Type Public house Country England | Town or city Manchester Designations Grade II listed | |
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Address 50 Great Bridgewater Street | ||
The Briton's Protection is an historic, grade II listed public house in central Manchester, England. Various dates are given for its establishment; the pub's own website says 1806, though its bicentenary was not celebrated until 2011. In any case, it was listed in Pigot and Dean's New Directory of Manchester & Salford for 1821 and 1822.
The pub's name recalls its use as an army recruiting venue. A set of murals inside the pub commemorates the Peterloo Massacre.
The brick building, with a slate roof, was granted grade II listed status, offering protection from unauthorised alteration or demolition, in March 1990. The largely intact 1930s interior has six public rooms. Other notable architectural features include a terrazzo-tiled corridor floor, moulded ceiling, original 1930s urinals and the serving hatch through which people in the two rear rooms acquire beer from the front bar.
As well as serving real ale, it is known for offering a wide range of over 200 whiskies.
For many years, the pub was operated as a Tetley house, then by Punch Taverns, before being taken over in 2014 by an independent operator and refurbished. The pub was voted 'Best Pub in Manchester' in the Pride of Manchester Awards in both 2008-2009 and 2009-2010. It is on the Campaign for Real Ale's National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors.