Worshipful Company of Cooks
Encyclopedia
The Worshipful Company of Cooks of London is the smallest of the Livery Companies
of the City of London
.
The Company received its Royal Charter
in 1482.
Its origins can be traced back to the 12th Century, founded from two guilds of cooks in medieval London - the Cooks of Eastcheap and the Cooks of Bread Street.
As you would expect from a Company whose roots can be traced back to 1170, the Worshipful Company of Cooks has a rich and colourful history from the earliest records of Cooks in the Middle Ages and their control of the craft until the 19th Century to the Company’s current charitable works.
The Cooks Company is no longer an association of tradesmen in its original sense of control; yet, its membership today still includes craft tradesmen, and its actvities engage with a broad range of organisations associated with cooking. The Company's purpose in contemporary times has come to rest in a public search for the common good, to contribute as effectively as it can to the pursuit of a good society - to be socially useful. It does this through four principal objectives that translate its origins, history, traditions, affiliations, and activities into meaningful outcomes for today's world:
The Cooks' Company ranks thirty-fifth in the order of precedence
of Livery Companies.
Its motto is Vulnerati Non Victi, Latin for Wounded not Conquered.
Livery Company
The Livery Companies are 108 trade associations in the City of London, almost all of which are known as the "Worshipful Company of" the relevant trade, craft or profession. The medieval Companies originally developed as guilds and were responsible for the regulation of their trades, controlling,...
of the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
.
The Company received its Royal Charter
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
in 1482.
Its origins can be traced back to the 12th Century, founded from two guilds of cooks in medieval London - the Cooks of Eastcheap and the Cooks of Bread Street.
As you would expect from a Company whose roots can be traced back to 1170, the Worshipful Company of Cooks has a rich and colourful history from the earliest records of Cooks in the Middle Ages and their control of the craft until the 19th Century to the Company’s current charitable works.
The Cooks Company is no longer an association of tradesmen in its original sense of control; yet, its membership today still includes craft tradesmen, and its actvities engage with a broad range of organisations associated with cooking. The Company's purpose in contemporary times has come to rest in a public search for the common good, to contribute as effectively as it can to the pursuit of a good society - to be socially useful. It does this through four principal objectives that translate its origins, history, traditions, affiliations, and activities into meaningful outcomes for today's world:
- To fund a range of charitable activities associated with the welfare and education of the catering trade
- To support the modern day craft of cooking including catering excellence through competition, scholarly and scientific culinary research, and the development of food policy
- To support the City of London
- To pursue a fellowship of association that can mobilise the necessary resource, skill, and wisdom to bring these about
The Cooks' Company ranks thirty-fifth in the order of precedence
Order of precedence
An order of precedence is a sequential hierarchy of nominal importance of items. Most often it is used in the context of people by many organizations and governments...
of Livery Companies.
Its motto is Vulnerati Non Victi, Latin for Wounded not Conquered.