The first known habitation at the Inn, thought to have been on or close to the site of the present Hall, was the Manor House of the ancient Manor of Purpoole (also Portpoole), meaning “the market by the lake” (a cattle market). The Manor House was the property of Sir Reginald de Grey. In 1370, the Manor House is described for the first time as a “hospitium” (a hostel). That change of description suggests a gathering of lodgers at the Manor House by 1370, and it seems probable that the “hospitium” was a learned society of lawyers because, only eighteen years later, in 1388, two Members became Serjeants.
During the 16th century, Gray’s Inn prospered. It was a period of great expansion; the number of students admitted between 1500 and 1600 quadrupled. This has been named “the Golden Age.” Queen Elizabeth I herself was the Inn’s Patron Lady, and Lord Burleigh, Lord Howard of Effingham, and Sir Francis Walsingham were all Members of the Inn. However, many Members had no intent on becoming barristers, using the Inn only to widen their social connections. For those who did become barristers, there was no Call to the Bar; after seven years of living at the Inn, it was entrusted to the Benchers to select those qualified for Call.
Between 1680 and 1687, there were three disastrous fires at the Inn. That of 1684 was particularly grievous for it burned the Library, which was then on the present site of No. 1 Gray’s Inn Square, and that is probably when the Inn’s ancient records were lost.
Over the next hundred years or more, qualification for Call to the Bar depended on eating dinners in Hall and the recommendation of a Judge or a Bencher. By 1846, it was being urged in the profession and in Parliament that students ought to receive a comprehensive legal education and that there should be uniformity in the practice of Call to the Bar. In 1852, the Council of Legal Education was established, and each of the Inns agreed not only to pay expenses but also to lend two classrooms. Twenty years later, an examination for Call to the Bar was introduced.
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