Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: guildhall

Kingston upon Hull, usually shortened to Hull, is a port city. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Estuary. The town of Wyke on Hull was founded late in the 12th century by the Cistercian monks of Meaux Abbey as a port from which to export their wool. Hull was granted a charter and given its name in 1299 by King Edward I who needed a northern port to support his wars in Scotland. It had been a market town, trading centre, fishing and whaling centre. In 1642, shortly before the start of the English Civil War, Hull's governor openly took sides with the parliamentary side and denied King Charles I access to the city and the militarily important arsenal. He was declared a traitor and executed despite being pardoned by Parliament. Whaling played an important role for the city until the middle of the 19th century. Hull's prosperity extended into the decades before the First World War. The whaling industry, the most important branch of deep-sea fishing, continued to decline after WWII. During WWII, heavy bombing destroyed the port, industrial facilities and much of the city centre. 95% of Hull's buildings were either damaged or destroyed, making Hull the second most heavily bombed major British city after London. Of a population of around 320,000 at the beginning of the war, 192,000 were left homeless by the heavy destruction. The Trinity House was founded as a religious guild in 1369, and became a guild solely concerned with seamen and an authority in maritime affairs in 1456. Trinity House has occupied its present site continuously since c1457 when a guildhall, almshouses and a chapel were built. The present buildings are later in date. The main block was built in 1753; the Guild House in 1775; the offices in 1844 and the adjoining houses in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Tourists stroll around the "Grote Markt" to marvel the guildhalls, elaborate, ornate buildings, demonstrating the guild's wealth and status.