Hotel Bristol (Warsaw)

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The Bristol in January 2010 as seen from the south from Krakowskie Przedmieście
The hotel around the year it opened (1901). The “Rotunda” can be seen in the back right
Józef Piłsudski announced his retirement from politics in the Hotel Bristol in July 1923
German soldiers in 1941 at the entrance of Bristol, at the time as official home of the chief of the Warsaw district used
Night lighting of the hotel in 2008

The Hotel Bristol was built at the turn of the century on Warsaw's boulevard Krakowskie Przedmieście . It is one of the oldest and most traditional hotels in the city. After extensive repair work in the early 1990s, it is now a luxury 5-star hotel of the Marriott Group (A Luxury Collection Hotel). Since July 1, 1965, the building has been entered in the Warsaw Register of Historic Monuments (No. 698).

location

The hotel is at Krakowskie Przedmieście 42/44 and is located in downtown Warsaw . The north side borders on the presidential palace , on the south side the Ulica Karowa runs , which joins the Stanisław-Markiewicz viaduct a hundred meters further . The residential buildings that used to exist in the south no longer exist; today there is a lawn (with a monument by Bolesław Prus ) that extends as far as the St. Joseph Church of the Salesian Sisters. Opposite is the Hotel Europejski - built by the Bristol architect's father.

history

The hotel was built from 1898 to 1901 in the neo-renaissance style. The architect was Władysław Marconi , who was assisted by Stanisław Grochowicz and based on the winning design (in the Secession style ) of the competition by Tadeusz Stryjeński and Franciszek Mączyński . Otto Wagner the Younger was responsible for the interior design that was no longer in existence . The client was Towarzystwo Akcyjne Budowy i Prowadzenia Hotelów . One of the partners in this company was Ignacy Jan Paderewski , then a world-famous and wealthy pianist and composer. Other partners were Tadeusz Jentys, Władysław Rawicz, Stanisław Roszkowski and Edmund Zaremba.

Some of the shareholders had already acquired the property in 1895. The baroque Tarnowski Palace was located here until it was demolished . Paderewski, Roszkowski and Zaremba took over the building from the Tarnowskis. A rotunda in the style of the early Florentine Renaissance was built on the eastward part of the property at the expense of the main owner Paderewski , in which panoramic pictures were to be shown. In 1897 Jan Styka's painting “Panorama of Golgotha” was exhibited here. However, the business idea failed to serve its purpose and Zaremba left the owner consortium. Roszkowski subsequently convinced Paderewski of the idea of ​​building a modern luxury hotel in Warsaw.

The construction of the hotel also caused a redesign of the Karowa Street, which runs south . A gate that had previously stood here was torn down and a snail-like descent from the Warsaw Skarpa to the lower bank of the Vistula was created.

Hotel opening

On November 19, 1901, the first hotel guest was welcomed to the Bristol. Two days earlier, Prelate Wawrzyńca Siemka had blessed the building. The hotel café opened on October 22nd. The Warsaw Philharmonic was opened in 1901, and Paderewski also helped finance it. His vision of the function of the Bristol then also consisted in the creation of a luxurious accommodation option for foreign concert-goers.

The first directors of the hotel were the Swiss Helbling and the partner Tadeusz Jentys, a confidante of Paderewski. Although the hotel quickly became the best in Warsaw and attracted a large number of guests, significant losses were recorded in the first few years due to the high level of mortgage debt. It was only after about ten years that the company began to write profits. These were primarily generated from the rental of rooms for commercial purposes, services in the building and restaurant operations. Prices for renting rooms initially ranged from 8.5 rubles to 25 rubles per night (for the suites on the first floor). In the following years, hotel prices had to be reduced. Big balls were given in Bristol, among other things on the occasion of the awarding of the Nobel Prize to Maria Skłodowska-Curie (she stayed here in 1913) and the success of the singer Lucyna Messal in Warsaw.

After regaining independence and the appointment of Paderewski as Prime Minister , the first meeting of his cabinet was held in Bristol. Paderewski also appeared frequently on other occasions in the hotel, which was the seat of government until the completion of the royal palace .

The glamorous 20s

In the Roaring Twenties of the 20th century, the Bristol was the main social meeting place in Warsaw. Celebrities from all over the world stayed here, the very popular dance events took place in Warsaw and lavish parties were celebrated. Artur Rubinstein experienced accompanying excesses at a dinner party on the occasion of a concert by Fyodor Ivanovich Chalyapin .

In 1928 the previous owners Paderewski and Jentys sold their shares in the hotel to the bank Cukrownictwa SA , which thus became the majority shareholder and to which the hotel was to belong until 1948. The new owner had the building renovated and partially rebuilt in 1934 at great expense. The no longer modern design of Art Nouveau in the interior was replaced by contemporary design. Antoni Jawornicki was responsible for the redesign.

Even in the 1930s, the Bristol was one of the best hotels in Poland. At the time, the painter Wojciech Kossak had his studio here. He paid his bills with pictures hanging in one of the restaurants. Tenor Jan Kiepura sang from the balcony of the hotel .

The Second World War ended the hotel's heyday. In 1939 a hospital was housed in the building. The building was hardly damaged in the Battle of Warsaw , which is why German authorities and officers billeted here during the occupation. The hotel also survived the Warsaw Uprising and the subsequent destruction of the city - albeit with damage.

post war period

After the war, the hotel was repaired and reopened in 1947. On September 26, 1947, it was nationalized when it was taken over by the city of Warsaw, even though the Cukrownicza Bank officially remained the owner until 1948. In 1952 the Bristol was assigned to the state tourism company Orbis . It was renovated again - this time in the style of Socialist Realism - and from now on served foreign guests, especially tourists. A planned later renewal failed because no company could be found that wanted to carry it out under the given conditions. In 1973 the hotel was classified in the II. Category, the newly created Warsaw Hotels Grand , Victoria and Forum were now significantly better equipped. Only the café was still a meeting place for Warsaw bohemians and the social elite. In 1977, on the instructions of Prime Minister Piotr Jaroszewicz, the library of the University of Warsaw (she became the owner of the building) was housed in the former hotel. In November 1981 the building was closed. From 1981 to 1998 the Orbis Group was once again the owner.

From 1989 to 1993 the British Forte Group renovated the hotel. Construction was carried out by the construction company Hofman & Maculan, the investment volume was 43.6 million euros. On April 17, 1993, the hotel reopened in a solemn ceremony in the presence of Margaret and Denis Thatcher . In 1997 the Bristol was listed as the 38th hotel among the world's best.

The hotel has been owned by the Le Méridien hotel chain since 1998. In December 2005, extensive repairs were carried out on the building facades. The Bristol is the only member from Poland in the alliance The Leading Hotels of the World . In November 2003 the hotel received the “5 Star Diamond Award” for its quality and services. The Bristol was also once on the "Golden List" of the US travel magazine "Condé Nast Traveler". It is recommended by the Michelin Guide and has received other industry awards.

Important hotel guests

Well-known guests in the hotel and its restaurant included:

Architecture and furnishings before the war

It is a four-wing, eight-story building that was equipped with eleven elevators when it opened, one of which was intended for guests - the “crystal elevator” for up to eight people. It had glass walls behind a brass railing. The elevator was replaced by a more modern one in 1969. In the early years the hotel had six telephone numbers, which corresponded to about 1% of all connections in Warsaw. The hotel had its own electric generator, central heating, central ventilation system and state-of-the-art fire-fighting equipment on every floor.

The guests were accommodated on four floors. There were a total of 200 guest rooms, 80 of which had a bedroom and a living room. 20 rooms had their own bathroom. The rooms were decorated in different styles: Danziger Baroque, Louis-quinze , Louis-seize , Chippendale and Louis Philippe . There was also a restaurant, banquet room, ballroom, private function rooms, coffee shop, shops, hairdresser, barber, photographer and florist.

Architecture and furnishings today

The building now has 205 guest rooms (including 32 suites and two rooms for the disabled), all with marble bathrooms, Internet access, tea and coffee making facilities and a desk. The rooms are spread over six floors of the building, three of which are reserved for non-smokers.

The suites are 75 (Junior), 80 ( Senior ), 90 (Deluxe) or 100 square meters (Paderewski) . Two banquet halls, a conference and business area (up to ten rooms), a library, a swimming pool in the basement with a strength training room, solarium and sauna as well as a casino complete the offer. Part of the representative interior is again designed in the style of the Secession.

Gastronomic facilities in the Bristol are now the “Marconi Restaurant”, which was named after the hotel's architect. It offers Mediterranean cuisine and also includes the courtyard patio. The "Malinowa Restaurant" offers continental cuisine with an extensive wine list . The “Café Bristol” is designed in the style of a Viennese coffee house and also attracts many non-hotel guests. The "pillar bar" is a ground-level hotel bar in a high, pillar-lined room in Art Nouveau design.

References and comments

  1. ↑ Stanisław Grochowicz (1858-1938) was a Polish architect and engineer
  2. ^ Tadeusz Stryjeński (1849–1943) was a Polish architect and an important exponent of the Secession style
  3. ^ Franciszek Mączyński (1874–1947) was a Polish architect and also an important representative of the secession style
  4. ↑ Tadeusz Jentys was a confidante of Paderewski and a member of the board of the Warsaw Philharmonic
  5. ↑ The crucifixion scene "Golgota" (in English: The Crucifixion ) was a panorama painting by Jan Styka in the dimensions 60 × 15 meters. It is the largest painting of any religious scene in the world. Today it is on display at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale , California
  6. ↑ a b c d acc. Elaine Denby, Poland: Warsaw in: Grand Hotels. Reality and Illusion - an architectural and social history , ISBN 1861890109 , Reaction Books, London 1998, pp. 260 ff.
  7. ↑ Lucyna Messal (Messalka) (1886–1953) was a Polish singer, dancer and prima donna at the Warsaw operetta
  8. ^ Antoni Aleksander Jawornicki (1886–1950) was a Polish architect and town planner
  9. ↑ according to Information references - hotels on the website of Stogmayer Bauconsulting, which is responsible for building supervision
  10. ↑ according to Information on Chamber Member Le Meridien Bristol Sp. Z oo  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.swisschamber.pl   on the website of the Polish-Swiss Chamber of Commerce in Poland
  11. ↑ according to Information Poland's Leading Hotel 2004 at Worldtravelawards.com
  12. ↑ according to Information 30 najlepszych restauracji dla biznesmena wg Businessman Magazine at Gastrona.pl (in Polish)
  13. ↑ according to Maciej Mońka, Krakowskie Przedmieście w Warszawie at Odyssei.com (in Polish)
  14. ↑ according to Danuta Szmit-Zawierucha, Following in the Footsteps of Kings at Warsawvoice.pl from September 20, 2006 (in English)
  15. ↑ in 1958, according to Reich-Ranicki himself, It's a disgusting poem on faz.net from April 8, 2012

See also

literature

  • Julius A. Chroscicki and Andrzej Rottermund, Architectural Atlas of Warsaw , 1st edition, Arkady, Warsaw 1978, p. 83
  • Discover Małgorzata Danecka, Thorsten Hoppe, Warsaw. Tours through the Polish capital , Trescher Verlag, ISBN 978-3-89794-116-8 , Berlin 2008, pp. 145f.

Web links

Commons : Bristol Hotel  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 52 ° 14 '32 "  N , 21 ° 0' 58"  E