Leeds Corn Exchange
Photograph of a large stone building with an oval footprint and a domed roof. The main entrance lies behind four large arches and underneath a clock. Numerous arched windows lie on two levels all around the building.
Leeds Corn Exchange
General information
Architectural styleItalianate style
LocationLeeds, West Yorkshire, England
Completed1864
Renovated1990, 2008
Design and construction
Architect(s)Cuthbert Brodrick
Listed Building – Grade I
Official nameCorn Exchange
Designated19 October 1951
Reference no.1255771

The Leeds Corn Exchange is a shopping mall in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The structure, which was commissioned as a corn exchange, is a grade I listed building.[1]

History

View from the balcony, of the east end of the interior in November 2010

The first corn exchange in Leeds was located at the north end of Briggate and was opened in 1829. By the mid-19th century, it was considered too small, and civic officials decided to commission a larger building.[2]

The new building was designed by Cuthbert Brodrick, a Hull architect best known for Leeds Town Hall, in the Italianate style, built in stone with diamond-shaped rustification and was completed in 1863.[1] The oval-shaped building featured two semi-circular porches with doorways which were flanked by Tuscan order columns supporting cornices, and was fenestrated by recessed round headed windows on both floors. The design of the dome was based on that of the Bourse de commerce of Paris by François-Joseph Bélanger and François Brunet, completed in 1811.[3] The architectural historian, Nikolaus Pevsner, praised the design which he regarded as "remarkably independent and functional".[4]

The use of the building as a corn exchange declined significantly in the wake of the Great Depression of British Agriculture in the late 19th century.[5] However, in the late 1980s Speciality Shops plc restored it and converted it into a retail facility.[6] After a further restoration carried out by new owners, Zurich Financial Services, the Corn Exchange re-opened in November 2008 as a boutique shopping centre for independent retailers. The 13,200-square-foot (1,230 m2) ground level was occupied by Piazza by Anthony until its sudden closure in June 2013.[7]

In 2017 the Corn Exchange was acquired by property company Rushbond.[8] As of 2019 the Corn Exchange contains about 30 independent retailers and food outlets.[9] It is described as "one of only three remaining Corn Exchanges still functioning as a centre for trade in Britain", albeit no longer functioning as a corn exchange.[10]

The building was depicted in an official BBC trailer for the 2021 Rugby League World Cup (in reference to Leeds being one of the host cities).[11]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Historic England. "Corn Exchange (1255771)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
  2. ↑ "The grand design created as Leeds' corn trade boomed". The Yorkshire Post. 15 February 2016. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
  3. ↑ "Bourse de Commerce". Structurae (in French). Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  4. ↑ Wrathmell, Susan; Minnis, John; Douglas, Janet (2005). Leeds. Pevsner Architectural Guides: City Guides. Yale University Press. pp. 68–71. ISBN 978-0300107364.
  5. ↑ Fletcher, T. W. (1973). 'The Great Depression of English Agriculture 1873-1896' in British Agriculture 1875-1914. London: Methuen. p. 31. ISBN 978-1136581182.
  6. ↑ "Leeds Corn Exchange's 150 years of changing fortunes". Yorkshire Evening Post. 29 April 2013. Archived from the original on 13 July 2019. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  7. ↑ Bowyer, Laura (22 June 2013). "Dining dismay after acclaimed Leeds restaurants shut". The Yorkshire Evening Post. Leeds. Archived from the original on 24 July 2013. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
  8. ↑ "New owners for Leeds Corn Exchange". Business Up North. 3 March 2017. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  9. ↑ "The Corn Exchange". Visit Leeds. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  10. ↑ Chrystal, Paul (2016). Leeds in 50 Buildings. Amberley Publishing. ISBN 978-1445654553.
  11. ↑ "Rugby League World Cup 2022 🏉 Trailer 🏟 BBC Trailers". YouTube.com. BBC. 9 October 2022. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
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