The High Court building was constructed after shifting out a couple of temples that were in existence on the land in the 19th century.
The present building now used exclusively by the Madras High Court was actually built to house, along with the High Court, the Courts of Small Causes and the City Civil Court, which were subsequently shifted out to other new buildings on the campus.

Construction of the High Court building, an exquisite example of Indo-Saracenic style of architecture, began in October 1888 and was completed in 1892 with the design prepared by J. W. Brassington, the then consulting architect to the government, and later under the guidance of the famed architect Henry Irwin, who completed it with the assistance of J. H. Stephens.

J. W. Brassington initially prepared a plan to construct a building with 11 court halls at an estimate of ₹945,000.
Of these, six were meant for the High Court, four for the Small Causes Court, and one for the City Civil Court.
An additional building to house the lawyers’ chambers was subsequently added to the plan, with a walkway on the first floor to connect it to the main building, increasing the total expenditure to ₹1,298,163.
Complementing a 125-feet-tall standalone lighthouse that was already in existence on the court campus, a dioptric light was built on the 142-feet-high main tower of the building, raising the total height of the tower to 175 feet.

Save for the heavy steel girders and some ornamental tiles, almost all the materials for the construction were procured locally.
Bricks and terracotta articles were brought from the government brickfields.
Most of the construction work was executed by artisans trained at the School of Arts in the city.

The High Court building was damaged in the shelling of Madras by SMS Emden on 22 September 1914, at the beginning of the First World War.
It remains one of the very few Indian buildings to have been damaged by a German attack.

There are several matters of architectural interest in the High Court.
The painted ceilings and the stained glass doors are masterpieces in themselves.
The old lighthouse of the city is housed within the High Court campus but is unfortunately poorly maintained and is in disrepair.

The Department of Posts has allotted a Postal Index Number (PIN) code of 600 104 to the zone occupied by the Chennai High Court.
The boundaries of the High Court complex are marked by two roads, namely, Prakasam Road (formerly Broadway) and Rajaji Road (the old North Beach Road), stretching northward from the statue of Rajaji in the northeast and the statue of T. Prakasamgaru in the southwest within the complex.
The complex houses the largest number of courts in Asia.
The High Court building was constructed after shifting out a couple of temples that were in existence on the land in the 19th century. The present building now used exclusively by the Madras High Court was actually built to house, along with the High Court, the Courts of Small Causes and the City Civil Court, which were subsequently shifted out to other new buildings on the campus.
Construction of the High Court building, an exquisite example of Indo-Saracenic style of architecture, began in October 1888 and was completed in 1892 with the design prepared by J. W. Brassington, the then consulting architect to the government, and later under the guidance of the famed architect Henry Irwin, who completed it with the assistance of J. H. Stephens.
J. W. Brassington initially prepared a plan to construct a building with 11 court halls at an estimate of ₹945,000. Of these, six were meant for the High Court, four for the Small Causes Court, and one for the City Civil Court. An additional building to house the lawyers’ chambers was subsequently added to the plan, with a walkway on the first floor to connect it to the main building, increasing the total expenditure to ₹1,298,163. Complementing a 125-feet-tall standalone lighthouse that was already in existence on the court campus, a dioptric light was built on the 142-feet-high main tower of the building, raising the total height of the tower to 175 feet.
Save for the heavy steel girders and some ornamental tiles, almost all the materials for the construction were procured locally. Bricks and terracotta articles were brought from the government brickfields. Most of the construction work was executed by artisans trained at the School of Arts in the city.
The High Court building was damaged in the shelling of Madras by SMS Emden on 22 September 1914, at the beginning of the First World War. It remains one of the very few Indian buildings to have been damaged by a German attack.
There are several matters of architectural interest in the High Court. The painted ceilings and the stained glass doors are masterpieces in themselves. The old lighthouse of the city is housed within the High Court campus but is unfortunately poorly maintained and is in disrepair.
The Department of Posts has allotted a Postal Index Number (PIN) code of 600 104 to the zone occupied by the Chennai High Court. The boundaries of the High Court complex are marked by two roads, namely, Prakasam Road (formerly Broadway) and Rajaji Road (the old North Beach Road), stretching northward from the statue of Rajaji in the northeast and the statue of T. Prakasamgaru in the southwest within the complex. The complex houses the largest number of courts in Asia.
Madras High Court