22 Jermyn Street
| 22 Jermyn Street | |
|---|---|
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  Location within Central London | |
| General information | |
| Location | 22 Jermyn Street, London, England, United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 51°30′31″N 0°08′08″W / 51.50861°N 0.13556°W |
| Opening | 1870, 1990 |
| Closed | October 1, 2009 |
| Owner | Henry Togna |
| Management | Togna family |
22 Jermyn Street the site of several former hotels, including the Eyrie Mansion and an eponymously named luxury hotel in London, England. It is located in St James's in the centre of London's West End, 75 yards from Piccadilly Circus.
History
Jermyn Street began construction in 1664.[1] The first house was built on the site of 22 Jermyn Street in about 1685 and during the 18th century it was occupied by tradesmen who served the grandees of St James's Square. However, even since 1685 it functioned as a hotel with tradesmen supplementing their incomes by sub-letting the top rooms as residential chambers to the wealthy men-about-town.[2] By 1861 the occupier was an Italian silk merchant, Cesare Salvucci. Around 1876 it was purchased by a military tailor who amongst his lodgers included banker Theodore Rothschild. The current building was built in 1870 for the home of an English gentleman and then came under the ownership of the Togna family from 1915. Henry Tonga ran the Eyrie Mansion hotel selling to his son, Henry Jr. The building was reopened in 1990 as a formal hotel and the rooms retained their eccentricity with traditional English furnishings.[3] The hotel closed formally on October 1, 2009.
Reception
The hotel has been described by Frommer's as "London's premier town-house hotel, a bastion of elegance and discretion", and describes its sixth floor as "featuring one of the best-equipped computer centers in London, which guests may use for free."[4] The thirteen suites and five studios are decorated in the traditional English style.
The hotel had a notable newsletter which proved popular with guests and its Restaurant Newsletter had an annual circulation of over 56,000 a year.[3]
In February 2010, famous American film critic Roger Ebert criticized its impending demolition. He wrote of his fond experiences at The Eyrie Mansion:
" ....We ascended in an open iron-work elevator to an upper floor and I was let into 3-A. A living room had tall old windows overlooking Jermyn Street. Dark antique furniture: A sideboard, a desk, a chest of drawers, a sofa facing the fireplace, two low easy chairs, tall mirrors above the fire and the sideboard. He used a wooden match to light the gas under artificial logs.
A hall led to a bedroom in which space had been found for two single beds, a bedside table between them, an armoire, a chest, a small vanity table and another gas fireplace. In the bathroom was enthroned the largest bathtub I had ever seen, even in the movies. The fixtures were not modern; the water closet had an overhead tank with a pull-chain. "This is larger than I expected," I said. "How many rooms do you have in all?" "Sixteen."....
For 25 years I was to come here to Jermyn Street time and again. Now I can never return. Some obscene architectural extrusion will rise upon the sacred land, some eyesore of retail and condos and trendy dining. Piece by piece, this is how a city dies. How many cities can spare a hotel built in 1685, the year James II took the crown?
I will barely be able to bring myself to return Jermyn Street, which is, shop for shop, the finest street in London. When I approach it again I will have to enter from Piccadilly by walking down through the Piccadilly Arcade and not from Lower Regent Street. I can still attend a lunchtime concert at St. James, or call in at Turnbull & Asser the haberdashers, Paxton and Whitfield the cheese mongers, Wilton's the restaurant, and Waterstone's the book store...but I cannot and will not ever again walk past 22 Jermyn Street. The address itself will be dead. "
- American film critic Roger Ebert on 22 Jermyn Street.[5]
Awards
Since the hotel opened in 1990 it has won numerous awards, including Where Magazine 'Small Hotel of the Year' in 1993, SLH 'Hotel of the Year' in 1995, Good Hotel Guide 'Cesar Award' in 1996; 'London's Premier Townhouse Hotel'; and the Gault Millau in 1999. Owner Henry Togna was voted one of the World's Best Hoteliers' Entrée in 1998.[6]
References
- ^ Lanier, Pamela (2001). Elegant Small Hotels: A Connoisseur's Guide. A Lanier guide, Lanier Pub. International. p. 211. ISBN 9781580083263.
- ^ Hotel Overview-History, www.22jermyn.com
- ^ a b www.22jermyn.com
- ^ "22 Jermyn Street". Frommer's. Retrieved February 25, 2010. [dead link]
- ^ Sun Times website. Accessed February 22, 2010.
- ^ Information Britain
