Royal Clarence Hotel

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Royal Clarence Hotel (October 2015)
The hotel and surrounding buildings as seen from the roof of the cathedral's north tower (2010)

The Royal Clarence Hotel is a hotel near the St. Peter's Cathedral (Cathedral Close) in Exeter ( Devon ). It was considered the first property in England to be called a hotel . Since 2005 the hotel with 53 rooms has been marketed as "ABode Exeter". The building was destroyed by fire in October 2016. All three damaged buildings were extensively restored from 2017.

history

The hotel was built in 1769 as Assembly Rooms (society club) by William Mackworth Praed, a son of William Mackworth Praed († 1752). Together with John Duntze , Joseph Sanders and Daniel Hamilton he also built the neighboring building on the corner of Martin's Lane, the Exeter Bank, of which he was a founding member. The hotel provided a comfortable space for hosting public balls, meetings, concerts, and more. In September 1770, the French manager of the property, Pierre Berton, published an advertisement calling the building "hôtel". Since 1776 it has been known as "The Hotel". It was then given various names including Cadogen Hotel, Thompsons Hotel and Phillips Hotel. In 1841 it was described as follows:

“A large and commodious Inn, with elegant apartments and accommodation for people of the first quality, with a large assembly room in which are held the Assize Balls, Concerts and Winter assemblies, of the most distinguished persons of the City and County. In the front is a neat Coffee-room: the situation of the Hotel is very pleasant, as it opens to the Parade, and commands a noble view of the Cathedral ”

“A large and spacious inn with elegant apartments and accommodation for people of the upper class with a large meeting room in which assize balls, concerts and winter gatherings of the most selected personalities of the city and the county are held. In front of it there is a neat coffee house: the location of the hotel is very pleasant, open to the parade and has an elegant view of the cathedral ”

The hotel was one of the premier coaching inns in Exeter. It was visited in 1801 by Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson and after a visit by Adelheid von Sachsen-Meiningen in July 1827 it was renamed the Royal Clarence Hotel. Franz Liszt and six other musicians performed two concerts in the hotel on August 28 and 29, 1840. A blue plaque on the building, installed in 2013 by the Exeter Civic Society, commemorates this event. Other visitors included Beatrix Potter in 1892, Thomas Hardy in 1915, and actors Clark Gable and Gary Cooper during World War II.

Between 2000 and 2015, the well-known chef Michael Caines , who founded the ABode company with his business partner Andrew Brownsword , was co-owner and managing director of the hotel. Brownsword bought the hotel in 2003 for £ 4.5 million.

Architecture of the building

Entrance to the Royal Clarence Hotel, 2013

There were a number of medieval buildings in the grounds around the cathedral. Some elements of the same were retained in later renovations. The firewall between the Royal Clarence Hotel and the next property contains the remains of a two-story timber-framed side wall from the 15th or 16th century and was part of a no longer existing building with a roofline running parallel to the street. The original building from 1769 was partially redesigned in the ancient Egyptian style in 1827 at the same time as the building of the former Exeter Bank was included. Later conversions changed the interior considerably; however, it retained its framework. In 1953 the building was added to the Statutory List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest as Grade II and part of the Cathedral Yard building .

Fire in October 2016

The hotel and adjacent buildings after the fire in 2016.

The building burned down completely in a fire that broke out on October 28, 2016 at 5 a.m. WEST . The fire broke out in an adjacent building, which was partially used as an art gallery (Castle Fine Art gallery) and at that time was converted into luxury apartments. Hotel guests were evacuated to the nearby Southgate Hotel. There were no reports of injuries. The following day, parts of the facade of the Royal Clarence Hotel collapsed; the interior of the hotel was in ruins. After the end of the assessments and the extinguishing of the remaining embers, the demolition of the building began on November 2nd.

Hotel owner Andrew Brownsword said on October 31: "We will make every effort to rebuild the hotel with its significance and heritage, and we will make it again a building that the city of Exeter will be proud of." We have every intention to rebuild the hotel with enormous sympathy to its importance and heritage, and to make it once again a building that the City of Exeter will be proud of. ")

literature

  • R. Dymond: Old Inns and Taverns of Exeter. In: FJ Snell (Ed.): Memorials of Old Devonshire. Bemrose and Sons Ltd, 1904, pp. 74-76 (additional details on the hotel's early history, owners, visitors, and more).

Web links

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

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Janet Harmer: Andrew Brownsword speaks of devastating loss of Royal Clarence hotel. In: The Caterer (October 29, 2016).
  2. ↑ abodeexeter.co.uk Official Website , accessed October 28, 2016.
  3. ^ The Royal Clarence Hotel reveals plans for restoration after last year's fire (en-GB) . In: Boutique Hotelier , July 26, 2017. 
  4. ^ Grace Griffiths: History of Teignmouth. 3. Edition. Ex Libris, Bradford on Avon 1989, ISBN 0-948578-17-3 , p. 77.
  5. ^ John Ryton: Banks and Banknotes of Exeter 1769-1906. John Ryton, Exeter 1984, ISBN 0-9508666-0-1 , p. 23.
  6. ↑ Alexander Jenkins: The History and Description of the City of Exeter: And Its Environs, Ancient and Modern, Civil and Ecclesiastical. P. Hedgeland, Exeter 1806, p. 213 ( online ).
  7. ↑ Alexander Jenkins: The History and Description of the City of Exeter: And Its Environs, Ancient and Modern, Civil and Ecclesiastical. 2nd Edition. W. Norton, Exeter 1841, p. 312 ( online ).
  8. ^ A b The Royal Clarence Hotel, Cathedral Close. In: Exeter Memories (November 7, 2016).
  9. ↑ Hazel Harvey: The Story of Exeter. Phillimore, 2011, ISBN 978-1-86077-678-6 , p. 129.
  10. ↑ plaque # 13098 on Open plaques.
  11. ↑ Michael Caines MBE: "Did cuts hinder Royal Clarence fire crews?" ( Memento of the original from October 30, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. In: Exeter Express and Echo (October 28, 2016).
  12. ↑ Richard Parker, John Allan: The Transformation of the Building Stock of Exeter 1450-1700. In: West Country Households 1500-1700. Boydell Press, Martlesham 2015, ISBN 978-1-84383-994-1 , pp. 51-52.
  13. ↑ Jane Mathews: Royal Clarence Hotel in Exeter starts to collapse following blaze. In: The Telegraph (October 29, 2016).
  14. ^ A b Hugh Meller: Exeter Architecture. Phillimore, Chichester 1989, ISBN 0-85033-693-7 , p. 23 ("... now, behind the stucco facade, the only faintly discernible style is Edwardian.")
  15. ↑ Nikolaus Pevsner, Bridget Cherry: Devon. Yale University Press, New Haven 1991, ISBN 0-300-09596-1 .
  16. ^ Royal Clarence Hotel, Exeter. In: British Listed Buildings , accessed October 28, 2016.
  17. ^ G. Richardson: Exeter fire: Gutted building was being converted into luxury flats. ( Memento of the original from October 29, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. In: Exeter Express and Echo (October 28, 2016).
  18. ↑ Exeter fire: Royal Clarence Hotel collapses in blaze. In: BBC News (October 29, 2016).
  19. ↑ Royal Clarence fire: Engineers assess fire-ravaged hotel In: BBC News (October 30, 2016).
  20. ^ Royal Clarence Hotel in Exeter demolished after blaze. In: BBC News (November 2, 2016).
  21. ↑ Martin Fullard: Royal Clarence Hotel owner has “every intention to rebuild” after fire. ( Memento of the original from November 8, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.conference-news.co.uk archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. In: Conference News (October 31, 2016).

Coordinates: 50 ° 43 '24 "  N , 3 ° 31' 49"  W.