The
Worshipful Company of Haberdashers is one of the
Livery CompaniesThe 108 Livery Companies are trade associations based in the City of London, almost all of which are known as the "Worshipful Company of" the relevant trade or profession. The Livery Companies originally developed as guilds and were responsible for the regulation of their trades, controlling, for...
of the
City of LondonThe 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 organisation, which developed from the Mercers' Company, another Livery Company connected with clothing and
haberdasherA haberdasher is a person who sells small articles for sewing, such as buttons, ribbons and zippers. In U.S. English, haberdasher is another term for a men's outfitter. A haberdasher's shop or the items sold therein are called haberdashery....
y, received a
Royal CharterIn medieval Europe, royal charters were used to create cities . The date that such a charter was granted is considered to be when a city was "founded", regardless of when the locality originally began to be settled.At one time a royal charter was the only way in which an incorporated body could be...
in 1448. The Company, which was originally responsible for the regulation cloth merchants, began to lose control due to the increase of the population of London, its jurisdiction. Thus, the Company now exists as an educational and charitable institution only, instead of retaining links to its original trade.
As an educational institution, the Haberdashers' company has been active in founding eight schools.
The
Worshipful Company of Haberdashers is one of the
Livery CompaniesThe 108 Livery Companies are trade associations based in the City of London, almost all of which are known as the "Worshipful Company of" the relevant trade or profession. The Livery Companies originally developed as guilds and were responsible for the regulation of their trades, controlling, for...
of the
City of LondonThe 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 organisation, which developed from the Mercers' Company, another Livery Company connected with clothing and
haberdasherA haberdasher is a person who sells small articles for sewing, such as buttons, ribbons and zippers. In U.S. English, haberdasher is another term for a men's outfitter. A haberdasher's shop or the items sold therein are called haberdashery....
y, received a
Royal CharterIn medieval Europe, royal charters were used to create cities . The date that such a charter was granted is considered to be when a city was "founded", regardless of when the locality originally began to be settled.At one time a royal charter was the only way in which an incorporated body could be...
in 1448. The Company, which was originally responsible for the regulation cloth merchants, began to lose control due to the increase of the population of London, its jurisdiction. Thus, the Company now exists as an educational and charitable institution only, instead of retaining links to its original trade.
As an educational institution, the Haberdashers' company has been active in founding eight schools. It created a boys' school at
HoxtonHoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, immediately north of the financial district of the City of London. The area of Hoxton is bordered by Regents Canal on the north side, Wharf Road and City Road on the west, Old Street on the south, and Kingsland Road on the east.-Origins:'Hogesdon'...
, which then split into schools at
HatchamHatcham was a manor and later chapelry in what is now London, England. It corresponds to the area around New Cross Gate station in the London Borough of Lewisham....
in south London and
HampsteadHampstead is an area of London, England, located north-west of Charing Cross. It is located within Inner London. It is part of the London Borough of Camden. It is known for its intellectual, artistic, musical and literary associations and for the large and hilly parkland Hampstead Heath...
in north London; the Hampstead school moved in 1961 to become the
Haberdashers' Aske's SchoolThe Haberdashers' Aske's School or HABS, as it is commonly known by the public, is a British independent school in Elstree, near Borehamwood, in Hertfordshire....
,
ElstreeElstree is a village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire on the A5, north of London. It forms part of the civil parish of Elstree and Borehamwood . Elstree is in the Greater London Urban Area....
. The Hatcham school now admits girls as well as boys; a separate girls' school was founded at
ActonActon is a place in west London, United Kingdom situated west of Charing Cross. At the time of the 2001 census, Acton, comprising the wards of East Acton, Acton Central, South Acton and Southfield, had a population of 53,689 people....
but has now moved to be close to the Elstree school. Other Haberdashers' schools are situated elsewhere in the
U.K.The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, for example
William AdamsWilliam Adams was a 17th Century London Haberdasher born in Newport, Shropshire, who founded Adams' Grammar School in 1656. After his death in 1660, the school was governed by the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers.-External links:* *...
opened the
Adams' Grammar SchoolAdams' Grammar School is a state grammar school in Newport, Shropshire. Its name is sometimes abbreviated to AGS, although it is more commonly referred to as 'Adams' or alternatively, 'The Grammar'...
in 1656 in his home town of
NewportNewport is a market town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England. It lies some north of Telford and some west of Stafford sitting on the Shropshire/Staffordshire border...
,
ShropshireShropshire , alternatively known as Salop or abbreviated, in print only, Shrops, is a county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Wales to the west. Shropshire is one of England's most rural and sparsely populated counties with a population density of 91/km²...
.
Being a principally Christian organisation, the Haberdashers present copies of the King James Bible to leavers of their schools.
The Company ranks eighth in the
order of precedenceAn 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; it is therefore considered one of the "Great Twelve City Livery Companies". The Company's motto is
Serve and Obey. Its Hall was for many centuries in the
BassishawBassishaw is a ward in the City of London. This small ward is bounded on the east by Coleman Street ward, to the south by Cheap ward, to the north by Cripplegate ward, and on the west by Aldersgate ward...
ward of the City but since 2002 the Company has moved into a new Hall in
Farringdon WithoutFarringdon Without is a ward in the City of London, England. The ward covers the area east of Chancery Lane including Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Smithfield market, and is the largest of the 25 City wards.-History:...
.
List of Haberdashers Schools
- Abraham Darby Academy
- Adams' Grammar School
Adams' Grammar School is a state grammar school in Newport, Shropshire. Its name is sometimes abbreviated to AGS, although it is more commonly referred to as 'Adams' or alternatively, 'The Grammar'...
- Aldersey C of E Primary School
- Haberdashers' Agincourt School
- Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham College
Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham College is an Academy secondary school located in New Cross. The school was formerly a Grammar school, then a comprehensive City Technology College and now an Academy operating between two sites near New Cross Gate in South-East London...
- Haberdashers’ Aske’s Knights Academy
- Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School
The Haberdashers' Aske's School or HABS, as it is commonly known by the public, is a British independent school in Elstree, near Borehamwood, in Hertfordshire....
- Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls
Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls is a British independent school in Elstree, near Borehamwood, in the county of Hertfordshire. Often known as "Habs" or "Habs Girls", to distinguish it from the neighbouring Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School, the school was founded in 1875 by The Haberdashers'...
- Haberdashers' Monmouth School for Girls
Haberdashers' Monmouth School for Girls is an independent school located in Monmouth, Wales, and one of the most exclusive educational institutions in the world. The school was established, and continues to be supported by, the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers in 1892. There are four houses -...
- Monmouth School
Monmouth School is a HMC boys' boarding and day school in Monmouth, Monmouthshire in south east Wales. It was founded in 1614 by William Jones. It is run as a trust, the William Jones's Schools Foundation, by the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers, one of the Livery Companies...
- West Monmouth School
West Monmouth School is a state-funded and non-selective secondary school in Pontypool, Torfaen, in Wales. Pupils who attend the school, however, generally live in the Pontypool area...
(affiliated)
External links