Belfast's City Hall dominates Donegall Square in Belfast and is one of the grandest buildings in the city centre. Due to renovation works, City Hall is closed to visitors until mid 2009.
Described as an Edwardian masterpiece, construction began in 1898 following Queen Victoria's visit in 1849, when she gave it city status.
The building stands in public gardens and is built in Classical Renaissance style in Portland stone. Visitors enter into the marble-lined Octogan Vestibule, where there is a marble memorial of Frederick Robert Chichester, Earl of Belfast (1827-1853). On the south-east side of the vestibule are two stained glass windows, memorials to the officers, NCOs and men of the North Irish Horse regiment who died in both World Wars.
A grand staircase in Italian marble leads up from here with an elaborate domed ceiling and seven stained-glass windows above.
The Principal Landing and Dome is also decorated in marble, with four main arches leading up to the drum of the dome. This is decorated with signs of the zodiac, plus the ship and the bell from the city's coat of arms. On this level there is also a mural by Belfast artist John Luke, commissioned to mark the 1951 Festival of Britain.
The Visitors' Galleries in carved oak look onto The Council Chamber, also decorated with wood panelling and stained-glass windows, plus two chairs used by King George V and Queen Mary at the opening of the first Parliament of Northern Ireland in the Council Chamber at City Hall on 22 June, 1921. The 120-foot Great Hall has a vaulted ceiling and windows that depict three monarchs that have visited the city - King William III, Queen Victoria and King Edward VII. The hall was nearly destroyed during a German air raid in 1941, but fortunately the windows had already been removed for safe-keeping and reinstalled at a later date.
There are also ornate reception rooms and an east staircase with several memorials and statues. Outside is the Garden of Remembrance, with a cenotaph, and the public gardens are a popular place to relax in the summer sun.
The building stands in public gardens and is built in Classical Renaissance style in Portland stone. Visitors enter into the marble-lined Octogan Vestibule, where there is a marble memorial of Frederick Robert Chichester, Earl of Belfast (1827-1853). On the south-east side of the vestibule are two stained glass windows, memorials to the officers, NCOs and men of the North Irish Horse regiment who died in both World Wars.
A grand staircase in Italian marble leads up from here with an elaborate domed ceiling and seven stained-glass windows above.
The Principal Landing and Dome is also decorated in marble, with four main arches leading up to the drum of the dome. This is decorated with signs of the zodiac, plus the ship and the bell from the city's coat of arms. On this level there is also a mural by Belfast artist John Luke, commissioned to mark the 1951 Festival of Britain.
The Visitors' Galleries in carved oak look onto The Council Chamber, also decorated with wood panelling and stained-glass windows, plus two chairs used by King George V and Queen Mary at the opening of the first Parliament of Northern Ireland in the Council Chamber at City Hall on 22 June, 1921. The 120-foot Great Hall has a vaulted ceiling and windows that depict three monarchs that have visited the city - King William III, Queen Victoria and King Edward VII. The hall was nearly destroyed during a German air raid in 1941, but fortunately the windows had already been removed for safe-keeping and reinstalled at a later date.
There are also ornate reception rooms and an east staircase with several memorials and statues. Outside is the Garden of Remembrance, with a cenotaph, and the public gardens are a popular place to relax in the summer sun.
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