Photo Post: Supreme Court of the United Kingdom

The beautiful Middlesex Guildhall is the home of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. Established under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, the Supreme Court assumed the judicial functions of the House of Lords in 2009. Although not as powerful as the supreme courts of some other countries – it cannot, for example, overturn primary legislation of Parliament – the UKSC is the final court of appeal here in the UK, and hears cases of the greatest public or constitutional importance.

Middlesex Guildhall stands on the south-west corner of Parliament Square in London, right beside Westminster Abbey and before the Palace of Westminster. It’s a relatively young building, built in the art nouveau gothic style between 1906 and 1913. That said, this site has an ancient connection to law and justice. Long before the earliest courthouse was built here, it was home to Westminster Abbey’s Sanctuary Tower and Old Belfry, where fugitives and criminals could seek sanctuary and refuge. In 1878, Walter Thornbury wrote a history of how this worked in practice, in his essay Westminster Abbey: The sanctuary and almonry, which you can read here.

During my walk through Westminster this morning, I took some photographs of the building which I hope you enjoy. These photos are under a Creative Commons CC BY License. This means you can share and copy these photos, as well as adapt, transform, and build upon them for any purpose, even commercially. All I ask is that you give me, Kelsey Farish, credit. Click each image to see the full size.