Hotel d’Inghilterra – Rome The building that houses the Hotel d’Inghilterra dates from the mid 16th century. Originally a dormitory annexe for guests at the nearby palazzo of the Torlonia
Princes, it was converted to an hotel in 1845 and took its present name from the
numerous visitors from across the Channel. The fame of the English poet John Keats,
who had resided on Piazza di Spagna, attracted many British visitors who made
the hotel d’Inghilterra their base.
One early visitor (1848) to the new hotel, which had the avant-garde feature
of a fireplace in every room, was Vincenzo Gioberti, who addressed the Roman people
from his window, inciting them to join the struggle for independence. A plaque
at the entrance to the hotel records the visit of Pope Pius IX on July 2nd 1855,
a unique case of the Pope leaving the Vatican to meet “his most faithful majesty
Don Pietro V, King of Portugal”.
Another plaque commemorates the stay of Enrico Sienkiewicz, author of the famous
novel Quo Vadis, in 1893. The hotel quickly became a reference point for the aristocracy
and international high society, and later attracted the fashionable Romans who
frequented Via Condotti, Piazza di Spagna and Via Bocca di Leone. Countless illustrious guests passed through its doors over the next 150 years:
Franz Liszt, Hans Christian Andersen, Henry James, Ernest Hemingway, Mark Twain
and Prince Philip the Duke of Edinburgh, whose signature in the Libro d’Oro celebrated
the 150th anniversary of the Hotel d’Inghilterra. The hotel’s logo is inspired by the coat of arms of the English Royal family
and recalls the secular links between the hotel and the Royal House of Windsor.
Hotel Helvetia & Bristol – Florence The Hotel Helvetia & Bristol was created in 1883 in the building it still
occupies, on Via degli Strozzi, with its entrance on Via dei Pescioni, in the
historic centre of Florence. In its first year the hotel was the setting for an
event that has passed into history. Accompanied by plain-clothed policemen, the
prefect of Florence, senator Clemente Corte and the Hon. Federico Colaianni knocked
repeatedly at the door of one of the rooms. According to Benigno Palmerio, “there
came a very quiet and melodious voice – that of the poet – asking them to wait
a little. Two minutes later the door opened and Gabriele d’Annunzio and Maria
Hardouin di Gallese presented themselves, relaxed and smiling, offering their
visitors traditional almond sweets.”
Whether senator Corte accepted the sweets is not recorded: but it is known that
he asked the Duchess d’Hardouin to pack her bags and catch the first train to
Rome with Colaianni, a family friend. The 19 year old girl was forced to obey.
Gabriele, aged 20, claimed that he went back to bed, confident that everything
would soon be sorted out. And indeed, barely a month later the two were united
in marriage.
Other leading cultural figures of the time who appreciated the charm of the hotel’s
Winter Garden and made the Helvetia & Bristol their Florentine base included
Enrico Fermi, Luigi Pirandello, Eugenio Montale and Eleonora Duse. The Helvetia & Bristol would later establish itself as the preferred choice
of the international elite, welcoming among others the King of Denmark, Igor Strawinsky,
Giorgio De Chirico and Bertrand Russell.
Grand Hotel Continental – Siena The Grand Hotel Continental occupies the former Palazzo Gori Pannilini. Its history
goes back to the pontificate of Pope Alessandro VII (Chigi), who gave the building
on Via Pelliceria to his niece Olimpia on the occasion of her marriage to the
aristocrat Giulio de’ Gori. At that time the Gori family often employed the architect
Carlo Fontana, and the design of the palazzo is attributed to him, although there
is no documentation to prove his direct involvement.
The Gori family had taken the name Pannelini or Pannilini in 1601, thanks to
a rich donation from Marco Antonio Pannilini that secured their position among
the most important Sienese landowners. The facade of the palazzo, majestic but
sober in its lines, has an elegant symmetry and features bugnato motif plasterwork
in low relief.
The interior of the palazzo has undergone important changes and reconstruction:
only recently, restoration work brought splendid decoration to light. The oldest fresco is a wall painting depicting Saint Christopher (15th century
Sienese School), while the great ballroom on the first floor is embellished with
18th century monochrome decoration. Until half way though the last century the Palazzo Gori housed the Hotel Continentale,
one of the most important in Siena. Favoured for its absolutely central location,
easy accessibility and the proximity to the popular strolling grounds of La Lizza
park and the boulevard San Domenico, the hotel also benefited from its privileged
situation among key Sienese monuments such as the Duomo and the chuch of San Domenico.
The hotel thus became the most elegant and fashionable in Siena, and was the
preferred residence of Queen Margerita of Savoy during her visits to the city.
In the 1920s il Continentale became simply Continental, confirming its prestige
and high reputation.
ROYAL DEMEURE HOTEL GROUP
Via G. Carissimi, 26 - 00198 Rome (Italy) - Phone +39 06 852101 - Fax +39 06 85210343
