St Pancras Renaissance Hotel

I'm sure you passed this stunning hotel on our recent trip to the British Library, it was the giant monolith of gothic architecture whose clock tower stood tall over King's Cross Station. The history behind the Renaissance Hotel started with the railway. The Midland Railway company established a new station going into London and thus wanted a new place to house the huge influx of people coming into London. Thus the Renaissance Hotel was built by George GIlbert Scott, and although expensive the great hotel was finished at a cost of what would be 500 million pounds today. During its heyday the hotel became a hotspot for esteemed nobles and higher ups. The hotel then fell out of favor for its outdated interior amenities before it was picked back up in 2002 and turned into the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel it is today. The hotel becomes significant in our reading in that it shows the innovation at the time. Similar to the time period of Mrs Dalloway and a new industrial revolution, the hotel was one of the first to have a working hydrolift, revolving door, and flushing toilets. When first established it became a hub for the new revolution going on in London, things are becoming more advanced, people are progressing. It also relates to our more recent readings like the waiter's wife in that the hotel was built to house this new influx of people coming to the UK. Although it was most likely the more weather, it still represents the sudden influx of those visiting the country, as we’ve seen with people immigrating there. It also shadows a place like Bath in that it was a high and lavish place at the time. People of high class would go there to be social or flaunt their wealth in a way. Different to bath in that it’s more about flaunting wealth, but it still represents class like many of our readings do.

Coordinates

Latitude: 51.531427000000
Longitude: -0.126133000000