ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book examines the origins of our current legal system in the medieval period, taking the story through to the late seventeenth century: by this stage, both dedicated court buildings and permanently fitted courtrooms had emerged. It considers how in the eighteenth and even sometimes the nineteenth centuries these were staged in buildings which were available at other times for other purposes, but were nevertheless designed to convey the majesty of the law. The book also examines the birth of a more modern building type, looking at the period between 1790 and 1840 when virtually every existing court building had to be rebuilt, or at least substantially modified, to meet lawyers' changing expectations. The book also then examines three different kinds of these courts, each with quite distinct planning needs: police courts and county courts and coroners' courts.
