Claridge’s has long been known as the London hotel where history quietly checks in alongside royalty, artists, and world leaders. Its story begins in the 1850s, when William and Marianne Claridge expanded their small Mayfair hotel into a grand establishment that quickly attracted Europe’s elite. By the 1860s, Queen Victoria herself was sending visiting monarchs to stay there, an early sign that Claridge’s was becoming something special.
The hotel’s true transformation came in the 1890s, when new owners rebuilt it in the striking Art Deco style that still defines its character today. Through the 20th century, Claridge’s became a sanctuary during turbulent times. During World War II, exiled kings and queens made it their temporary home, and in 1945, a suite was even declared Yugoslav territory for a single day so that Crown Prince Alexander could be born on “home soil.”
Over the decades, Claridge’s has balanced tradition with reinvention. Its famous black‑and‑white marble lobby, its discreet service, and its glamorous bars and restaurants have made it a favourite of Hollywood stars, fashion icons, and anyone seeking a taste of timeless London luxury.
Today, Claridge’s remains more than a hotel, it’s a living piece of London history, where every corridor seems to whisper a story from another era.
See Claridges on a black cab tour of London!
Courtesy of Wikipeida. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. See this photograph’s page on the Geograph website for the photographer’s contact details. The copyright on this image is owned by Tim Westcott and is licensed for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license.