The
Worshipful Company of Grocers is one of the
Livery Companies of the City of London
.
History
The Company was founded in the fourteenth century (1345) as the
Guild of Pepperers, which was first known in the twelfth
century (1180). By 1373 , the Guild was known as the Company of
Grocers of London.
In 1428 , the Company acquired a
Royal
Charter. The Company was responsible for maintaining standards
for the purity of
spices and for the setting
of certain
weights and
measures. Its members included London's
pharmacists, who separated into the
Worshipful Society of
Apothecaries in 1617 .
As part of the work of the Worshipful Company, a school was founded
in Hackney for the sons of middle class gentlemen.
This school, The
Grocers' Company School, was handed over to the London County Council and changed its
name to Hackney Downs
School
, which was eventually closed in 1995 . These
schools had, as their school badge, a
camel
over a
shield with
cloves. The
Camel and Cloves are remembered
to this day by old boys of the school through the Clove Club (their
alumni).
An 1829
history of the Company, Some Account of the Worshipful Company
of Grocers of the City of London, by John Benjamin Heath (Governor of the Bank of
England, 1845-1847),
may now be read online: Google Book
Search digitized a copy from Harvard
University
's Widener
Library
in September 2005.
The Company's motto is
"God Grant Grace".
The Grocers' Company today
Today, the Grocers' Company exists as a
charitable and ceremonial
institution.
It is responsible for the maintenance of
Oundle
School
and The Elms School
(founded 1614), and is represented on the council
of University College
School. In the
order of precedence for Livery
Companies, the Grocers' Company ranks second, after only the
Mercers' Company,
making it one of the
Great Twelve City Livery
Companies.
The Company also maintains
banquet and
conference facilities at Grocers'
Hall.
Trivia
It is said that the Grocers' Company used to be first in the order,
until
Queen Victoria
found herself in procession behind the Grocers' camel which was
emitting unfortunate smells. As a result, the
Mercers were
promoted.
Oundle School in Oundle
near
Peterborough
has the Badge of the Grocers Camel as their school
badge.The company is affiliated to
HMS Gloucester, a
Type 42 Destroyer of the
Royal Navy
References
External links
Wikis
Quiz
Map
Search
