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History - Charter

A Charter was granted to the Company on the 14th April 1571 by Queen Elizabeth I, in the Mastership of Lewis Stockett, then Surveyor-General to the Queen.
This original Charter is still in good condition and is kept at the Guildhall.

In 1684 King Charles II demanded that the Joiners (as with other Companies) surrender its Charter and, on the advice of the Lord Mayor, this was done. A new one was given (but never accepted) in 1685.

The 1571 charter was restored to the Company in 1688 by King James II and stands in toto. The original seal is missing and the present seal is thought to have been affixed by James II.