Waterloo Hotel
Encyclopedia
The Waterloo Hotel is a historical hotel
located on Waterloo Place in Edinburgh
, Scotland
. It was the first large scale purpose built hotel in Edinburgh, trading from 1819 to 1898.
building was designed by the Scottish architect Archibald Elliot
(1761-1823) and constructed between 1815 and 1819. It contained fifty bedrooms, a coffee room, three dining rooms and a large ballroom (80 by). In the 1970s, long after the hotel ceased trading, the ballroom was demolished to accommodate an extension, but the cupola
(domed window in the ceiling), which would have filled the ballroom with light, has been preserved and can still be seen on the 8th floor of the building.
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
located on Waterloo Place in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It was the first large scale purpose built hotel in Edinburgh, trading from 1819 to 1898.
The Waterloo Hotel, Tavern and Coffee House
The category A listed GeorgianGeorgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
building was designed by the Scottish architect Archibald Elliot
Archibald Elliot
Archibald Elliot was a Scottish architect.Archibald Elliot ran an architecture practice in London and Edinburgh with his brother James Elliot. Following James' death in 1810, Archibald ran the company on his own...
(1761-1823) and constructed between 1815 and 1819. It contained fifty bedrooms, a coffee room, three dining rooms and a large ballroom (80 by). In the 1970s, long after the hotel ceased trading, the ballroom was demolished to accommodate an extension, but the cupola
Cupola
In architecture, a cupola is a small, most-often dome-like, structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome....
(domed window in the ceiling), which would have filled the ballroom with light, has been preserved and can still be seen on the 8th floor of the building.
Notable guests and events
- The Waterloo Hotel opened on Saturday 21 August 1819 to commemorate the visit of Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg. He was in the first carriage ever to travel down Waterloo Place.
- Charles Grey, 2nd Earl GreyCharles Grey, 2nd Earl GreyCharles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, KG, PC , known as Viscount Howick between 1806 and 1807, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 22 November 1830 to 16 July 1834. A member of the Whig Party, he backed significant reform of the British government and was among the...
(Earl Grey) was given the Freedom of the City at a ceremony at the Waterloo Hotel in 1834.
- A large-scale breakfast was held at the Waterloo Hotel in 1834 to celebrate abolition of slavery.
- The Grand Caledondian Curling Club was formed during meetings at the Waterloo Hotel in 1838.
- Asa GrayAsa Gray-References:*Asa Gray. Dictionary of American Biography. American Council of Learned Societies, 1928–1936.*Asa Gray. Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2nd ed. 17 Vols. Gale Research, 1998.*Asa Gray. Plant Sciences. 4 vols. Macmillan Reference USA, 2001....
, the famous American botanist and friend of Charles DarwinCharles DarwinCharles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
, stayed in the hotel in 1839 and described it as 'the finest hotel I have seen yet' in his journal.
- Charles DickensCharles DickensCharles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
stayed at the hotel many times during 1861, at the time he was writing Great ExpectationsGreat ExpectationsGreat Expectations is a novel by Charles Dickens. It was first published in serial form in the publication All the Year Round from 1 December 1860 to August 1861. It has been adapted for stage and screen over 250 times....
and A Tale of Two CitiesA Tale of Two CitiesA Tale of Two Cities is a novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. With well over 200 million copies sold, it ranks among the most famous works in the history of fictional literature....
. Evidence can be found of this in letters written by Dickens while staying at the hotel.
- In 1898 the hotel ceased trading and was turned into offices. It remained as offices for the next 120 years, until it was re-developed by Apex HotelsApex HotelsApex Hotels Ltd is an operator of four star hotels, owned by former accountant Norman Springford and his family.Based in Edinburgh, the company operates seven hotels in the United Kingdom.-Hotel Locations:...
in 2009 as the Waterloo Place Hotel.