Hotel Florida (Madrid)
Encyclopedia
The Hotel Florida in central Madrid
, Spain, was built in 1924 and was used as a base by many of the foreign correspondents stationed in Madrid during the Spanish Civil War
. While based in Spain as a correspondent for the North American News Association (NANA), Ernest Hemingway
stayed at the hotel, where he wrote a play. The hotel was demolished in 1964 and a department store built on the site.
designed and built the hotel on a site in the Plaza de Callao, on the Gran Vía
(then under construction). It was inaugurated in February 1924. The whole facade of the building was marble. The building was demolished in 1964 and a department store was built on its site.
The hotel's 200 rooms, each with a bathroom, achieved fame during the Civil War, when it became the residence of correspondents, foreign writers and intellectuals featured in Madrid during its siege. Mijaíl Koltsov, Geoffrey Cox
, Henry Buckley
, Ksawery Pruszyński
, Wiadomosci Lireackie and Herbert L. Matthews were among the members of this community, which also met in the nearby headquarters of Telefónica
and the Hotel Gran Vía. For a time Ernest Hemingway
and his mistress, later his third wife, Martha Gellhorn
used the hotel as their base in Madrid. Hemingway was at the hotel during the Spanish Civil War and on a daily basis he expected a bomb to land on his typewriter. He wrote The Fifth Column
during the siege itself.
John Dos Passos
also passed through the Florida and immortalized his stay in an article called Room with a bathroom in the Hotel Florida, published by Esquire
magazine in January 1938. The last such war correspondents staying in Hotel Florida was O. D. Gallagher, sent by the London Daily Express
, said to be the only foreigner who waited to see Franco's troops in Madrid.
In 2006, the Instituto Cervantes y la Fundación Pablo Iglesias opened an exhibition in New York called the "War Correspondents in Spain", covering the work and adventures of many of the people of the Florida.
The reception and main hall of the Hotel Florida were reproduced in the old train station in Oakland, California
, for the filming of the HBO production Hemingway & Gellhorn
(2012).
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Spain, was built in 1924 and was used as a base by many of the foreign correspondents stationed in Madrid during the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
. While based in Spain as a correspondent for the North American News Association (NANA), Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
stayed at the hotel, where he wrote a play. The hotel was demolished in 1964 and a department store built on the site.
History
The architect Antonio PalaciosAntonio Palacios
Antonio Palacios Ramilo was a Spanish architect, born in O Porriño, Galicia. A prolific architect, he is known for his design of the Palacio de Comunicaciones and Hotel Floridain Madrid, the Garcia Barbon Theatre in Vigo and many other works in those cities and places like Mondariz, Baiona or...
designed and built the hotel on a site in the Plaza de Callao, on the Gran Vía
Gran Vía
Gran Vía is an ornate and upscale shopping street located in central Madrid. It leads from Calle de Alcalá, close to Plaza de Cibeles, to Plaza de España....
(then under construction). It was inaugurated in February 1924. The whole facade of the building was marble. The building was demolished in 1964 and a department store was built on its site.
The hotel's 200 rooms, each with a bathroom, achieved fame during the Civil War, when it became the residence of correspondents, foreign writers and intellectuals featured in Madrid during its siege. Mijaíl Koltsov, Geoffrey Cox
Geoffrey Cox
Charles Geoffrey Cox, QC, MP , is a British politician and barrister. A member of the Conservative Party, he is currently a Member of Parliament representing the constituency of Torridge and West Devon.-Early life:...
, Henry Buckley
Henry Buckley
Henry Buckley was an Australian politician. He was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for two terms between 1856 and 1859 and after the creation of the separate colony of Queensland he became a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly.-Early life:Buckley was born in...
, Ksawery Pruszyński
Ksawery Pruszyński
Franciszek Ksawery Pruszyński was a Polish journalist, publicist, writer and diplomat. He was one of the most active and operative of Polish newspaper reporters and often had radical views....
, Wiadomosci Lireackie and Herbert L. Matthews were among the members of this community, which also met in the nearby headquarters of Telefónica
Telefónica Building
The Telefónica Building, in Spanish Edificio Telefónica, is a skyscraper in Madrid, Spain. It is situated in Gran Vía 28.-History:The Telefónica Building was designed by Ignacio de Cárdenas, who conceived it after a previous study of Lewis S. Weeks in Manhattan...
and the Hotel Gran Vía. For a time Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
and his mistress, later his third wife, Martha Gellhorn
Martha Gellhorn
Martha Gellhorn was an American novelist, travel writer and journalist, considered by The London Daily Telegraph amongst others to be one of the greatest war correspondents of the 20th century. She reported on virtually every major world conflict that took place during her 60-year career...
used the hotel as their base in Madrid. Hemingway was at the hotel during the Spanish Civil War and on a daily basis he expected a bomb to land on his typewriter. He wrote The Fifth Column
The Fifth Column and the First Forty-Nine Stories
The Fifth Column and the First Forty-Nine Stories is an anthology of writings by Ernest Hemingway published by Scribner's on 14 October 1938....
during the siege itself.
John Dos Passos
John Dos Passos
John Roderigo Dos Passos was an American novelist and artist.-Early life:Born in Chicago, Illinois, Dos Passos was the illegitimate son of John Randolph Dos Passos , a distinguished lawyer of Madeiran Portuguese descent, and Lucy Addison Sprigg Madison of Petersburg, Virginia. The elder Dos Passos...
also passed through the Florida and immortalized his stay in an article called Room with a bathroom in the Hotel Florida, published by Esquire
Esquire (magazine)
Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
magazine in January 1938. The last such war correspondents staying in Hotel Florida was O. D. Gallagher, sent by the London Daily Express
Daily Express
The Daily Express switched from broadsheet to tabloid in 1977 and was bought by the construction company Trafalgar House in the same year. Its publishing company, Beaverbrook Newspapers, was renamed Express Newspapers...
, said to be the only foreigner who waited to see Franco's troops in Madrid.
In 2006, the Instituto Cervantes y la Fundación Pablo Iglesias opened an exhibition in New York called the "War Correspondents in Spain", covering the work and adventures of many of the people of the Florida.
The reception and main hall of the Hotel Florida were reproduced in the old train station in Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, for the filming of the HBO production Hemingway & Gellhorn
Hemingway & Gellhorn
Hemingway & Gellhorn is an upcoming HBO film about the lives of journalist Martha Gellhorn and her husband, writer Ernest Hemingway. It will be directed by Philip Kaufman. The film began shooting in San Francisco in March 2011...
(2012).