Listed Building record MDO15362 - Royal Bath Hotel, Bath Road, East Cliff, Bournemouth

One of the first hotels in Bournemouth. Built as the Bath Hotel in 1837-8 by Benjamin Ferrey for Sir George Tapps-Gervis. It was vastly extended in 1878-80 by C C Creeke for hotelier Sir Merton Russell-Cotes. Several later large extensions. It is of two and three storeys, stucco, in a classical style with a varied silhouette.

The Royal Bath Hotel (originally the Bath Hotel) was built between 1837 and 1839 and designed by the architect Benjamin Ferrey for Sir George Tapps-Gervis. It is located near to the sea front, to the east of the central pleasure gardens. Between 1878 and 1880, it was vastly extended to the designs of the architect C C Creeke for the hotelier Sir Merton Russell-Cotes. It is two and three storeys high, of stucco in a partly classical style. Part of Ferrey's original hotel survives as the main entrance wing at the south end. This includes tripartite first floor windows framed by Ionic columns. Creeke added a second floor in the centre with Corinthian columns, projecting corner pavilions with canted bays, and recessed chateau roofs of patterned slate with iron cresting. The garden side of the hotel is also symmetrical and has a conservatory across the front. The street front of the hotel to the north is five windows wide in a Barry-Italianate style including triangular pediments to the first floor windows, segmental pediments to the second floor windows and a balustraded parapet. <1-3>

The Royal Bath Hotel has welcomed many important visitors since it was built including: Oscar Wilde, H. G. Wells, Richard Harris, Sir Thomas Beecham, Shirley Bassey, and prime ministers Lord Beaconsfield, Gladstone, Asquith and Lloyd George. In addition Royal guests have included Edward VII and Edward VIII, when each was the Prince of Wales, George VI when he was the Duke of York, Queen Wilhemina of the Netherlands and Empress Eugenie of France. <1-3>

<1> Department of the Environment, 15-Feb-1994, List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest: Borough of Bournemouth amendment 1994, 01-AUG-1974 (Scheduling record). SWX4461.

<2> Ordnance Survey, 1:2500 scale, 2007 (Map). SWX1197.

<3> Higginbotham, P, 2000, World Wide Web page andlt;http://www.workhouses.org.uk/, Wikipedia (Digital archive). SDO17705.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bournemouth#History [Accessed 21-AUG-2007]

<4> Historic England, Historic England Archive, 2K/08617 (Index). SDO14738.

SEASIDE SURVEY: BOURNEMOUTH

<5> National Record of the Historic Environment, 1457844 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Aug 29 2024 1:33PM