Coventry has a rich and interesting history.  We are not going to recount the city's history on this website because there are plenty of great sites produced by professionals and enthusiasts, which do that already:

City Council Local History and Heritage pages.

Historic Coventry: great enthusiast's site. Have a look at the Street Maps section.

The Victoria County History for the City of Coventry.

The Historic City of Coventry: enthusiast's site with some good photos.

Pictures of Coventry: a comprehensive database of historic pictures from the Library Service.

BBC Local History website for Coventry & Warwickshire.

History of Coventry Wikipedia entry.

Coventry Pages history section; enthusiast's site with lots of interesting content.

Coventry Web: an intriguing selection of articles on local history.

History of Coventry University.

Coventry Family History Society.

Coventry Transport Museum

Coventry Heritage Section of Coventry & Warwickshire Network:  with lots of different links and a chronology which breaks the history of the city into digestible chunks.

If you know of any more good Coventry History sites, let us know at website@coventrysociety.org.uk.

The Coventry Society believes the city should make better use of its major heritage assets.  Old buildings add interest and character to the city, they help people to understand their history and they can be source of inspiration for creative activity.  Coventry has five significant historic buildings which have been unused or underused for many years.  The Coventry Society believes that urgent priority should be given to finding viable uses for these buildings.

The Old Grammar School (Hospital of St John the Baptist), Hales Street

Holy Trinity Church current owners of this nationally important building established a mission church here in 1885. But since the last war, after intermittent use for jumble sales and the like, the building has fallen into disrepair.

Founded in the 12^th century as an early hospital, all that remains today is part of the attached church. After dissolution 1545 the building was the city's Free Grammar School until 1885 when King Henry VIII School opened at Warwick Road.

Whitefriars

When the Inner Ring Road was routed across the frontage of this ancient building its setting was destroyed forever. These days it rarely opens to the public as it now houses museum records and artifacts while the new Herbert is under construction.

Founded in 1342, the surviving building is all that is left of the Carmelite friary known as Whitefriars because of the colour of the friars' habits. After dissolution the site was purchased by John Hales for conversion to a private residence.

The Charterhouse, London Road

Currently in the ownership of City College and used as a training facility, the building as it stands today is all that survives of the old Carthusian Monastery of Saint Anne.

The house incorporates the Prior's lodging and monk's refectory from medieval times when the priory was founded by Lord Zouche of Harringworth in 1381.

After dissolution most of the priory was demolished, but the surviving part from the 15^th century became the home of local industrialist Colonel Wyley.

 

Drapers' Hall, Bayley Lane

Currently redundant, at various times over the last ten years attempts have been made to bring the building back into permanent use. A plan drawn up by Coventry Building Preservation Trust (an offshoot of Coventry Society) would have seen the building re-used as a central community centre and museum to the cloth trade. But the plan was rejected by the City Council.

The building, the third on the site, was the headquarters of the Drapers' Company and was erected in 1831-32, Greek Revival in style.

County Hall, Cuckoo Lane and Prison Governor's House, Pepper Lane.

Since 1988 when the court moved to Much Park Street the building has attracted the interest of several breweries for conversion to a pub cum wine bar. Sadly much of the original courtroom furniture has been stripped away.

The County Hall, a stone-built courthouse, was erected in 1783-84, and was one of the few 18^th century public buildings in the city. Land adjacent was used as a gaol and the Prison Governor's House is still attached to the County Court building.