The Grand Hotel, Scarborough
One of the town’s best-known Scarborough landmarks, the Grand Hotel, is approaching its 160th birthday.
The hotel has something of a mythology about it.
it is often though the building represented a year (12 storeys (months); 365 rooms (days); four turrets (seasons); 52 chimneys (weeks)).
The hotel is built upon the site where Anne Bronte passed away, and at one time was the largest hotel of its kind in Europe.
History
A group of local businessmen formed a syndicate and acquired the site (Wood’s Lodgings) due to its beautiful location: it commanded panoramic views of the South Bay, and was close to the town centre.
Cuthbert Brodrick, an architect from Leeds, was appointed to design it.
While he had the vision of the ‘year’ theme, the finished building didn’t quite have the above, yet its proportions and grandeur were impressive.
The Cliff Hotel
Building started in 1863 and it was known as the Cliff Hotel.
The coffers dried up two years later and the syndicate sold to new owner, Grand Hotel Ltd.
Building works started again in 1866 and was completed in 1867.
The Entrance of the Grand Hotel
The entrance to the hotel is impressive.
It includes rose-colour Italian marble pillars beneath a Romanesque arch.
Brodrick described it as the largest and handsomest hotel in Europe.
Six million bricks were used in the construction of the building.
The Interior of the Grand Hotel
Today, the hotel still keeps its magnificent interiors including a domed hall, grand staircase, balustrades, and other period features.
The proprietors engaged M Augustus Fricour, a renowned hotel manager at the time.
It seems that he ran the hotel with miliary precision: he installed over 20 speaking tubes (remember, this is before the invention of the telephone).
Other innovations included electric bells, laundry chutes and even a narrow-gauge railway in the basement so the loads of laundry could be dealt with efficiently.
Opening Day
It was opened on 24th July 1867 with a splendid banquet.
The menu includes turbot, asparagus, and more, including a timbal a la Scarboro
The following night, live music was provided by the Scarborough Cliff Bridge Company Band.
They played a quadrilles, polkas, and more on Thursday 25th July.
Monsieur Fricour seems to have had an excellent handle on the types of guests he wanted to attracted.
As well as the wealthy and the aristocratic, he also looked to attract ‘new money’ such as mine owners, and their related trades.
A Year Round Hotel
While the summer months were busy, Haden’s Warming Apparatus meant the hotel was warm during the colder months.
Victorian and Edwardian holidays also had their own customs, including promenading, avoiding suntans, and ‘being seen’.
Scarborough Art Gallery includes paintings of the period, showing society enjoying Scarborough and all that it offered.
The arrival of the railway and its popularity encourages seaside visitors and in 1913, half a million reach Scarborough by steam locomotive.
December 1914
The First World War Bombardment of Scarborough involved German battlecruisers firing shells on the town from the North Sea.
There was a number of fatalities and widespread damage, including to the Grand.
Two shells hit the Grand Restaurant and bedroom on the third floor was destroyed.
Famous guests
Frederick Delius (composer), Gracie Fields, and the Beatles stayed at the hotel.
The Scarborough Cricket Festival, which began in 1876, had a good relationship with the Grand, as some famous cricketers stayed, including WG Grace and Ranjit Singh.
Sir Winston Churchill also stayed at the hotel.
World War Two
The outbreak of World War Two in 1939 meant the hotel was requisitioned by the Royal Air Force.
Following the end of the war, and with some repair work the hotel opened again in 1947.
In 1979 Butlin’s purchased the hotel.
At time of writing, the hotel is owned by Britannia Hotels.
The building is also a Grade II listed property.
Further reading:
A Sense of Style: A Brief History of the Grand Hotel, Scarborough, Bryan Perrett.