Worshipful Company of Curriers
Encyclopedia
The Worshipful Company of Curriers is one of the Livery Companies
of the City of London
. The Curriers, or curers of leather
, first formed an organisation in 1272. This organisation became a Company under a Royal Charter
of incorporation in 1605. The Company now exists, as do most other Livery Companies, as a ceremonial and charitable institution, the traditional process of currying having been made more or less obsolete by technological advances. The Curriers, like other Livery Companies, support the work of the Lord Mayor
, the City of London Corporation and the Sheriff
s.
The Company ranks twenty-ninth in the order of precedence
of Livery Companies. The Company's motto is Spes Nostra Deus, Latin
for Our Hope is in God.
The archives of the Curriers’ Company are mostly kept in Guildhall Library
, since there is no Company archivist. A list of the Company's archives is to be found in "Source Material", Edward Mayer and Donald Adamson
, The Curriers’ Company: A Modern History, 2000, pp. 505–511.
. In the 14th century the Curriers constituted themselves into a guild
and religious fraternity in association with the Carmelite Friars in Fleet Street
. In 1415 they obtained their ordinances by an act of Common Council: these gave them full autonomy. By 1580 the Guild of Curriers was recognised as a Livery Company of the City of London. The Company became armigerous in 1583. However, not until 1605 did King James I
grant the Curriers their first Charter of Incorporation. The Company ranks 29th in the order of precedence of Livery Companies of the City of London.
During the ensuing four centuries the Company built no less than six Curriers' Halls in the City
. After the sale of its sixth and last hall in 1921 it moved in with its longstanding trade and Livery partner, the Worshipful Company of Cordwainers
, with whom it still enjoys a close relationship. Along with many other Livery
Halls, Cordwainers' Hall in Cannon Street
was itself destroyed by enemy action in 1941 and since then the Curriers' have been without their own Hall. However, from 1942 onwards the Company
has been housed at Tallow Chandlers' Hall
, where it holds its Court
meeting
s.
The Company donates to charities which benefit the young, the elderly, the disabled and the socially disadvantaged. It supports City of London
charities and cultural organisations, general educational establishments and the training of young people in leathercraft.
The centres of excellence which it regularly assists are: the London College of Fashion
; Capel Manor College
Enfield
, and The Leather Conservation Centre at Northampton
, which conserves and restores all forms of historic leather objects and materials.
In 2000 the Curriers' Millennium Healthcare Bursary was established. This annual Primary Health Care
bursary endows research or personal study to improve the health care of underprivileged sectors of the population of London
and elsewhere. Though originally directed towards general practitioner
s, the scope of the bursary was widened in 2003, since when it has also attracted submissions from nurses, midwives, mental health workers, pharmacists and an ophthalmologist.
The Curriers' Company is affiliated to one Reserve and one Front Line Military Unit: 101 (City of London) Engineer Regiment Explosive Ordnance Disposal; and No. 7 Squadron RAF
.
Each newly elected Master
of the Company designates a charity
as the object of the Master’s Charitable Appeal for his year of office. The Company can make an initial donation to the nominated charity and Liverymen and Freemen
are invited to donate to, and to undertake fundraising
activities for, the Charitable Appeal.
, by London Wall
in Aldgate Ward.
(2) Circa 1583 Curriers’ Hall was situated close to the site of the Boar’s Head
, on a property which had been devised to the Company in 1516. It stood in the parish of St Alphage
, on the south side of the street leading along London Wall; Boar’s Head Alley lay between Philip Lane and Little Wood Street. Curriers’ Hall was one of the 44 (out of 52) Livery Halls destroyed in the Great Fire of London
early in September 1666.
(3) Curriers’ Hall in 1670 was perhaps the most attractive of the Company’s five halls on the Boar’s Head site.
(4) In 1820 a new and smaller hall was rebuilt to the east of the old one.
(5) The Curriers’ Hall begun in 1873 and completed in the following year was demolished in 1875 before it could even be furnished.
(6) Between 1874 and 1876 a new Curriers’ Hall was built in the French Gothic style. It abutted on London Wall
. It was sold in 1921 and destroyed by enemy action on 29 December 1940.
of the Company are blazon
ed:-
Arms: Azure a cross engrailed or between four pairs of shaves in saltire argent handled or.
Crest
: On a wreath or and azure out of the clouds proper two arms embowed carnation the shirt sleeves folded beneath the elbows argent in the hands a shave argent handled or.
Supporters: Dexter, an elk proper attired and unguled or; Sinister, a goat argent flashed sable.
These Arms were granted to the Curriers’ Company on 8 August 1583.
Caroline M. Barron, London in the Later Middle Ages: Government and People, 1200–1500, 2005.
John Bromley and Heather Child, The Armorial Bearings of the Guilds of London, 1960.
D.A. Farnie, John Rylands of Manchester, 1993.
Ian Gibson, The Erotomaniac: The Secret Life of Henry Spencer Ashbee, 2001.
Edward Mayer, The Curriers and the City of London. A History of the Worshipful Company of Curriers, 1968.
Edward Mayer and Donald Adamson
, The Curriers’ Company: A Modern History, 2000.
Richard Pantall, George Jarvis (1704–1793) and his Notorious Charity, 1993.
John Strype
, A Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster by John Stow, 1720.
Laura Wright, “The London Middle English Guild Certificates of 1388–9”, Nottingham Medieval Studies, 1995, pp. 108–145.
Livery Company
The Livery Companies are 108 trade associations in the City of London, almost all of which are known as the "Worshipful Company of" the relevant trade, craft or profession. The medieval Companies originally developed as guilds and were responsible for the regulation of their trades, controlling,...
of the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
. The Curriers, or curers of leather
Leather
Leather is a durable and flexible material created via the tanning of putrescible animal rawhide and skin, primarily cattlehide. It can be produced through different manufacturing processes, ranging from cottage industry to heavy industry.-Forms:...
, first formed an organisation in 1272. This organisation became a Company under a Royal Charter
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...
of incorporation in 1605. The Company now exists, as do most other Livery Companies, as a ceremonial and charitable institution, the traditional process of currying having been made more or less obsolete by technological advances. The Curriers, like other Livery Companies, support the work of the Lord Mayor
Lord Mayor of London
The Right Honourable Lord Mayor of London is the legal title for the Mayor of the City of London Corporation. The Lord Mayor of London is to be distinguished from the Mayor of London; the former is an officer only of the City of London, while the Mayor of London is the Mayor of Greater London and...
, the City of London Corporation and the Sheriff
Sheriff
A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
s.
The Company ranks twenty-ninth in the order of precedence
Order of precedence
An order of precedence is a sequential hierarchy of nominal importance of items. Most often it is used in the context of people by many organizations and governments...
of Livery Companies. The Company's motto is Spes Nostra Deus, Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
for Our Hope is in God.
The archives of the Curriers’ Company are mostly kept in Guildhall Library
Guildhall Library
The Guildhall Library is administered by the Corporation of London, the government of the City of London, which is the historical heart of London, England. It was founded in the 1420s under the terms of the will of Lord Mayor Dick Whittington...
, since there is no Company archivist. A list of the Company's archives is to be found in "Source Material", Edward Mayer and Donald Adamson
Donald Adamson
Donald Adamson is a historian, biographer, philosophical writer, textual scholar, literary critic, and translator of French literature...
, The Curriers’ Company: A Modern History, 2000, pp. 505–511.
History
The Curriers' Company dates from 1272 when the Mistery of Curriers became a trade associationTrade association
A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association or sector association, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry...
. In the 14th century the Curriers constituted themselves into a guild
Guild
A guild is an association of craftsmen in a particular trade. The earliest types of guild were formed as confraternities of workers. They were organized in a manner something between a trade union, a cartel, and a secret society...
and religious fraternity in association with the Carmelite Friars in Fleet Street
Fleet Street
Fleet Street is a street in central London, United Kingdom, named after the River Fleet, a stream that now flows underground. It was the home of the British press until the 1980s...
. In 1415 they obtained their ordinances by an act of Common Council: these gave them full autonomy. By 1580 the Guild of Curriers was recognised as a Livery Company of the City of London. The Company became armigerous in 1583. However, not until 1605 did King James I
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
grant the Curriers their first Charter of Incorporation. The Company ranks 29th in the order of precedence of Livery Companies of the City of London.
During the ensuing four centuries the Company built no less than six Curriers' Halls in the City
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
. After the sale of its sixth and last hall in 1921 it moved in with its longstanding trade and Livery partner, the Worshipful Company of Cordwainers
Worshipful Company of Cordwainers
The Worshipful Company of Cordwainers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. Cordwainers were workers in fine leather; the Company gets its name from "cordwain" , the white leather produced from goatskin in Cordova, Spain...
, with whom it still enjoys a close relationship. Along with many other Livery
Livery Company
The Livery Companies are 108 trade associations in the City of London, almost all of which are known as the "Worshipful Company of" the relevant trade, craft or profession. The medieval Companies originally developed as guilds and were responsible for the regulation of their trades, controlling,...
Halls, Cordwainers' Hall in Cannon Street
Cannon Street
Cannon Street is a road in the south of the City of London. It runs roughly parallel with the River Thames, and about 250 metres north of it. It is the site of the ancient London Stone.-Etymology:...
was itself destroyed by enemy action in 1941 and since then the Curriers' have been without their own Hall. However, from 1942 onwards the Company
Livery Company
The Livery Companies are 108 trade associations in the City of London, almost all of which are known as the "Worshipful Company of" the relevant trade, craft or profession. The medieval Companies originally developed as guilds and were responsible for the regulation of their trades, controlling,...
has been housed at Tallow Chandlers' Hall
Worshipful Company of Tallow Chandlers
The Worshipful Company of Tallow Chandlers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The organisation, which engaged in not only tallow candle making but also in the trade of oils, received a Royal Charter in 1462...
, where it holds its Court
Court
A court is a form of tribunal, often a governmental institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance with the rule of law...
meeting
Meeting
In a meeting, two or more people come together to discuss one or more topics, often in a formal setting.- Definitions :An act or process of coming together as an assembly for a common purpose....
s.
Charitable activity
Like other Livery Companies, the Curriers' goes about its business quietly, and being relatively small numerically in membership its resources are limited. Nevertheless, its charitable giving is consistent with one of the original objects of the medieval guilds.The Company donates to charities which benefit the young, the elderly, the disabled and the socially disadvantaged. It supports City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
charities and cultural organisations, general educational establishments and the training of young people in leathercraft.
The centres of excellence which it regularly assists are: the London College of Fashion
London College of Fashion
London College of Fashion is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London, offering undergraduate, postgraduate, short courses and business-training in fashion, make-up, beauty-therapy and lifestyle industries...
; Capel Manor College
Capel Manor College
Capel Manor is a horticultural further education college based in Bulls Cross, Enfield, London, United Kingdom. The college grounds double as a garden open to the public for most of the year, with a variety of events occurring, including Bushcraft, Lambing weekends, Heavy horse shows , Leatherwork...
Enfield
London Borough of Enfield
The London Borough of Enfield is the most northerly London borough and forms part of Outer London. It borders the London Boroughs of Barnet, Haringey and Waltham Forest...
, and The Leather Conservation Centre at Northampton
Northampton
Northampton is a large market town and local government district in the East Midlands region of England. Situated about north-west of London and around south-east of Birmingham, Northampton lies on the River Nene and is the county town of Northamptonshire. The demonym of Northampton is...
, which conserves and restores all forms of historic leather objects and materials.
In 2000 the Curriers' Millennium Healthcare Bursary was established. This annual Primary Health Care
Primary health care
Primary health care, often abbreviated as “PHC”, has been defined as "essential health care based on practical, scientifically sound and socially acceptable methods and technology made universally accessible to individuals and families in the community through their full participation and at a cost...
bursary endows research or personal study to improve the health care of underprivileged sectors of the population of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and elsewhere. Though originally directed towards general practitioner
General practitioner
A general practitioner is a medical practitioner who treats acute and chronic illnesses and provides preventive care and health education for all ages and both sexes. They have particular skills in treating people with multiple health issues and comorbidities...
s, the scope of the bursary was widened in 2003, since when it has also attracted submissions from nurses, midwives, mental health workers, pharmacists and an ophthalmologist.
The Curriers' Company is affiliated to one Reserve and one Front Line Military Unit: 101 (City of London) Engineer Regiment Explosive Ordnance Disposal; and No. 7 Squadron RAF
No. 7 Squadron RAF
No. 7 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Boeing Chinook HC.2 from RAF Odiham, Hampshire.-Formation and early years:No. 7 Squadron was formed at Farnborough Airfield on 1 May 1914 as the last squadron of the RFC to be formed before the First World War, but has been disbanded and reformed...
.
Each newly elected Master
Master craftsman
A master craftsman or master tradesman was a member of a guild. In the European guild system, only masters were allowed to be members of the guild....
of the Company designates a charity
Charitable organization
A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...
as the object of the Master’s Charitable Appeal for his year of office. The Company can make an initial donation to the nominated charity and Liverymen and Freemen
Freedom of the City
Freedom of the City is an honour bestowed by some municipalities in Australia, Canada, Ireland, France, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, the United Kingdom, Gibraltar and Rhodesia to esteemed members of its community and to organisations to be honoured, often for service to the community;...
are invited to donate to, and to undertake fundraising
Fundraising
Fundraising or fund raising is the process of soliciting and gathering voluntary contributions as money or other resources, by requesting donations from individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies...
activities for, the Charitable Appeal.
Notable liverymen
- SirSirSir is an honorific used as a title , or as a courtesy title to address a man without using his given or family name in many English speaking cultures...
Carl Aarvold - Dr Donald AdamsonDonald AdamsonDonald Adamson is a historian, biographer, philosophical writer, textual scholar, literary critic, and translator of French literature...
- Henry Spencer AshbeeHenry Spencer AshbeeHenry Spencer Ashbee was a book collector, writer, and bibliographer, notorious for his massive, clandestine three volume bibliography of erotic literature written under the pseudonym of Pisanus Fraxi.-Life:...
- John BelcherJohn Belcher (architect)John Belcher was an English architect.Belcher was born in Southwark on 10 July 1841, London. His father of the same name was an established architect. The son was articled with his father, spending two years in France from 1862 where he studied contemporary architecture...
- Norman Birkett, 1st Baron Birkett
- Peter CadburyPeter CadburyPeter Egbert Cadbury was a British entrepreneur.He was the son of Sir Egbert Cadbury, a World War I flying ace and managing director of Cadbury Brothers, the chocolate enterprise...
- Sir Oliver ChestertonChesterton-Places:United Kingdom*Chesterton, Cambridge**Chesterton railway station*Chesterton, Huntingdonshire*Chesterton Rural District*Chesterton *Chesterton, Oxfordshire*Chesterton, Staffordshire*Chesterton, Warwickshire...
- Thomas Dewar, 1st Baron Dewar
- Gordon Hewart, 1st Viscount Hewart
- George Jarvis, founder Jarvis plcJarvis PLCJarvis plc is a British company that provides support services to the British railway industry. It also runs rail freight operations. The most significant feature of the modern firm is its leading share of the UK’s railway maintenance and infrastructure services.-19th and 20th centuries:The...
- Francis JeuneFrancis JeuneFrancis Jeune or François Jeune was Dean of Jersey, 1838–1844, Master of Pembroke College, Oxford and Bishop of Peterborough, 1864-1868....
, 1st Baron Saint Helier - ProfessorProfessorA professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
Sir Richard Jolly - The Earl Jowitt
- David Lloyd GeorgeDavid Lloyd GeorgeDavid Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM, PC was a British Liberal politician and statesman...
, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor - Sir Robert LushRobert LushSir Robert Lush was an English judge who served on many Commissions and Committees of Judges.Born at Shaftesbury, he was educated at Gray's Inn before being called to the Bar in 1840. He earned a reputation as a sound and acute barrister, specially familiar with procedure. He was appointed QC in...
- John MaberlyJohn MaberlyJohn Maberly was a British entrepreneur and Member of Parliament .John Maberly was born in London in 1770, the second child of London currier Stephen Maberly and Mary Maberly. In 1796 he married Mary Rose Leader, a well-to-do MP's daughter, with whom he was to have six children...
- Sir Godfrey Russell VickGodfrey VickSir Godfrey Russell Vick KC was an English lawyer and judge who played a part in several important tribunals....
- John RylandsJohn RylandsJohn Rylands was an English entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He was the owner of the largest textile manufacturing concern in the United Kingdom, and Manchester's first multi-millionaire....
- Sir Frank SandersonSanderson BaronetsThere have been three Baronetcies created for persons with the surname Sanderson, two in the Baronetage of Great Britain and one in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. One creation is extant as of 2007....
, BtBaronetA baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown... - Sir Philip ShelbournePhilip ShelbourneSir Philip Shelbourne was a British lawyer and financier.Shelbourne started his City career when he gave up the Bar to take up a partnership at NM Rothschild, and he, with Jacob Rothschild and Rodney Leach, formed a team in the late 1960s...
- Sir Lawrence VerneyVerneyVerney is the name of an English family that traces back around eight centuries. It first settled at Fleetmarston in Buckinghamshire, then at Pendley in Hertfordshire, and finally at Middle Claydon which the family purchased in the 1460s in Buckinghamshire and where descendants still live in...
Former halls
(1) In 1485 the Curriers’ Company had its hall in the parish of St Mary AxeSt Mary Axe
St Mary Axe was a medieval parish in London whose name survives on the street it formerly occupied, St Mary Axe. The church itself was demolished in 1561 and its parish united with that of St Andrew Undershaft, which is on the corner of St Mary Axe and Leadenhall Street...
, by London Wall
London Wall
London Wall was the defensive wall first built by the Romans around Londinium, their strategically important port town on the River Thames in what is now the United Kingdom, and subsequently maintained until the 18th century. It is now the name of a road in the City of London running along part of...
in Aldgate Ward.
(2) Circa 1583 Curriers’ Hall was situated close to the site of the Boar’s Head
Boar's Head Inn
The Boar's Head Inn may refer to a number of former taverns in London, of which the following are the most famous:* The Boar's Head Tavern, on Eastcheap, featured in historical plays of Shakespeare as a favourite of the fictional character Falstaff and his friends. It was the subject of essays by...
, on a property which had been devised to the Company in 1516. It stood in the parish of St Alphage
St Alphage London Wall
St Alphage London Wall, so called because it sat right on London Wall, the City of London boundary, was a church in Bassishaw Ward in the City of London...
, on the south side of the street leading along London Wall; Boar’s Head Alley lay between Philip Lane and Little Wood Street. Curriers’ Hall was one of the 44 (out of 52) Livery Halls destroyed in the Great Fire of London
Great Fire of London
The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through the central parts of the English city of London, from Sunday, 2 September to Wednesday, 5 September 1666. The fire gutted the medieval City of London inside the old Roman City Wall...
early in September 1666.
(3) Curriers’ Hall in 1670 was perhaps the most attractive of the Company’s five halls on the Boar’s Head site.
(4) In 1820 a new and smaller hall was rebuilt to the east of the old one.
(5) The Curriers’ Hall begun in 1873 and completed in the following year was demolished in 1875 before it could even be furnished.
(6) Between 1874 and 1876 a new Curriers’ Hall was built in the French Gothic style. It abutted on London Wall
London Wall
London Wall was the defensive wall first built by the Romans around Londinium, their strategically important port town on the River Thames in what is now the United Kingdom, and subsequently maintained until the 18th century. It is now the name of a road in the City of London running along part of...
. It was sold in 1921 and destroyed by enemy action on 29 December 1940.
Arms
The ArmsCoat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
of the Company are blazon
Blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image...
ed:-
Arms: Azure a cross engrailed or between four pairs of shaves in saltire argent handled or.
Crest
Crest (heraldry)
A crest is a component of an heraldic display, so called because it stands on top of a helmet, as the crest of a jay stands on the bird's head....
: On a wreath or and azure out of the clouds proper two arms embowed carnation the shirt sleeves folded beneath the elbows argent in the hands a shave argent handled or.
Supporters: Dexter, an elk proper attired and unguled or; Sinister, a goat argent flashed sable.
These Arms were granted to the Curriers’ Company on 8 August 1583.
Further reading
Caroline M. Barron, “The Parish Fraternities of Medieval London”, in C.M. Barron and C. Harper-Bill (ed.), The Church in Pre-Reformation Society, 1985, pp. 13–37.Caroline M. Barron, London in the Later Middle Ages: Government and People, 1200–1500, 2005.
John Bromley and Heather Child, The Armorial Bearings of the Guilds of London, 1960.
D.A. Farnie, John Rylands of Manchester, 1993.
Ian Gibson, The Erotomaniac: The Secret Life of Henry Spencer Ashbee, 2001.
Edward Mayer, The Curriers and the City of London. A History of the Worshipful Company of Curriers, 1968.
Edward Mayer and Donald Adamson
Donald Adamson
Donald Adamson is a historian, biographer, philosophical writer, textual scholar, literary critic, and translator of French literature...
, The Curriers’ Company: A Modern History, 2000.
Richard Pantall, George Jarvis (1704–1793) and his Notorious Charity, 1993.
John Strype
John Strype
John Strype was an English historian and biographer. He was a cousin of Robert Knox, a famous sailor.Born in Houndsditch, London, he was the son of John Strype, or van Stryp, a member of a Huguenot family whom, in order to escape religious persecution within Brabant, had settled in East London...
, A Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster by John Stow, 1720.
Laura Wright, “The London Middle English Guild Certificates of 1388–9”, Nottingham Medieval Studies, 1995, pp. 108–145.