| 1797 |
1797 Lord Foley constructs a 275ft wide mansion on the Langham site.
(King George III is on the throne. Feb 26th: First £1 note issued by the Bank of England. Tax on newspapers, including cheap, topical journals- increased to “repress radical publications”).
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| 1814 |
1814 Architect John Nash acquires the estate in settlement of a debt and subsequently sells part of it to the Crown and the remainder to Sir James Langham having secured a commission to build him a town house. |
| 1863 |
Construction of The Langham Hotel begins at a cost of £300,000. Designed by Giles and Murray, it was then the largest building in London – a Florentine Palace of 7 floors with 600 rooms, 100 water closets, 36 bathrooms and the first ever hydraulic lifts.
(Football Association founded. Charles Kingsley’s “The Water Babies” is published.) |
| 1865 |
The Prince of Wales (later Edward VII) officially opens the hotel, with
2000 guests in attendance.
(End of the American Civil War, slavery abolished in the USA. “Alice in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll and Tolstoy’s “War and Peace” published) |
| 1867 |
England’s Premier Earl, the Earl of Shrewsbury, President of the company that owned The Langham, is forced to liquidate the company in the face of the national economic crisis.
(Dominion of Canada founded. First public performances of Strauss’ Blue
Danube and Ibsen’s Peer Gynt) |
| 1868 |
The Langham is purchased through the Court of Chancery for only £155,715
(The Impressionist movement begins to emerge in art) |
| 1870 |
The hotel becomes a fashionable venue and employs 200 staff. US Confederate Officer Captain James Sanderson becomes General Manager and develops extensive American clientele.
(Diamonds discovered in Kimberley, South Africa) |
| 1879 |
Hotel entrance and courtyard are lit by electric light – another first for The Langham.
(First telephone exchanges in London and Manchester. Zulu War)
|
| 1880 |
The Langham’s reputation encourages ‘society’ guests including Napoleon III of France, Prime Minister Gladstone, Dvorak, Oscar Wilde and the notorious explorer Richard Burton.
(1880: Rodin’s The Thinker unveiled. 1881: First Boer War. 1184: Fabergé produces the first of his jewelled eggs for the Tsar. The dawn of the Art Nouveau period (to 1918). 1185: Eastman makes first coated photographic paper. Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, a guest of The Langham, is published. 1887: Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee 1888: Dunlop invents pneumatic tyre. Van Gogh’s Sunflowers first public showing, first Box Camera. 1889: Savoy Hotel opens. Eiffel Tower built. Moulin Rouge cabaret opens in Paris). |
| 1890 |
The Langham celebrates its silver jubilee and is immortalised in history by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle who uses it as the setting for several Sherlock Holmes stories including ‘A Scandal in Bohemia’ and ‘The Sign of Four’. |
| 1900's |
A new generation of writers including Arnold Bennett, Mark Twain and Frank Harris make The Langham their London base, whilst performances at St George’s Concert Hall entice guests such as Arturo Toscanini.
(1901: Queen Victoria dies, Edward VII, who opened The Langham, is king. First trans-Atlantic radio transmission by Marconi-Morse code. Ragtime introduced into American jazz. Trans-Siberian Railway opened.
1903: Henry Ford sets up his motor company. 1904: Barrie’s Peter Pan published.
1909: First commercial manufacture of Bakelite – start of the plastic age.
1910: King Edward VII dies, George V king. Tango becomes popular.
1913: Suffragette demonstrations in London. Panama Canal opened. DH Lawrence Sons and Lovers published.) |
| 1914-1918 |
One of the few hotels not commandeered for a hospital, The Langham continues to enjoy excellent business throughout the First World War. During Zeppelin raids guests shelter in the basements where room service is offered. |
| 1920/30's |
A decade of considerable practical and decorative innovation – guests could now choose electric fires, radiators or coal fires in their bedrooms.
Artistes such as Noel Coward, Gracie Fields and Anna Neagle make The Langham their London address.
(1920: Oxford University admits women. DH Lawrence publishes Women in
Love. 1922: The Langham’s neighbour, the BBC, establishes a monopoly, and
begins transmissions. Tomb of Tutankhamun discovered. 1923: Mussolini
becomes Dictator in Italy. PG Wodehouse publishes The Inimitable Jeeves.
1925: the Charleston is the fashionable dance. 1926: Kodak produces 16mm
film. Walt Disney arrives in Hollywood. Release of the first “talkie” film The
Jazz Singer. 1928: Women over 21 get the vote in England. First Mickey
Mouse
picture. Lady Chatterley’s Lover is published.)
|
| 1930's |
The slump hits The Langham and the company enters unsuccessful negotiations with the BBC to buy the building for £500,000.
Still the ‘social’ selection, the Australian Cricket Team led by Don Bradman chose to stay, as well as the Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, the Greek royal family and Mrs Wallis Simpson during her courtship by the Duke of Windsor.
(1931: Empire State Building opened. 1932: Roosevelt elected President.
Huxley’s Brave New World. 1934: Hitler becomes Fuehrer of Germany
1936: Abdication of Edward VIII. Popular Christmas carol: “Hark the Herald
Angels Sing, Mrs Simpson’s got or King”. Duke of York becomes George VI)
|
| 1939-41 |
During the early days of the Second World War, the hotel becomes home to a platoon of soldiers and a local first aid post. Air raids and evacuations take their toll and in December 1940 bombs destroy the West Wing, set fire to the roof and fracture the water tank, flooding the building and forcing The Langham to close its doors. |
| 1940 |
The BBC is granted a part tenancy for storage and effects.
(Battle of Britain. Fall of France. Trotsky assassinated. Hemingway’s “For Whom the Bells Toll” published)
|
| 1945 |
The BBC moves offices into the hotel and some recording studios.
(Alistair Cooke starts his regular “Letter from America” on BBC radio – until 2004. First Cannes Film Festival)) |
| 1965 |
The BBC buys The Langham in its entirety. The Palm Court houses the eponymous Palm Court Orchestra, BBC comedy acts such as The Goons with Peter Sellers record at the hotel, the ballroom becomes the BBC Record library and the bar becomes the BBC Club.
(1964: BBC TV starts. Harold Wilson becomes Prime Minister. The Beatles and The Rolling Stones compete for No 1 slot in the charts.
1965: Winston Churchill dies. TV ban on cigarette advertising. First Christmas stamps in England) |
| 1980 |
The BBC apply for permission to demolish the old Langham building and redevelop the site by building a new office block designed by Sir Norman Foster. Permission is declined.
(1979: Margaret Thatcher becomes Britain’s first woman Prime Minister in
the UK. 1980: John Lennon assassinated in New York. ‘Solidarity’ formed by
unions in Poland 1981: Wedding of Prince Charles to lady Diana Spencer
|
| 1986 |
Ladbroke Group Plc purchases the Langham Hotel site from the BBC for £26 million. |
| 1987 |
Acquisition of Hilton International by the Ladbroke Group, which designates The Langham as a Hilton International property. It is another four years and £100 million before the hotel is ready to open. |
| 1991 |
On 4 March the newly revived Langham Hilton welcomes its first guests since December 1940. |
| 1998 |
The hotel is acquired by Great Eagle Hotels International who also purchase No 14 Langham Place, a Grade II listed purpose built bank building, and the adjoining former headquarters of the Leeds Clay Tile Company in order to expand and upgrade the existing facilties.
(1997: Labour landslide in Britain. Tony Blair replaces John Major as Prime Minister) |
| 2000 |
The refurbishment is completed, adding 47 high-tech executive rooms and suites, and a dedicated Concierge Lounge.
|
| 2001 |
The Langham Health Club and Spa is opened |
| 2004 |
February: Duncan Palmer is appointed General Manager
May 24: The Langham Hotel becomes the flagship of Langham Hotels International (LHI), which currently owns hotels in Hong Kong, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand – and becomes a member of The Leading Hotels of the World.
Work begins on a schedule of refurbishment and innovation. |
Further information:
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Gill Sutch, PR Manager
Langham Hotel London
T +44 (0) 20 7973 7540
E-mail: gillian.sutch@langhamhotels.com
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Lucinda Buxton
Mango PR, London
T +44 (0) 20 7936 9378
E-mail: Lucinda.buxton@mangopr.co.uk |
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NOTE: In May 2004 Langham Hotel, London - formerly the Langham Hilton - reverted to its original name and became the flagship of Langham Hotels International, a new 5-star hotel company with hotels in Hong Kong, North America and Europe. Duncan Palmer (formerly with The Connaught and The Savoy) was appointed Managing Director, and is currently overseeing a substantial schedule of change and renovation, which will take place over the next two years. www.langhamhotels.com.
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