Westgate, once known as the "Hanging Gate", represents a group of buildings comprising the Hospital, Master's House, Guildhall and the Chapel of St. James. The Chapel, which was built by Thomas Beachamp, 12th Earl of Warwick, is directly over the original West Gate to the City of Warwick. Only the wall and foundations of the Chapel survive from 1383. The Tower was added in 1450. In 1864, buttresses were added to the south side and the East window was cut into what had previously been a blank wall. When the Chapel was being restored the stones of a Norman Arch were discovered under the floor. This arch was believed to be the Chancel arch of the original Anglo-Saxon Church built above the Westgate and first mentioned in 1123. The stones were pieced together and the arch was re-erected in the garden of the Master's House.
The Master's House, (now a private residence) was built by the Guild of St. George before 1400 and has been in continuous use, first by the priests of the Guilds who celebrated Mass in the Chapel, then by successive Guild Masters. Sometime between 1386 and 1413, the Guild of St. George and the Guild of The Holy Trinity and Blessed Virgin joined as the United Guilds of Warwick and were housed at Westgate. The Great Hall of King James (circa 1383), the largest of the buildings erected by the United Guilds, was used as their public hall for assemblies, feasts and other meetings.
A Guildhall was built by Neville the "Kingmaker" in about 1450 on the site of the ancient Anglo-Saxon Church of St. James. The Guildhall was the private chamber of the United Guilds and it was here that they met to conduct their business in secrecy. When the Guilds were dispersed in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the United Guilds were able to save their property from sequestration through the foresight of their Master, Thomas Oken, who had it conveyed to the Burgesses of Warwick, (the original Borough Council).
In 1571, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leycester acquired the buildings and founded a hospital for aged or infirm retainers and their wives under a Charter from Queen Elizabeth I. This Charter set up a Corporation consisting of the Master and twelve Brethren, who had to be housed in the building. These arrangements remained unchanged for nearly 400 years until 1950 when the Guildhall was renovated and the number of Brethren temporarily reduced to five.