Old Grammar School, Coventry

{{Short description|Building in Coventry, West Midlands, England}}

{{Infobox building

| name = Old Grammar School

| native_name =

| native_name_lang =

| former_names =

| alternate_names = Hospital of St. John the Baptist

| status =

| image = frameless

| image_alt =

| image_size =

| caption = The Old Grammar School was the site of King Henry VIII School after 1558.

| map_type =

| map_size =

| map_alt =

| map_caption =

| altitude =

| building_type =

| architectural_style =

| structural_system =

| cost =

| ren_cost =

| client =

| owner =

| current_tenants = Coventry Transport Museum

| landlord =

| location =

| address = Hales Street

| location_town = Coventry

| location_country = United Kingdom

| coordinates =

| groundbreaking_date =

| start_date =

| completion_date =

| opened_date =

| inauguration_date =

| renovation_date =

| demolition_date =

| destruction_date =

| height =

| architectural =

| tip =

| antenna_spire =

| roof =

| top_floor =

| observatory =

| other_dimensions =

| floor_count = 1

| floor_area =

| seating_type =

| seating_capacity =

| elevator_count =

| architect =

| architecture_firm =

| structural_engineer =

| services_engineer =

| civil_engineer =

| other_designers =

| quantity_surveyor =

| main_contractor =

| awards =

| designations =

| ren_architect =

| ren_firm =

| ren_str_engineer =

| ren_serv_engineer =

| ren_civ_engineer =

| ren_oth_designers =

| ren_qty_surveyor =

| ren_awards =

| parking =

| url =

| embedded =

| references =

}}

File:WTC badgersruleok a18.jpg

The Old Grammar School, Coventry is a Grade I listed building in Coventry, England on the corner of Bishop Street and Hales Street.

History

=Establishment=

The Hospital of St John was founded between 1154 and 1179 by Prior Lawrence of the Benedictine MonasteryPage, pg. 109-112 for a warden and a number of secular brothers or sisters.Page, pg. 109-112 Like many town hospitals in the country dedicated to St. John the Baptist, the objects of the hospital were "to provide a small permanent staff to supervise the house and maintain the chapel services, to afford temporary relief and lodgement for poor wayfarers, and to give more permanent relief to certain of the local poor who were sick or aged".Page, pg. 109-112

=Tudor period=

Around 1544 the foundation was closed and then sold to John Hales with King Henry VIII setting a condition that Hales started a Free School in Coventry. This he did and a few years later moved the school, named after the king, from the former Carmelite monastery into the hospital.

In 1565, Queen Elizabeth I visited Coventry entering via Bishop Street Gate, and as she passed the school it was mentioned that her father had caused its foundation.{{fact|date=May 2013}} She visited and gave a donation for its upkeep.{{fact|date=May 2013}}

=Georgian period=

When the street outside of the Old Grammar School was widened in 1794, the half-timbered part of the building was demolished and the street was renamed to Hales Street. That same year, the west end of the church and the bell tower were also demolished.{{cite web |url=http://www.coventrysociety.org.uk/buildings-at-risk/old-grammar-school.html |title=The Old Grammar School, Hales Street |publisher=The Coventry Society |access-date=6 May 2013}}

=Victorian era onwards=

The King Henry VIII School moved to its present location in Warwick Road in 1885.

After standing empty for over 20 years, it was announced in 2012 that plans were afoot to open the Old Grammar School as an offshoot of the Coventry Transport Museum.{{cite news |title=Coventry's Old Grammar School set to be reopened |author=Tina Junday |url=http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/2012/04/04/coventry-s-old-grammar-school-set-to-be-reopened-92746-30687845/ |newspaper=Coventry Telegraph |date=4 April 2012 |access-date=1 August 2012}}{{cite news |title=Coventry Transport Museum: Extension plans on track |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-17610191 |newspaper=BBC News Online |publisher=BBC |date=4 April 2012 |access-date=23 September 2012}} In March 2013 planning permission was granted to enable the restoration of the Old Grammar School to be used as an exhibit, education and event space.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-21926553|title=Coventry's Old Grammar School given building permission|date=25 March 2013|work=BBC News|publisher=BBC|access-date=28 March 2013}}{{cite web|url=http://planning.coventry.gov.uk/portal/servlets/ApplicationSearchServlet?PKID=743832|title=Coventry City Council Planning Application FUL/2012/2392}} This included the demolition of an existing adjoining building with the construction of a replacement extension to provide disabled access to the Old Grammar School. The restoration formed part of a £8.5 million redevelopment of the Coventry Transport Museum and began on 31 March 2014{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-26665112|title=Coventry Transport Museum unveils £8.5m revamp|date=20 March 2014|work=BBC News|publisher=BBC|access-date=21 March 2014}} with the Old Grammar School opening to the public on 4 July 2015.{{cite news|url=http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/exclusive-first-look-inside-old-9544779|title=Exclusive: First look inside the Old Grammar School in Coventry after £1.5m restoration|date=29 June 2015|work=Coventry Telegraph|publisher=Coventry Telegraph|access-date=16 August 2015}}

References

Bibliography

{{cite book |last=McGrory|first=David|title=A History of Coventry|year=2003|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-264-1}}
{{cite book |author=Page, William, ed. |author-link=William Henry Page |title=A History of the County of Warwick: Volume 2 |url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/warks/vol2/pp109-112 |year=1908 |publisher=Victoria County History}}

External links

Category:Buildings and structures in Coventry

Category:Grade I listed buildings in the West Midlands (county)