Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth (french: Fairmont Le Reine Élizabeth) is a historic

grand hotel A grand hotel is a large and luxurious hotel, especially one housed in a building with traditional architectural style. It began to flourish in the 1800s in Europe and North America. Grand Hotel may refer to: Hotels Africa * Grande Hotel Beir ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada. With 950 rooms and 21 floors it is the largest hotel in the province of Quebec, and the second largest Fairmont hotel in Canada after the

Fairmont Royal York The Fairmont Royal York, formerly and still commonly known as the Royal York, is a large historic luxury hotel in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located along Front Street West, the hotel is situated at the southern end of the Financial District, in ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, which has 1365 rooms. Located at 900

René Lévesque Boulevard René Lévesque Boulevard (french: Boulevard René-Lévesque), previously named Dorchester Boulevard () is one of the main streets in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is a main east–west thoroughfare passing through the downtown core in the borou ...

West, in the heart of

Downtown Montreal Downtown Montreal ( French: ''Centre-Ville de Montréal'') is the central business district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The district is situated on the southernmost slope of Mount Royal, and occupies the western portion of the borough of Vil ...

, it is connected to

Central Station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...

and to the

underground city An underground city is a series of linked subterranean spaces that may provide a defensive refuge; a place for living, working or shopping; a transit system; mausolea; wine or storage cellars; cisterns or drainage channels; or several of thes ...

. The hotel is well known for being the location for

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

and

Yoko Ono Yoko Ono ( ; ja, 小野洋子, Ono Yōko, usually spelled in katakana ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up i ...

recording "

Give Peace a Chance "Give Peace a Chance" is an anti-war song written by John Lennon (originally credited to Lennon–McCartney), and recorded with the participation of a small group of friends in a performance with Yoko Ono in a hotel room in Montreal, Quebec, C ...

" in Room 1742 during their 1969 anti-war

Bed-In The Bed-ins for Peace were two week-long nonviolent protests against wars, intended as experimental tests of new ways to promote peace. As the Vietnam War raged in 1969, John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono held one protest at the Hilton Hotel in Ams ...

History

The Queen Elizabeth (french: Le Reine Élizabeth) opened on April 15, 1958. The hotel was built and owned by the

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN i ...

and operated by Hilton Hotels International, though it was never branded as a Hilton. Canadian National Railway selected leading architects and designers to give the interior decoration a "New France" theme, using Quebec handicrafts. The artists included

Albert Edward Cloutier Albert Edward Cloutier (1902–1965) was a Canadians, Canadian painter and graphic designer who painted in a form of intensified realism with abstract plastic forms. Life Albert Edward Cloutier was born in 1902 of Canadian parents in Leominster, ...

(carved wooden panels), Jean Dallaire (wall hanging),

Marius Plamondon Marius Plamondon (1914–1976) was a Canadian sculptor and stained glass artist who made a significant contribution to the revival of the art of stained glass in Quebec during his lifetime. His most famous work is the set of ten stained glass windo ...

(stained glass mural),

Claude Vermette Claude Vermette (August 10, 1930 – April 21, 2006) was a Canadian ceramist and painter. He was born in Montreal, Quebec and died in Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts. He was an artist with an international reputation, and he made important contributi ...

(ceramic tiles) and

Julien Hébert Julien Hébert (August 19, 1917 – May 24, 1994) was a Québécois industrial designer, perhaps most famous for creating the logo of the Montreal World Exposition, Expo 67. Formerly a student of philosophy, Hébert began his design educat ...

(bronze elevator doors). Cloutier painted a mural for the main dining room of the Salle Bonaventure in the hotel. There was controversy over naming the hotel: Quebec nationalists wanted it called Château Maisonneuve in honour of Montreal's founder,

Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve Paul de Chomedey, sieur de Maisonneuve (15 February 1612 9 September 1676) was a French military officer and the founder of Fort Ville-Marie (modern day Montreal) in New France (Province of Quebec, Canada). Early life Maisonneuve was born in ...

. CN's president, Donald Gordon, insisted it be named for the queen, who had unexpectedly come to the throne in 1952 while the hotel was still on the drawing board. The French name, ''Le Reine Élizabeth'', may appear startling, because of the use of the masculine article ''le'', but the article does not actually apply to the feminine noun ''Reine''. Instead, it applies to the implied masculine noun ''Hôtel'' (as in ''Le Ritz''). John Lennon performing Give Peace a Chance 1969

John Lennon performing Give Peace a Chance 1969

Many famous guests have stayed there, including

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

(four times) and the

Duke of Edinburgh Duke of Edinburgh, named after the city of Edinburgh in Scotland, was a substantive title that has been created three times since 1726 for members of the British royal family. It does not include any territorial landholdings and does not produc ...

Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was the l ...

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...

, who was the first head of state to visit the hotel,

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...

, and

Princess Grace of Monaco Grace Patricia Kelly (November 12, 1929 – September 14, 1982) was an American actress who, after starring in several significant films in the early to mid-1950s, became Princess of Monaco by marrying Prince Rainier III in April 1956. Kelly ...

, during

Expo '67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...

Indira Gandhi Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (; Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and a central figure of the Indian National Congress. She was elected as third prime minister of India in 1966 ...

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, , ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. Chirac was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988, as well as Ma ...

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

, the

Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current Dal ...

, Sadiq Raji,

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet politician who served as the 8th and final leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (; ; born Heinz Alfred Kissinger, May 27, 1923) is a German-born American politician, diplomat, and geopolitical consultant who served as United States Secretary of State and National Security Advisor under the presid ...

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...

Joan Crawford Joan Crawford (born Lucille Fay LeSueur; March 23, ncertain year from 1904 to 1908was an American actress. She started her career as a dancer in traveling theatrical companies before debuting on Broadway. Crawford was signed to a motion pict ...

John Travolta John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He came to public attention during the 1970s, appearing on the television sitcom ''Welcome Back, Kotter'' (1975–1979) and starring in the box office successes ''Carrie'' (19 ...

Mikhail Baryshnikov Mikhail Nikolayevich Baryshnikov ( rus, Михаил Николаевич Барышников, p=mʲɪxɐˈil bɐ'rɨʂnʲɪkəf; lv, Mihails Barišņikovs; born January 28, 1948) is a Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Latvian-born R ...

, and

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

. The hotel reached worldwide fame when

and

, who had been refused entry into the United States, conducted their

in Room 1742 at the hotel between May 26 and June 2, 1969. "

" was recorded in this room on June 1 by André Perry. This song is the first solo single issued by Lennon, and became an

anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short ...

of the American

anti-war movement An anti-war movement (also ''antiwar'') is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term anti-war can also refer to ...

during the 1970s. It peaked at #14 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and #2 on the British singles chart. The

NHL Entry Draft The NHL Entry Draft (french: Repêchage d'entrée dans la LNH) is an annual meeting in which every franchise of the National Hockey League (NHL) systematically select the rights to available ice hockey players who meet draft eligibility requirem ...

was also held at the hotel ten times between 1963 and 1979. In 1970, the

Government of Quebec A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

moved its centre of operations into the Queen Elizabeth in the midst of the

October Crisis The October Crisis (french: Crise d'Octobre) refers to a chain of events that started in October 1970 when members of the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) kidnapped the provincial Labour Minister Pierre Laporte and British diplomat James C ...

. CN Hotels assumed direct management of the hotel on January 1, 1984, when the contract with Hilton ended. CN Hotels was sold to

Canadian Pacific Hotels Canadian Pacific Hotels (CPH) was a division of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) that primarily operated hotels across Canada. CPR restructured the division as a subsidiary in 1963. Early hotels Since passenger revenue made a significant ...

in 1988. In 2001, Canadian Pacific Hotels was rebranded as

Fairmont Hotels and Resorts Fairmont Hotels & Resorts is a global chain of luxury hotels that operates more than 70 properties worldwide, with a strong presence in Canada. The company originated from two hotel businesses established in the late 19th century, the Canadian P ...

, following their purchase of that smaller chain. The hotel was renamed Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth. In 2010, six doormen of the hotel were arrested on charges of racketeering and extortion. From June 17, 2016 to July 10, 2017, the hotel was closed for a renovation.

References

External links

Emporis Listing
{{Montreal landmarks Canadian National Railway hotels Hotels in Montreal Hotel buildings completed in 1958 Canadian Pacific Railway hotels Fairmont Hotels and Resorts International style architecture in Canada Hotels established in 1958 1958 establishments in Quebec Downtown Montreal