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St Ermin's Hotel
St. Ermin's Hotel is a four-star central London hotel adjacent to St James's Park Underground station, close to Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, and the Houses of Parliament. The Grade II-listed late Victorian building, built as one of the early mansion blocks in the English capital, is thought to be named after an ancient monastery reputed to have occupied the site pre-10th century. Converted to a hotel in 1896–99, it became during the 1930s, through the Second World War and beyond, a meeting place of the British intelligence services, notably the birthplace of the Special Operations Executive (SOE), and where notorious Cambridge Five double agents Philby and MacLean met their Russian handlers. St Ermin's is now part of Marriott Hotels' Autograph Collection. The hotel is owned by the family of Tei-Fu Chen, founder of Sunrider International. Background St. Ermin's Hotel in St James's Park, London, was originally a horse-shoe shaped mansion block built in 1887–89 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mansion Block
An apartment (American English), or flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) that occupies part of a building, generally on a single story. There are many names for these overall buildings, see below. The housing tenure of apartments also varies considerably, from large-scale public housing, to owner occupancy within what is legally a condominium (strata title or commonhold), to tenants renting from a private landlord (see leasehold estate). Terminology The term ''apartment'' is favored in North America (although in some cities ''flat'' is used for a unit which is part of a house containing two or three units, typically one to a floor). In the UK, the term ''apartment'' is more usual in professional real estate and architectural circles where otherwise the term ''flat'' is used commonly, but not exclusively, for an apartment on a single level (hence a 'flat' apartment). In some countrie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis powers. World War II was a total war that directly involved more than 100 million personnel from more than 30 countries. The major participants in the war threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. Aircraft played a major role in the conflict, enabling the strategic bombing of population centres and deploying the only two nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II was by far the deadliest conflict in human history; it resulted in 70 to 85 million fatalities, mostly among civilians. Tens of millions died due to genocides (including the Holocaust), starvation, ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Petty France, London
Petty France is a street in the City of Westminster in central London, linking Buckingham Gate with Broadway and Queen Anne's Gate. Among the buildings that line the street is 102 Petty France, which currently houses the Ministry of Justice. The Charity Commission for England and Wales is also headquartered on the street. History In ''A New View of London'' (1708) Edward Hatton wrote: 'Petit , a considerable street between Tothill Street Westminster E and James Street W ... Stow says here was built 20 houses for poor women to dwell in rent free, by Cornelius Van Dun, a Brabanter, Yeoman of the Guard to King Henry VIII, King Edward VI, Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth.' The name is generally thought to refer to the settlement of Huguenot refugees in the area. However, John Stow wrote of Petty France in '' A Survey of London'' (1598) and it is uncertain whether Huguenot refugees would have formed a notable community at that time. ''The London Encyclopaedia'' (1983, rev 1993) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern Style (British Art Nouveau style), Modern Style in English. It was popular between 1890 and 1910 during the Belle Époque period, and was a reaction against the academic art, eclecticism and historicism of 19th century architecture and decoration. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and flowers. Other characteristics of Art Nouveau were a sense of dynamism and movement, often given by asymmetry or whiplash lines, and the use of modern materials, particularly iron, glass, ceramics and later concrete, to create unusual forms and larger open spaces.Sembach, Klaus-Jürgen, ''L'Art Nouveau'' (2013), pp. 8–30 One major objective of Art Nouveau was to break down the traditional distinction between fine ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theatre Box
In a theatre, a box, loge, or opera box is a small, separated seating area in the auditorium or audience for a limited number of people for private viewing of a performance or event. Boxes are typically placed immediately to the front, side and above the level of the stage. They are separate rooms with an open viewing area which typically seat five people or fewer. Usually all the seats in a box are taken by members of a single group of people. A state box or royal box is sometimes provided for dignitaries. In theatres without box seating the loge can refer to a separate section at the front of the balcony. Sports venues such as stadiums and racetracks also have royal boxes or enclosures, for example at the All England Club and Ascot Racecourse, where access is limited to royal families or other distinguished personalities. In other countries, sports venues have luxury boxes aka skyboxes, where access is open to anyone who can afford tickets, sometimes bought by companies. S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reception Room
A drawing room is a room in a house where visitors may be entertained, and an alternative name for a living room. The name is derived from the 16th-century terms withdrawing room and withdrawing chamber, which remained in use through the 17th century, and made their first written appearance in 1642. In a large 16th to early 18th century English house, a withdrawing room was a room to which the owner of the house, his wife, or a distinguished guest who was occupying one of the main apartments in the house could "withdraw" for more privacy. It was often off the great chamber (or the great chamber's descendant, the state room) and usually led to a formal, or "state" bedroom. In modern houses, it may be used as a convenient name for a second or further reception room, but no particular function is associated with the name. History and development In 18th-century London, the royal morning receptions that the French called ''levées'' were called "drawing rooms", with the sense orig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Smoking Room
A smoking room (or smoking lounge) is a room which is specifically provided and furnished for smoking, generally in buildings where smoking is otherwise prohibited. Locations and facilities Smoking rooms can be found in public buildings such as airports, and in semi-public buildings such as workplaces. Such rooms are commonly equipped with chairs, ashtrays and ventilation, and are usually free to enter, although there may be a smoking age restriction. A cigarette company sometimes sponsors these smoking rooms, displaying its brand names on the room walls and financing the room or its maintenance. Cigarette companies have worked hard to ensure smoking was accommodated in major airports, which are high-profile locations serving many people who are often bored or nervous. Initially, providing smoking and no smoking areas was their goal, but when that policy failed they fell back on ventilated smoking rooms. Historical use in private British houses When the Crimean War during the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reading Room
Reading room may refer to: * Reference library * British Museum Reading Room * Christian Science Reading Room image:5054_christian-science-reading-room-e.jpg, 400px, A typical storefront Christian Science Reading Room on the main street of a suburb of Boston. The window displays a lamp, a large Bible open to the current reading, and copies of '' Science an ..., a place where the public can study, borrow, or purchase Christian Science literature * ''The Reading Room'' (film), a 2005 American television film * ''The Reading Room'' (Hasenclever), an 1843 painting by Johann Peter Hasenclever {{disambiguation ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Victoria Street, London
Victoria is an area of Central London in the City of Westminster. It is named after Victoria Station, which is a major transport hub. The station was named after the nearby Victoria Street. The name is used to describe streets adjoining or nearly adjoining the station, including Victoria Street, Buckingham Palace Road, Wilton Road, Grosvenor Gardens, and Vauxhall Bridge Road. Victoria consists predominantly of commercial property and private and social housing, with retail uses along the main streets. The area contains one of the busiest transport interchanges in London and the United Kingdom, including the listed railway station and the underground station, as well as Terminus Place, which is a major hub for bus and taxi services. Victoria Coach Station, 900 yards (800 metres) southwest of the railway station, provides road-coach services to long-distance UK and continental destinations. Victoria Street runs on an east–west axis from Victoria station to Broad Sanctuary ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
St James's Park
St James's Park is a park in the City of Westminster, central London. It is at the southernmost tip of the St James's area, which was named after a leper hospital dedicated to St James the Less. It is the most easterly of a near-continuous chain of parks that includes (moving westward) Green Park, Hyde Park, and Kensington Gardens. The park is bounded by Buckingham Palace to the west, the Mall to the north, Horse Guards to the east, and Birdcage Walk to the south. It meets Green Park at Queen's Gardens with the Victoria Memorial at its centre, opposite the entrance to Buckingham Palace. St James's Palace is on the opposite side of The Mall. The closest London Underground stations are St James's Park, Green Park, Victoria, and Westminster. The park is Grade I listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. Features The park has a small lake, St James's Park Lake, with two islands, West Island and Duck Island, the latter named for the lake's collection of waterfowl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
St ErminsLobby
ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy and theology by St. Thomas Aquinas * St or St., abbreviation of "State", especially in the name of a college or university Businesses and organizations Transportation * Germania (airline) (IATA airline designator ST) * Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation, abbreviated as State Transport * Sound Transit, Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority, Washington state, US * Springfield Terminal Railway (Vermont) (railroad reporting mark ST) * Suffolk County Transit, or Suffolk Transit, the bus system serving Suffolk County, New York Other businesses and organizations * Statstjänstemannaförbundet, or Swedish Union of Civil Servants, a trade union * The Secret Team, an alleged covert alliance between the CIA and American ind ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
