The Royal Clarence Hotel, Cathedral Close

Built by William Mackworth Praed in 1769 as the Assembly Rooms, the Royal Clarence Hotel is credited as the first hotel in England. On 7th September 1770, an advert appeared using the word hôtel for the first time published by the landlord, the Frenchman, Pierre Berlon. William Praed also established Exeter's first bank on the corner of the current hotel on 9th July 1769.

In July 1776, the former proprietor of the Swan Inn situated in the High Street, Richard Lloyd announced in the Old Exeter Journal that he had "now taken the HOTEL, in St Peter's Church-Yard, which is fitted up in the most elegant manner." The advert ends with "The CHAISES, COACHES, DILIGENCE, &c, will continue at the Hotel, as before." Although initially just called 'The Hotel', it became 'The Cadogen Hotel' for a short time. The manager of the 'The Cadogen Hotel' was an ex-waiter, Thomas Thompson, who renamed it 'Thompsons' for the next 20 years. It then became, 'Phillips Hotel'.

Jenkin's 1806 History of Exeter described the hotel thus:

"The only house, worthy of notice in its parish is, The Hotel, a large commodious Inn, with elegant apartments and Hotel accommodation for people of the first quality, with a large assembly room in which assize balls, concerts and assemblies of the most distinguished persons of City and Country take place, in the front is a neat coffee room. The situation of 'The Hotel' is very pleasant as it opens to the parade and commands a noble view of the Cathedral."

Finally, it was named after the Duchess of Clarence (Queen Adelaide), wife of the future William IV who stayed there in July 1827. Admiral Nelson received the freedom of the city in 1801, after the Battle of the Nile. A sword was presented to Nelson at the Guildhall, where he was to be entertained with dinner. However, Nelson insisted in returning to the Clarence, where he was staying, to address the gathered newspaper correspondents, before dining at the hotel. It was in the Royal Clarence that during 1815, a meeting was held to plan the introduction of gas to light the streets of the city. Exeter was the first place in Devon to pioneer town gas, and the first gas lights were installed in the High Street. In August 1840, Franz Liszt gave a piano recital at the Clarence while touring England with a small group. He later wrote to his mistress that English cathedrals were not so crowded with shops and houses as those in France and therefore were more impressive.

The Royal Clarence has had one strange visit from royalty. Edward, the Duke of Kent and father of the future Queen Victoria died while staying at Sidmouth on 23rd January 1820. He had been travelling to Exeter to receive the freedom of the city. The Duke's body was transported to the Royal Clarence where it was embalmed in preparation for transportation to his funeral which was held at Windsor.

During the age of the stage coach, Exeter's inns and hotels would compete for business by ensuring they were the terminus for prestigious services. The Royal Clarence was no exception, as it offered its clientele the Royal Bath and the London Mail services. Indeed, after a particularly frightening accident, in which a Clarence bound stage coach ran amok across the Close, after it clipped the narrow entrance of the Broadgate, the city authorities decided to demolish the old gate and ease the entrance.

The Twentieth Century

Thomas Hardy stayed, along with his second wife at the Royal Clarence in 1915 while visiting a friend in Torquay. In 1916, the Clarence opened the first cocktail bar, called the Zodiac Bar - during 1939, such exotic drinks as Tugboat Annie, the Corpse Reviver and Gloom Chaser were concocted to cheer up Exonians heading into the Second World War. Such bars were becoming popular at this time and it was the talent of Mr 'Ginger' Wood, who invented the Gloom Chaser, that made the bar a success with a range of 51 different cocktails. The bar was later named the Bishop Bar before closing in the 1980's.

It was during the Second World War, when the Americans were based in Exeter before D-Day, that both Clark Gable and Gary Cooper stayed at the Royal Clarence Hotel. They were already established Hollywood actors who served in the US air force.

Banking and pubs

The Exeter Bank was situated to the right of the hotel. It became the first Deller' s Cafe in Exeter during 1906. The building is now part of the Royal Clarence and is run by Michael Caine, the Exeter born celebrity chef, as the Café Bar.

On the opposite side, the Well House Tavern is also owned and run by the Clarence. The original building was a Norman hall and was constructed on part of the medieval burial ground before tenements were built in the 15th century. The upper floors were added in the 17th century. Veitch's, the nursery and seed merchant used the premises as a shop until the 1980's when it briefly became an estate agent, a bookshop and then the Well House in 1984.

It is said that because the hotel occupies ecclesiastical land, only the verger of the Cathedral has the right to arrest drunks, as the police have no jurisdiction in the premises.

The royal crest on the front facade of the building originally dated from when the hotel gained royal patronage from the Duchess of Clarence. In 1989, it was decided that the crest be removed and refurbished. When the crest was lowered to the ground it was found to be in a very poor condition. The Vulcan Works in Water Lane gained the contract to make an exact copy out of fibreglass. It took three months before it was ready, and put back into place.

A typical breakfast menu from 1935 was:

Sources - various including Old Exeter, a Portrait of Photographs by Peter Thomas, Two Thousand Years in Exeter by W G Hoskins, Exeter Remembers the War by Todd Gray, Exeter Past by Hazel Harvey, the Express and Echo, and original memorabilia and adverts.