On a shocking night in 1942, the Guildhall came close to total destruction.

On the night of 29 April 1942, as part of a Blitz raid on the city of York and its railway works, the Guildhall was almost totally destroyed by incendiary bombs. The first bombs fell at 2.42 a.m. and the medieval building with its ancient timbers was quickly ablaze.

The site was in use as the Civil Defence Control centre at the time. Those who were working there on the night recalled having to escape along the narrow passages either side of the hall, with the heat causing the lead to melt from the roof above them and the Victorian stained glass windows to explode.

The stone walls of the Guildhall mostly survived, and after the War it was decided as a mark of civic pride to reconstruct an exact replica of what had been lost. The two-tonne pillars holding up the roof, each made from a single piece of oak, were donated from local forests. The Guildhall was reopened in 1960 by Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.

  • A black and white photo showing York's Guildhall ablaze during the 1942 Blitz.
  • A black and white photo showing York's Guildhall ablaze during the 1942 Blitz.
  • A black and white photo showing York's Guildhall ablaze during the 1942 Blitz.