The Angel Hotel is a hotel on a prominent corner of Castle Street and Westgate Street in the centre of

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. Tracing its history back to at least the 18th century, for much of its existence it has been one of the major hotels in Cardiff, visited by celebrities and

prime ministers A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is no ...

History

It is claimed the Angel Hotel existed in Cardiff since 1666 but certainly from the 18th century when it was located opposite the gates of Cardiff Castle, a short distance from its current location, on what was then called Angel Street. From around 1782 it was run by John Bradley, from a family who made their money from horse racing. Bradley was also postmaster and mail contractor for Cardiff. The Angel Hotel was the destination for the daily mail coach from

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and

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Cardiff Arms Hotel, Broad Street, Cardiff

A century later the road in front of Cardiff Castle needed widening. A new hotel was built at the end of the street to replace the Angel Hotel and the old Cardiff Arms Hotel (which had been demolished). The plot was purchased by the Cardiff Corporation from the Marquess of Bute for a nominal sum and the new hotel, "designed by Mr C. J. Jackson" in an '

English Renaissance The English Renaissance was a cultural and artistic movement in England from the early 16th century to the early 17th century. It is associated with the pan-European Renaissance that is usually regarded as beginning in Italy in the late 14th cent ...

' style, was built by Jackson's company entirely from red bricks made by the Bute Estate Brickworks at a total cost of over £20,000. It was fully decorated, furnished and ready for guests by July 1883. The new hotel logo, used for the hotel signs and crockery, was designed by the Marquess of Bute, referring to the two previous hotels by combining an angel holding the Cardiff

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. The new building located its large portico entrance at the prominent corner of the site. The hotel had 76 bedrooms, bars, a billiard room and a full height hexagonal hall filling the interior with daylight via a glass lantern rooflight. Its principal space, the grand coffee room on the first floor commanded splendid views of the surrounding countryside "that very few even of the residents of Cardiff can have any idea that a building in the coal Metropolis of Wales commands a prospect of such varied beauty". It led onto a balcony above the portico intended to be used by the local Member of Parliament to "address his constituents when he has to return thanks for being elected". The old Angel Hotel was converted into offices for the Bute Estate. In the 1930s the 18th century facade of this building collapsed while repairs were being carried out. It was reconstructed and, despite being a replica, became Grade II

listed Listed may refer to: * Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm * Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic * Endangered species in biology * Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...

in 1975. In 1917, during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the hotel was requisitioned on behalf the

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and was officially renamed USS ''Chattanooga''. At the turn of the 20th century the Angel Hotel was owned by Lady Honywood's Honywood Hotels and leased by hotel entrepreneur Elizabeth Miles, who built a new facade for the building. The new Angel Hotel remained an important place to stay for politicians and celebrities, including

Greta Garbo Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress. Regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses, she was known for her melancholic, somber persona, her film portrayals of tragic ch ...

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and actor

Anthony Perkins Anthony Perkins (April 4, 1932 – September 12, 1992) was an American actor, director, and singer. Perkins is best remembered for his role as Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock's suspense thriller '' Psycho'', which made him an influentia ...

(who was arrested at the hotel in 1989 after a package of

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: '' Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternative ...

he'd posted to himself was inadvertently given to another guest).

Sporting connections

Glamorgan County Cricket Club was founded at a meeting in the hotel in 1888. Until 1967 the club played home matches at

Cardiff Arms Park Cardiff Arms Park ( cy, Parc yr Arfau Caerdydd), also known as The Arms Park, is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. It is primarily known as a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green. The Arms Park was host to the British ...

, near the hotel. The hotel is close to the

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grounds at Cardiff Arms Park and the Millennium Stadium, and was popular with visiting teams. In 1972 there was an incident following a match between the touring New Zealand All Blacks and

in which New Zealander

Keith Murdoch Sir Keith Arthur Murdoch (12 August 1885 – 4 October 1952) was an Australian journalist, businessman and the father of Rupert Murdoch, the current Executive chairman for News Corporation and the chairman of Fox Corporation. Early life Murdoc ...

punched a hotel security guard in a fracas. Murdoch was sent home from the tour, reportedly after pressure from the British press and rugby authorities.

21st century

The Angel Hotel was eventually superseded in importance in the 1990s and 2000s as modern hotels were built in the city centre and Cardiff Bay. It underwent refurbishment in 2000. In 2012 Jo McElveen became General Manager of the Angel Hotel, after starting work as a waitress at the hotel 14 years beforehand. The hotel is currently part of The Cairn Collection (previously Puma Hotels Collection/Barcelo Hotels/ The Hotel Collection). It has 102 bedrooms.

References

{{Authority control Hotel buildings completed in 1883 Hotels in Cardiff Landmarks in Cardiff 1666 establishments in Wales