The Gibraltar City Hall is the former city hall for Gibraltar, centrally located within the city at the west end of John Mackintosh Square. It currently serves as the office of the Mayor of Gibraltar and, since 2023, has also housed the Registry of Marriages.
History
The building was originally constructed in 1819 as a private mansion for Aaron Cardozo, a prosperous merchant of Jewish Portuguese descent who had settled in Gibraltar. It was the grandest private mansion ever seen in Gibraltar at the time, a three-storey house that dominated John Mackintosh Square. It was erected on the site of the old hospital and chapel of La Santa Misericordia (The Holy Mercy) and later a prison. Because Cardozo was not a Protestant, he was not legally permitted to own property in Gibraltar; however, due to his close friendship with Lord Nelson and his service supplying Nelson's fleet, he was granted a site to build on the condition that the house be "an ornament" to the square. The construction cost was approximately £40,000.
After Cardozo's death in 1834, the mansion was leased to John Ansaldo and operated as a hotel, the Club House Hotel. In 1874, it was purchased by Pablo Antonio Larios, a wealthy Gibraltarian-born businessman and banker from the Spanish Larios family, who completely refurbished the building. In 1922, his son Pablo Larios, Marquis of Marzales, sold the building to the Gibraltar colonial authorities, who initially intended to convert it into a post office. Instead, it became the seat of the newly formed Gibraltar City Council. From 1926, the Gibraltar telephone service was operated by the City Council, and an automatic telephone exchange was installed on the top floor. The building was later extended with an additional storey and a new northern wing, modifying its original symmetry.
Architecture
The building follows Regency architectural principles, featuring a symmetrical three-storey façade. It is located at the west end of John Mackintosh Square in the heart of Gibraltar.
National Gallery
In 2015, the Government of Gibraltar established the Mario Finlayson National Art Gallery within the City Hall. The gallery exhibits works by prominent Gibraltarian artists, including Gustavo Bacarisas, Jacobo Azagury, Leni Mifsud, and Rudesindo Mannia, as well as pieces by Mario Finlayson himself.
Former Names
The building has been known historically as Club House, Club House Hotel, and Connaught House.
