Victoria Law Courts, Birmingham

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Victoria Law Courts, Birmingham
Building
Type	Magistrates' Court
Location	Corporation Street, Birmingham, England
Coordinates	52°29′0.75″N 1°53′36″W / 52.4835417, -1.89333Coordinates: 52°29′0.75″N 1°53′36″W / 52.4835417, -1.89333
Construction
Started	1887
Completed	1891
Main Contractor	John Bowen and Sons
Design Team
Architect	Aston Webb & Ingress Bell
Awards and Prizes	Grade I listed

Queen Victoria sits above the main entrance

The Victoria Law Courts on Corporation Street, Birmingham, England is a Grade I listed, red brick and terracotta building that houses Birmingham Magistrates' Court.

Designed by Aston Webb & Ingress Bell of London after an open competition to provide the first assize courts in the rapidly growing town of Birmingham, it is faced entirely in deep red terracotta from the clay of Ruabon in North Wales and covered in intricate terracotta ornamentation. A statue of Queen Victoria by Harry Bates surmounts the main entrance. Other figures are by sculptor William Silver Frith to designs by Walter Crane. The rear of the building is less elaborately decorated.

The foundation stone was laid by Queen Victoria on March 23, 1887 in her Golden Jubilee year. Built by Birmingham firm, John Bowen and Sons, the courts were opened on July 12, 1891 by Prince & Princess of Wales.

The inside is faced with sandy-yellow terracotta and intricate ornamentation. The terracotta used for the interior was produced in Tamworth.^[1]

Standing at the northern end of the street it is complemented by the similarly coloured Methodist Central Hall.

The site was previously occupied by Alaska Works and a small school.

[edit] References

• Images of England - photograph and details from listed building text
• Pevsner Architectural Guides - Birmingham, Andy Foster, 2005, ISBN 0-300-10731-5

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