The Galleries of Justice stands on a site dating back to 600AD and is the base for Nottingham's Saxon settlement. Ar have unearthed clues within the sandstone caves to suggest that the site was linked with imprisonment punishment from these early times. Written records show that the site was used as a court from 1375 and a prison from 1449. The courts were rebuilt mainly around 1876 following a significant fire, and the Victorians closed the jail in 1878 as part of the prison reforms due to the appalling conditions in which prisoners were held.

Executions by hanging took place on the steps of the Galleries of Justice, and this was the only location in the UK where you could be Tried, Sentenced and have the punishment carried out all under the same roof. There is a heavy sense of the misery endured by those incarcerated here. We have unrestricted access to the location, including the Courts, Night Cell, Men's Cells, Women's Washrooms, Chapel, Caves, and even the terrifying Condemned Cell where a prisoner's last hours were spent before succumbing to the noose as dawn broke. Walk the floors and rooms of this vast location alone without feeling you are being watched at every turn.

The Galleries of Justice are housed in a Shire Hall in the Lace Market area of Nottingham. The earliest confirmed use of the site for official purposes was by the Normans, who appointed sheriffs to keep the peace and collect taxes; hence, the place was also referred to as the Sheriff's Hall, the County Hall or the King's Hall—the first written record of the area being used as a law court dates from 1375. The first written reference to its use as a prison was in 1449. There has been a court of justice on this site since 1375, although the courts and prisons have been developed and enlarged over the centuries.

The Hall was rebuilt between 1769 - 1772. The architect was James Gandon from London, costing about £2,500 (£334,245 as of 2015); the builder was Joseph Pickford of Derby. The inscription on the top of the building reads: This County Hall was erected in the year MDCCLXX and in the tenth year of the reign of His Majesty George III.

An iron palisade fronted the building to help control unruly crowds during a public hanging. Additional wings were added between 1820 and 1840. Changes were made to the Nisi Prius court in 1833. The judges' retiring room, barristers' robing room and office for a clerk were added in 1844. A new grand jury room was added in 1859 to designs by the architect Richard Charles Sutton. The last public execution was held in 1864 when Richard Thomas Parker was hanged.

In 1876, significant improvements were made, and the front was redesigned in a style described as Italianate by Mr. Bliss-Sanders of Nottingham. Within a few weeks, a fire broke out and nearly destroyed the newly completed work.

Following a fire in 1876, the courts were rebuilt mainly by Thomas Chambers Hine between 1876 and 1879; the prison gaol was closed by the end of the refurbishment.

There has been a court of justice on this site since 1375, although the courts and prisons have been developed and enlarged over the centuries. An example of this is when, in 1724, the courtroom floor collapsed. The Nottingham Courant in March 1724 recorded.

On Monday morning, after the Judge had gone into the County Hall and a great crowd of people was there, a tracing or two that supported the floor broke and fell in, and several people fell in with it, about three yards into the cellar underneath. Some were bruised, but one man named Fellingham was pretty much hurt, one leg being stripped to the bone, and was much hurt. This caused great consternation in Court, some apprehending the Hall might fall, others crying out Fire! etc., which made several people climb out of the windows. The Judge, being also terribly frightened, cried out A plot! A plot! but the consternation soon ended, and the Court proceeded to business.

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