King Arthur’s Hall needs vital repairs
A HALL in Cornwall linked to the legends of King Arthur is among historic sites at risk of being lost forever.
Over the past year, Historic England has added 175 places to its Heritage at Risk Register of buildings under threat as a result of decay, neglect or inappropriate development. Newly named buildings on the list include King Arthur’s Great Halls in Tintagel, Cornwall, where Arthurian devotees once gathered
The building was designed in the 1930s by Frederick Thomas Glasscock, and its 73 windows depicting the tales of King Arthur are among the country’s finest examples of stained glass workmanship.
KING Arthur’s Great Halls were designed as the headquarters for the Fellowship of the Knights of the Round Table and built between 1927 and 1933 by Frederick Thomas Glasscock (1871-1934), co-founder of the Monk & Glass custard company.
The Halls embody the Fellowship’s principles of knighthood, chivalry and honour through their architecture, fittings and decoration, which are still intact today. They include 73 stained-glass windows by artist Veronica Whall (1887-1967), widely considered to be one of the finest examples of Arts and Crafts stained-glass windows, and a series of ten specially commissioned oil paintings telling the story of King Arthur and his Knights by artist William Hatherell (1855-1928).
The Halls were built to reflect Cornwall’s rich geology and feature an extensive range of local stone, a characteristic not found in any other Cornish building.
The fabric of the Halls and the rich interiors and collections are now at risk due to the deterioration of the roof, which is allowing water into the building. The street frontage and roof were perilously close to structural failure and have been repaired recently, leaving almost no resources to complete the urgent roof works.
Jeremy Chadburn, conservation architect to King Arthur’s Halls, said:
“King Arthur’s Halls are an almost otherworldly time capsule that play a very special role in Cornwall’s history. Its fabric and artworks are now under threat of significant loss and damage. We hope its addition to the Heritage at Risk Register will help raise awareness and garner support for the urgent repairs the building and contents now need.”