These photographs show the only surviving remains of a late 13th Century Franciscan friary that once dominated Priory Park.

Timeline of the guildhall:

1269 – 1282 A Franciscan Friary is constructed in Priory Park. Believed to have been the chancel of the friary, it contained the high alter and would only have been used by the resident Greyfriars who remained in Priory Park for more than two centuries until the dissolution of monasteries in the 16th Century.

1538 The friary was closed under the reign of King Henry VIII. With the exception of the chancel, all buildings belonging to the friary were demolished. The site was given to the Mayor of Chichester.

1541 The City Corporation buys the chancel from the Mayor of Chichester. The building is used as law courts and the Town Hall, or Guildhall. During this time some famous trials were held here including the trial of the Hawkhurst gang of smugglers in 1749 and the trial of the poet & artist William Blake in 1804.

1850 The building stops being used as a Guildhall and is used by the Sussex Rifle Volunteers as an Armoury and Drill Hall.

1947 The Guildhall becomes Chichester’s first museum site and is used to display historic artefacts for the people of Chichester.

2007 – 2009 The Guildhall undergoes a major repairs programme and becomes a hire venue for community events.

2015 The Guildhall is granted a license to host civil ceremonies and becomes a wedding venue for the first time in its history.