Worshipful Company of Wheelwrights
Encyclopedia
The Worshipful Company of Wheelwrights is one of the Livery Companies
of the City of London
, England
. An organisation of Wheelwrights and Coachmakers petitioned for incorporation in 1630. The petition was granted forty years later, in 1670, when a Royal Charter
was granted to the Wheelwrights. (The Coachmakers were separately incorporated in 1677.) The Wheelwrights' Company was granted the status of a Livery Company in 1763. Over the years, wheel making has changed from being made by craftsmen to being made by machines. Thus, the Company is no longer a trade association for wheelwrights. Instead, it functions as a charitable body.
The Wheelwrights' Company ranks sixty-eighth in the order of precedence
for Livery Companies. Its motto is God Grant Unity.
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...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. An organisation of Wheelwrights and Coachmakers petitioned for incorporation in 1630. The petition was granted forty years later, in 1670, when a 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...
was granted to the Wheelwrights. (The Coachmakers were separately incorporated in 1677.) The Wheelwrights' Company was granted the status of a Livery Company in 1763. Over the years, wheel making has changed from being made by craftsmen to being made by machines. Thus, the Company is no longer a trade association for wheelwrights. Instead, it functions as a charitable body.
The Wheelwrights' Company ranks sixty-eighth 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...
for Livery Companies. Its motto is God Grant Unity.