Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
| Location | Haberdashers' Hall, London EC1 |
|---|---|
| Date of formation | 1448 |
| Company association | Silk and velvet clothing |
| Order of precedence | 8th |
| Master of company | Richard Glover |
| Motto | "Serve and Obey" |
| Website | haberdashers |
The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers, one of the Great Twelve City Livery Companies, is an ancient merchant guild of London, England associated with the silk and velvet trades.
The Haberdashers' Company follows the Mercers' Company (inc. 1394, also connected with clothing and previously haberdashery) in precedence, receiving its first Royal Charter in 1448 and holds records dating back to 1371. The formal name under which it is incorporated is The Master and Four Wardens of the Fraternity of the Art or Mystery of Haberdashers in the City of London.
The company was originally responsible for the regulation of silk and velvet merchants, but began losing control over those trades as the population of London increased and spread outwards from the City after the Industrial Revolution. Through careful stewardship of corporate bequests and funds, the company now serves as a significant educational and charitable institution whilst maintaining links with its heritage by giving awards for fashion education.
As an educational foundation, the Haberdashers' Company maintains a strong tradition of supporting schools. It founded a boys' school in Hoxton in 1690, and following redevelopment of the site, in June 1875, it reopened the school, which was now divided into two, educating boys and girls. At the same time, it opened a boys and girls school in Hatcham, South London. The Hoxton Boys' School moved to Hampstead, North London, and subsequently to Elstree in 1961 to become the Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School, Elstree. The Girls' School, founded in Hoxton moved to Creffield Road, Acton, opening on 1 November 1989 with 47 Hoxton pupils and 12 new girls, working in a temporary iron building. In September 1974, it opened on its present site in Elstree as Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls, adjacent to the Boys' School.
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