mail. Retrieved 27 December 2008.
  9. ^ "Birmingham: The Queen's Visit". The Illustrated London News. 26 March 1887. p. 337. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
  10. ^
    ISBN 0-300-10731-5
    .
  11. ISBN 978-0429558689
    .
  12. ^ "Plans for new Birmingham magistrates court revealed". Birmingham Post. 19 November 2008. Retrieved 22 January 2023.
  13. ^ "Birmingham lawyers say new magistrates court is not needed". Business Live. 21 June 2010. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
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