Local history

Since the medieval period, all town businesses and civic life generally had been influenced by the power of the guilds, originally a series of trade organisations. Out of these guilds grew the system of local government we know today. Rochester was no exception and towards the end of the 17th century, the men running the city began to look for a site to build a suitably splendid new Guildhall. In 1686, the Mayor, John Bryan, secured the site of an old tavern called the Fleur-de-Lis and a new town hall was erected on it the following year. The architect of the building is unknown. Its large hall (also used as a courtroom) was supported on a series of columns and the area beneath was paved to accommodate the city market. In 1695, Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell, one of Rochester’s two Members of Parliament, paid for the installation of the magnificent plaster ceilings that can still be seen today.

Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries the Guildhall continued to play an important local role in the heart of Rochester. Some heavy usage of the main hall meant that strengthening work was required. A council resolution passed on 26 October 1754 noted that “…the use of the Guildhall for the purpose of dancing…and such like entertainments…[has] been found of late to be very inconvenient and attended with tumults riotous…and great damage has been done to the hall.” In 1780, the distinctive weathervane was added. This is a model of a fully-rigged warship, over one and a half metres long and made of gilded copper. It still functions perfectly today.

In 1979, the collections of the city museum were moved from Eastgate House into the Guildhall. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, extensive internal modifications enabled the installation of a series of chronological displays, which include the dramatic re-creation of a 19th century prison hulk.

The main chamber of the Court Hall continued to be used for full council meetings until 1998. With the creation of the unitary authority of Medway, meetings were transferred to new facilities in Gillingham.

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