CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY FINE ARTS LIBRARY o\ r-- Entrance to Restaurant from Regent Street. A Twentieth Ccntiirv Palace. 41 and individual attention to every detail. PERFECTION has been, and still will be, the watchword of those connected with this great enterprise, both as regards its inception and its future. Travellers from the New World as well as the Old will appreciate the merits of the results achieved, both as regards the beauty and com:ort of the building itself and the organization of the service, upon the efficacy and excellence of which its reputation will so greatly depend. After the preparation of the first plans by Messrs. William Woodward, F.R.I.B.A., and Walter Emden, the office of Woods and Forests required the Piccadilly Hotel Company to carry out, through their own architects, the exterior design of Mr. Norman Shaw, R.A., represent- ing the Advisory Committee of which he was a member, along with Sir Aston Webb, R.A., Sir John Taylor, and Mr. John Belcher, A.R.A. Hence the two fa9ades give an adequate idea of what the whole Quadrant and Circus are one day to become. On the retirement of Mr. Emden, Mr. Grunmg, F.R.I.B.A., was appointed in his place. Valuable work has also been done by Mr. Charles Woodward, A.R.I.B.A., who has ably seconded the efforts both of his father and Mr. Gruning. The task of preparing the site was no easy one, for the late Mr. Owen Jones had built St. James s Hall so well that its demolition necessitated the use of both hammer and chisel. When the clearance was at length accomplished, the first thing to be done was to build a retaining wall about eight feet in thickness round the whole excavated area. For the foundations, forty feet beneath the city street level, was secured a fine gravelly soil, with 42 The Piccadilly Hotel. the famous London clay as a base. The phenomenal depth of the excavations gives the Piccadilly Hotel three extra floors, non-existent as far as the knowledge of the public is concerned, but of great practical utility. It ensures it moreover from all vibration arising from street traffic. Here deftly hidden from view are the Turkish and Swimming Baths, Cellars and other offices. The Baths can be reached by hits from every part of the building. The Grill Room. In the basement is the Grill-room, with spacious Lounges attached, including one for the special use of smokers. The Grill-room is 80 feet long and 52 feet wide. This is reached by staircases, from the Quadrant Piccadilly, and Piccadilly Place. In close proximity to it IS the Kitchen with all its most modern accessories. Two Billiard-rooms are provided on this floor, as well as Lavatories, Lifts, and other offices. A Twentieth Century Palace. 43 The Mezzanine floor between the basement and Ground floor is occupied by the lower portion of the Shops next the Quadrant, Piccadillv, Air Street, and Piccadilly Place. Here are the Telephone room, and both Passenger and Luggage Lifts. This Mezzanine floor IS approached by the three staircases described for the Basement. Entrance Hall from Piccadilly. The Ground floor is reached by the two fine entrances from the Quadrant and Piccadilly respectively. Here 44 The Piccadilly Hotel. are the Circular Foyer next the Quadrant enttance ; the large Entrance Hall adjoining Piccadilly, and the Grand Lounge which connects them. Here the hie of the Hotel may he said to begin. Four staircases lead to the upper part of the building, so that ample provision is made for escape m the remote contingency of fire. Shops of the highest class occupy the exterior of the ground floor overlooking the Quadrant, Piccadilly and Air Street, while a portion of the Piccadilly Place and v me Street frontages are occupied by the Kitchen, with all its access- ories. On the same level is the Restaurant, 80 feet in length by 52 feet in width. A separate staircase next the Piccadilly entrance leads to the Swimming and Turkish Baths. The Restaurant. The Entresol between the Ground and First Floors is principally occupied by the apartments over the Shops, but here many useful adjuncts to the Hotel have been provided. A Twentieth Century Palace. 45 On tlie First Floor you arrive at tne residential part 01 the Hotel, and two fine Dining rooms occupy a good position in its centre. Tne larger 01 tne two IS 47 feet long and 32 feet wide, and each has a good Reception room adjoining it. A separate Kitchen immediately adjoins these Dining rooms. Bed and Sitting-rooms, with Bath rooms "en-suite " complete this section 01 the Hotel. The Second Floor is devoted almost entirely to Bedrooms and Sitting-rooms, with Valets rooms and Bath rooms " en-suite," each approached by its own hall. On the Second Floor is the roomy "Terrace, possessing unrivalled capacities either as a Winter Garden or al fresco lounge. It is sure to become one of the distinctive features of the "Twentieth Century Palace. By the provision of the "Terrace the gloomy internal areas one so often meets with are largely dispensed with. Being open to the sky it enables light and sunshine to penetrate directly into the rooms overlooking Piccadilly. The Upper Floors from the third to the eighth are almost entirely given up to en suite sets of sitting, bed and bath-rooms arranged m the manner already described. The ninth floor will be chiefly occupied by the staff. Each floor has its own complete service. In order to secure an unlimited supply of the best water it was determined to sink an Artesian Well on the premises. Messrs. Isler, experts in this particular depart- ment, were consulted, and as a result 80,000 gallons per diem of the purest water can be obtained for the use of the Piccadilly Hotel at a depth of some 400 feet below 46 The Piccadilly Hotel. the surface. It is needless to say that the sanitary arrangements 01 the Hotel have been carried out on the principle of absolute perfection already alluded to. The following facts may be noted as regards the latest phase in the history of Piccadilly. In the construction 01 the great Hotel which is now to bear a name familiar during three centuries, no less than 60,000 cubic yards of earth have been excavated and carted away, and the follow- ing approximate amount of materials have been used, VIZ. : — 6,500,000 bricks. 104,000 cubic feet of Portland stone- 4,200 tons of Portland cement 11,000 yards of wall-tiling. 7,000 tons of iron and steel work. 8,700 yards of asphalt flooring. 200 miles of piping for lighting and beating. 160,000 floor joists. 16,000 electric lamps. 8 passenger lifts, besides luggage lifts- The structural portion of the Piccadilly Hotel has been carried out entirely on " fire resisting principles. The intricate calculations and drawings for this huge example of iron and steel construction were made partly by the late Mr. Henry Young, Junr., and the remainder from those of Messrs. Reade, Jackson and Parry. The " Frazzi" terra-cotta floors are fire-resisting and so contrived as to obviate the use of "centering. The"Cranham' partitions, which are also fire-resistmg, reduce the possibility of sound transmission to a minimum. The artistic experts responsible for the internal ornamentation of the "Twentieth Century Palace" are as A Twentieth Century Palace. 47 follows: — The decorations and fittings of the Grill, Restaurant and Dining Rooms with their Lounges and Reception Rooms, and the First and Second Floors generally have been provided by Messrs. Goodall, of Manchester ; while Messrs. Liberty, of London, are responsible for the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Floors, and Messrs. Chamberlin and Messrs. Bunting, both of Norwich as regards the Sixth, Seventh, Eighth and Ninth. Great credit is due to the contractors for the building of the Piccadilly Hotel, Messrs Perry & Co., who have virtually completed their herculean task within eighteen months of the termination of the preliminary clearance. In a building of the character of the Piccadilly Hotel, such questions as Heating, Ventilation, and Electric Lighting are obviously of primary importance, and require special expert knowledge and experience. Mr. Wingfield Bowles has amply justified the confidence reposed in him in this department. There are others whose exertions entitle them to honourable mention in connection with the erection of the Piccadilly Hotel. Mr. H. H. Bartlett has brought to bear upon the building all his great experience and knowledge, and he has given to every detail his per- sonal attention. His son, Mr. H. A. Bartlett, has been indefatigable in seconding his father s efforts. Mr. George Hardy has been General Manager of Messrs. Perry through- out the work, and his matured knowledge, gained in many an arduous undertaking of the past, has stood him in good stead in directing the operations now at an end. The Artesian Well has already been alluded to. Other special features carried out under the direction and 48 Tlie Piccadilly Hotel. from the designs 01 Mr. E. Wingfield Bowles must not be forgotten. He is responsible for tbe splendid system of water-distribution ; tne Hydraulic Injector for reinforcing a complete series of Fire Hydrants ; tne unrivalled appliances for providing warmtri and ventilation ; tne elaborate arrangements for electric lighting and the bell system, — (there is a clock in every room regulated by a new and accurate electric time service, possessing the great advantage of silence in operation) ; and tbe complete installation of telephones a vY/; a separate exchange in the building which can be used either for communication with tbe various departments or for conversation with any subscriber to the National or Post Office Exchanges or the 1 runk Lines, or with Pans. It IS interesting to note that in connection with the electrical works of the hotel, there are 90 miles of electric light and power cables, 70 miles of bell wire, and 230,000 feet of steel conduit tubes. The self-contained culinary suites, including kitchen and scullery, pantry, cold preparation rooms, and so forth; the specially ventilated larders, and the pneumatic tubes for messages, are something more than comfort and con- veniences. Their installation in Piccadilly marks an epoch in the history of hotel equipment. Tbe conduct of the Piccadilly Hotel will be entrusted jointly to Messrs. P. W. De Keyser and Herbert Bennett, who have been for many years engaged in successful hotel administration. 49 Tlie Interior of a "Twentietn Century Palace. " The Piccadilly Hotel — Its Ornamentation and Furniture. A Triumpn of Taste. Individuality of Treatment and Artistic Feeling. CHAPTER IV. ' I 'HE first thing that will strike the visitor on entering the beautiful rooms on the Ground Floor of the Piccadilly Hotel, is that he is in the presence of a veritable Renaissance. Here, as elsewhere in the " Twentieth Century Palace, there is no attempt at mere servile imitation. In all that meets the eye the great Masters who flourished on the borders of the Seme in the days of the " Sun King, seem to live once more on the banks of the Thames during the reign of King Edward VII. The skill and knowledge of the artists employed by Messrs. Goodall enable us to appreciate the chefs d'cBuvres of famous Masters like Andre Charles Boulle, Jean Beram, Charles Lebrun, Claude Ballin or Daniel Marot, and imagine that we are m the lordly dwelling of a Cardinal Mazarin, a Due Philip d Orleans, a Colbert, a Prince de Conde, or a Madame de Sevigne. We are no longer in London, but in France, wandering through the Golden Gallery or amongst the priceless treasures of the Trianon. so The Piccadillv Hotel. The Foyer and Hall combine totb simplicity and dignity in their decorative treatment. The prevailing tone is a delicate French grey. Round the Fover runs a gallery with an exquisitely-modelled ballustrade of ornamental iron-work. The specially designed hand- tufted carpets, in the style commonly known as the earlier Georgian, harmonise delightfully with the Louis XIV. work of the adjoining Lounge and Restaurant, the one remarkable for its fountains, the other for its thousand ughts. Tke Lounge. In the basement will be found the most beautiful and the most ornate of London s numerous Grill-rooms. The general inspiration has apparently been derived from decorations of the far-famed Galleries of the Palace of Versailles, but there has been no slavish copying. Like Chippendale and his contemporaries, the designers and the decorators have only worked, but that most effectually, .4 Tivciitieth Century Palace. on the impressions derived from tlie reverent study of the achievements of the most celebrated of the French Masters. Dae prominence has been given to the Grill, Rotunda adjoining Lounge. from which the room derives its name, while the walls have been dexterously broken up at intervals by pilasters with an artistically-modelled entablature, surmounted by an ornamental "Covetto, leading up to a deeply panelled ceiling, painted with clouds and sky. The decorations in cream and gold with panels painted m grisaille representing trophies of the chase, and the carpet of rich deep red colour with the well-chosen furniture, fashioned after antique examples, render this noble room one of the most attractive features of the " Twentieth Century Palace. 52 The Piccadilly Hotel. Nothing could well be more strikingly original than the Billiard Rooms, which are also m the basement. The The Billiard Room. designers may be congratulated on the able manner in which they have adapted the finest Norman models, making ex- cellent use of quaint arcadmgs, sculptured capitals, trophies of arms and the frequent introduction of ironwork. Ladiea L)rawing Room. A Tiventieth Century Palace. 53 Over tlie porch of the Regent Street entrance is the Ladles Drawing Room with a oroaa winaow overlooking the ever-changing, never-ceasing movement of one of the busiest and most picturesque of the world s great thoroughfares. Here again Messrs. Goodall have achieved a signal success, for nothing could well be more charming than the varied tints of French-grey and gold, with scrolls and sprays of painted flowers carried out in the manner which Mane Antoinette loved and which is always associated with her memory. The furniture is in perfect accord with the scheme of ornamentation. Equally effective are the delicate shades of rose shot with green, and the soft French carpet in which fawn and cream are the dominant tints. Early eighteenth century is the style which has been very wisely adopted for the large Dining Room and Reception Room on the first floor, Redundancy of ornament has been prudently avoided, and the result achieved may again be described as dignity combined with simplicity. The colouring has been carried out in varied shades of cream and biscuit, while the old-red carpet has been specially woven from an original of the period of which it is reminiscent. The same remark applies to the green and red Genoa velvet used for the covering of the furniture. Great care has evidently been bestowed on the smaller Adam Dining Room and Reception Room close by. Here the artists acknowledge as a fruitful source of inspiration the classical works ■ of the celebrated architects of the Adelphi as exemplified at Sion House and other great mansions in the neighbourhood of 54 The Piccadilly Hotel. London. In these charming rooms soft nuances of green, rose and grey afford a lovely background for the fanciful and elegant ornamentation which always characterizes the productions of these gifted brothers. In the apartments, as elsewhere, carpets and furniture have been chosen with scrupulous care and taste, modern requirements being at the same time consistently kept m view. The Adam Dining Room, The residential side of hotel life is rapidly becoming more and more important. The hotel of yesterday and the day before, is the home of to-day and the future. Never before has this almost self-evident fact, and the requirements and consideration it entails, received the attention bestowed upon it by the creators of London s " Twentieth Century Palace.' It IS only possible to describe or illustrate a few examples of this most important feature in the carefully -4 Ttventieth Centiivv Palace. 5S The Georgian Dininj* Room. thouglit-out internal arrangsments of the Piccaailly Hotel. Let us pass througli two or three of tnese beautiful suites of rooms. Here, for example, we nave an apartment where the Hampton Court influence IS apparent. There are also various Sitting Rooms m the eminently com- fortable fashion which may be app ropriately A Typical Private Sitting Room termed the later Georgian style. The Bedrooms are always schemed with an eye to the attainment of the maximum of comfort and convenience for the occupation 56 The Piccadilly Hotel. of tliose who make prolonged visits or become prac- tically residents. The illustration of one of the " Fitment-rooms shows the extensive wardrobe space, and various conveniences cunningly arranged by devices rarely found even in the best private houses. The "fitments of this particular apartment are carried out in Spanish ma- hogany and in Typical Fitment Bedroom. ^]^g dignified manner of Sheraton. The same style obtains m other suites, but the design in every instance is varied, and worked so as to suit the planning of each individual room. So perfect and so extensive is the scheme of elevators, or lifts, at the Pic- cadilly Hotel, that the choice of a floor becomes, comparatively k- . Typical Bedroom, mg, a ques- tion of little moment. Some travellers and residents will doubtless prefer the apartments further removed from the constant echoes of London life, and affording A Twentieth Centiirv Palace. 57 A Bath Room. advantages of air and prospect, to be spoken of nereafter. In tne upper storeys of the Piccadilly Hotel, Messrs. Liberty, aswellasMessrs. Cbamberlm and Bunting of Nor- wich, have amply justified their high reputations. In the charming suites of rooms entrusted to their care are to be seen, not the furniture made by machinery, but the production of the skilful British craftsman, whose handiwork is, perhaps, unequalled either in Europe or America. On the third floor of the Hotel and those above it almost every known variety of style finds an admirably devised exemplification. The visitor may have a possible preference in this particular direction. If so, he may choose his decorative surroundings, whether his leanings be towards Old English, Adam, Chippendale, Sheraton or Empire, or the more modem school of English design. Let us enter a group of three rooms on the third floor, overlooking the Quadrant. The door from the wide and airy corridor opens into a little hall with a mosaic floor, furnished with table and chairs just as if it were the entrance to a private flat. The wall-hang- ings of hand-coloured paper of subdued tones of geranium ^8 The Piccadillv Hotel. pmk are adorned with well-chosen pictures. The doors and dado are of white, and there is nothing more beautiful than white judiciously employed, especially in London houses. \ Private Dining Room. The bedroom into which the door on the left si le of the hall opens is a spacious apartment with three windows, all made with double frames, which ensure, if necessary, the complete shutting out of the sound of the traffic in the busy street. This applies, too, to all the windows opening either on the Quadrant or Piccadilly. In every room there is not only an electric clock and telephone, but the thought that has been bestowed on even the smallest details is shown bj'^ the provision of extra green blinds, to be drawn over those lined with cream colour, should a darkened room be necessary for sleeping. In this, as in all the other bedrooms, there is A Ttveiiticth Century Palace. 59 a fixed basin with hot and cold water, and a radiator by which the warmth can be increased at wilh The scheme or hghtmg includes a centre light, a pedestal light by the bedside to read by, a light over the wash- ing stand, and most convenient of all, a double rise and fall of light over the dressing-table. The value of the last will be especially evident to the feminine mind, which will also keenly appreciate the great wall cup- boards that are among the distinctive features. These are fitted as wardrobes with ample space above for empty portmanteaux and other impedimenta, and, as most of the sleeping apartments have spacious wardrobes and drawers forming part of the permanent furniture, the accommodation for a visitor s belongings is unlimited. A Sitting Room. The accompanying illustration will give some idea of the completeness of one of these luxurious apartments, 6o llie Piccadilly Hotel. as well as of the beauty of the Sitting-room, the decoration and furnishing of which has been carried out in accordance with the best traditions of the period selected. Overlooking the Piccadilly Terrace, and close to the classical Colonnade already alluded to, may be seen another private Dining-room of a purely English con- ception. It has a delightful bow window. Here the rich wall-hangings are of suk m a happily chosen shade of green, while in the furniture of full-coloured mahogany, the feeling of Sheraton and Hepplewhite may be clearly traced. A Private Dining Room. At the eastern end of the Colonnade is another bow-windowed room of exquisite proportions. It belongs to a private drawing room. Here the decorators have followed the best examples of the Empire school, and you are at ev'ery turn reminded forcibly of one of Orchardson s chefs d'ceuvres. The spacious panels of the A Tzventieth Century Palace. 6i white painted walls, the fine ceiling with its enrichments and festoons, the rose-coloured curtains, the delicate tones of which are repeated in the carpet, and the dainty lamp shades, are all in harmonious accord with the gracefulness of the furniture, which is, however, by no means too elegant for comfort. In some bedrooms the " fitment plan has been fol- lowed, the " fit- ments occupy- ing nearly the whole of one wall, arranged on either side of an arched mahogany recess for the bed-head. In one of these rooms IS a specially designed cornice, with a dainty white chimney piece having an oval mirror above it. There are both Adam and Sheraton bed rooms on the upper floors, but there is one room sure to excite attention, the style of which IS histori- cally indefinite. The general impression, however, produced by it is most striking, and it is likely to be a favourite with all who prefer the Piccadilly outlook. It has wall- A Bedroom. Th- Piccadilly Hotel. hangings of pale pink and cream, with window curtains of old-fashioned glazed chintz, gay with an abundance of pmk roses, the tone of which is continued in the bold floral pattern of the frieze. The suites of rooms, some of which are now briefly described and illustrated, can be indefinitely extended if more space is required. In the sitting-rooms A Sitting Room. and bedrooms alike, the visitor has a choice of using either the fire-places or radiators as a source of h:.it. The artistic electric fittings have been provided by Messrs. Smith of Holborn Viaduct ; while the luxurious carpets for the corridors and staircases, fully maintain the high reputation of the House of Treloar, both as regards taste and quality. .1 Twentieth Century Palace. 63 In many important pomts connected witn tne mternal arrangements of tlie hotel, tne Directors nave received tlie friendly advice and help of Mr. F. Bennett Goldney, whose authority as an expert in decorative art 19 universally acknowledged ; while the long experience and technical knowledge of the Managing Directors, Mr. P. W. De Keyser and Mr. H. Bennett, have proved invaluable in promoting the success which the united efforts of everybody concerned have achieved. The whole of the plate to be used in the Piccadilly Hotel has been supplied by Messrs. Elkington, who have manufactured it from special designs based on the finest available early XVIII. Century models. Situated within a few yards of the Piccadilly Tube Station, the new hotel is practically in direct railway communication with every part of the metropolis. It is felt that within the limits of this little volume but scant justice can be done to either the exterior or the interior of the "twentieth Century Palace, which must now on its own merits rank as one of the sights, as well as amongst the principal architectural glories, of the Capital. It is from the upper floors of the Piccadilly Hotel that the visitor will fully realise, not only the many advantages of its central position, but the force of much that has been said regarding the past interest and import- ance of that " London par excellence over which to-day it towers. From the higher windows on the Quadrant side, the eye wanders from the long curve of crowded Regent Street to the masses of foliage which indicate 64 The Piccadillv Hotel. the position of the park bearing the same name, as well as to the breezy heights of Hampstead standing out against the northern sky, while looking southwards across Piccadilly the far-reaching prospect comprises not only Pall Mall, Carlton House Terrace and St. James's, but Buckingham Palace with its gardens ; Westminster with her time-honoured Abbey, described by the last bat one of our Plantagenet Sovereigns as "a building which IS placed in the fore-front of the world of England, and her more modern Houses of Parliament ; the broad Thames with its numerous bridges and burden of boats and barges, and still further off the grey-blue outline of some of the distant hills of rural Surrey. To bring into existence an edifice m every way worthy, not only of the traditions and associations of the spot upon which it stands, but of the requirements of the age for wnich it caters, has been the constant aim of every- one concerned on the construction of the "Twentieth Centurv Palace to be henceforth known all over the globe as the Piccadilly Hotel. Edward Everard, Printer & Publisher, Broad Street, Bristol, England.