Magnificent Portsmouth Guildhall was opened by Prince of Wales

This extremely early photograph of the Guildhall, Portsmouth, was taken shortly before the building was opened on August 9, 1890, by the Prince of Wales.

By The Newsroom

Published 28th Dec 2016, 06:00 BST

Updated 29th Dec 2016, 15:08 BST

One of the earliest pictures of the Guildhall Picture: The Barry Cox collection.

It was then a town hall and remained so until 1926 when Portsmouth was raised to the status of a city and at that point it became a Guildhall.

‘You have,’ said the Prince, ‘every reason to feel proud of this fine building, worthy of the largest naval port in the United Kingdom and of the architectural beauties which it displays.’

Sadly, as we know, the interior was destroyed on the night of January 10, 1941, from the bombs that rained down upon the city during the blitz.

Happily it was rebuilt as we know it today and was opened by the Queen in 1959.