The Shamrock Hotel, currently trading as Hotel Shamrock, is a grand 19th-century hotel in

Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is an Australian city in north-central Victoria. The city is located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2022, Bendigo has a popula ...

Victoria, Australia Victoria, commonly abbreviated as Vic, is a state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state (after Tasmania), with a land area of ; the second-most-populated state (after New South Wales), with a population of over 7 million; ...

, situated on Pall Mall, the city's main street. The current Shamrock building is a major landmark of Bendigo and is of historic and architectural significance to the nation of Australia and to the state of Victoria as part of a significant streetscape and collection of late Victorian buildings in a similar style.

History

The Shamrock began life in 1854, as a small hotel known as The Exchange Hotel, servicing miners during the

Victorian gold rush The Victorian gold rush was a period in the history of Victoria, Australia, approximately between 1851 and the late 1860s. It led to a period of extreme prosperity for the Australian colony and an influx of population growth and financial capi ...

and including a

Cobb & Co Cobb & Co was the name used by several independent Australian coach businesses. The first company to use 'Cobb & Co' was established in 1853 by American Freeman Cobb and his partners. The name grew to great prominence in the late 19th century, ...

office and a concert hall known as the Theatre Royal. The hotel's patronage had grown quickly with the booming goldfields and it was renamed "The Shamrock" in 1855. The same year the Theatre Royal hosted

Lola Montez Eliza Rosanna Gilbert, Countess of Landsfeld (17 February 1821 – 17 January 1861), better known by the stage name Lola Montez (), was an Irish dancer and actress who became famous as a Spanish dancer, courtesan, and mistress of King Ludw ...

performing for the diggers who threw gold nuggets at her feet, many of which the Shamrock staff took as tips while cleaning. The Bendigo Shakespeare and Literary Society also performed at the theatre from 1861. Completely rebuilt in 1864, the Shamrock became a large hotel with two triple storey ''

palazzo A palace is a large residence, often serving as a royal residence or the home for a head of state or another high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whi ...

'' in the Victorian

Regency architecture Regency architecture encompasses classical buildings built in the United Kingdom during the Regency era in the early 19th century when George IV was Prince Regent, and also to earlier and later buildings following the same style. The period c ...

style. By this time the Shamrock had become the main hotel in central Sandhurst (as Bendigo was then known) and was the accommodation of choice of visiting dignitaries to the valley's goldfields district including governor,

Charles Henry Darling Sir Charles Henry Darling (19 February 1809 – 25 January 1870) was a British colonial governor. Biography Charles Darling was born at Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia, the son of Major-General Henry Darling and nephew of General Sir Ralph Dar ...

. A large double storey verandah was added in the 1870s.

Design and building

In 1897 the hotel was once again completely rebuilt to the design of Phillip Kennedy, an understudy of Germans migrant architect William Vahland, who is attributed for the four-storey

Second Empire architecture Second Empire style, also known as the Napoleon III style, is a highly eclectic style of architecture and decorative arts originating in the Second French Empire. It was characterized by elements of many different historical styles, and al ...

design with basement level and a distinctive and tall fifth storey mansard roof. The elaborate " boom style" building features detailed stucco mouldings and a distinctively Australia feature in its

Victorian Filigree Filigree architecture is a modern term given to a phase in the history of Australian architecture. The phase was an embellishment of the "Australian verandah tradition", where the verandah evolved from its functional usages in the Old Colonial pe ...

-styled double storey wraparound iron lacework verandah. The entry patio has the hotel's name in mosaic parquetry and the name is also etched into the glass of the transom light. Part of the ambitious brief was to construct a rival in grandeur to Melbourne's

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 ...

(now Windsor Hotel). The construction contractors were Baxter and Boyne. The Shamrock played a role in the

history of Australia The history of Australia is the history of the land and peoples which comprise the Commonwealth of Australia. The modern nation came into existence on 1 January 1901 as a federation of former British colonies. The human history of Australia, ...

when in 1898 it hosted the

Australian Natives' Association The Australian Natives' Association (ANA) was a mutual society founded in Melbourne, Australia in April 1871. It was founded by and for the benefit of White native-born Australians, and membership was restricted to that group. The Association's ...

at the banquet hall at which

Alfred Deakin Alfred Deakin (3 August 1856 – 7 October 1919) was an Australian politician who served as the second Prime Minister of Australia, prime minister of Australia from 1903 to 1904, 1905 to 1908, and 1909 to 1910. He held office as the leader of th ...

made a speech in support for the

federation of Australia The Federation of Australia was the process by which the six separate British self-governing colonies of Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia (which also governed what is now the Northern Territory), and Wester ...

. Dame

Nellie Melba Dame Nellie Melba (born Helen Porter Mitchell; 19 May 186123 February 1931) was an Australian operatic lyric coloratura soprano. She became one of the most famous singers of the late Victorian era and the early twentieth century, and was the f ...

was one of the notable guests of the hotel during the Edwardian era, staying in the third floor corner suite opposite the Bendigo Post Office clock tower and demanded its hourly chime be turned off. Other notable guests included

Harry Lauder Sir Henry Lauder (; 4 August 1870 – 26 February 1950)Russell, Dave"Lauder, Sir Henry (1870–1950)" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004, online edition, January 2011, accessed 27 April 2014 was a S ...

Ignacy Jan Paderewski Ignacy Jan Paderewski (;

r 1859 R, or r, is the eighteenth letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ar'' (pronounced ), plural ''ars''. The lette ...

– 29 June 1941) was a Polish pianist, composer and statesman who was a spokesman for Polish independence. In 1919, he was the nation's Prime Minister of Poland, prime minister and foreign minister durin ...

, John McCormack and

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; ; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer and conductor best known for his Tone poems (Strauss), tone poems and List of operas by Richard Strauss, operas. Considered a leading composer of the late Roman ...

1970s demolition threat

In the 1970s the Shamrock, like many grand hotels around Australia, had waned in popularity and was under threat of demolition as one of several sites in being proposed for speculative office blocks. The

Rupert Hamer Sir Rupert James "Dick" Hamer, (29 July 1916 – 23 March 2004) was an Australian politician who served as the 39th premier of Victoria from 1972 to 1981, and prior to that, the 18th deputy premier of Victoria from 1971 to 1972. He held offic ...

state government stepped in, acquiring the hotel for $240,000 to save it and nominated it of state heritage significance.

Restoration and reopening

The Victorian Public Works Department subsequently undertook a major restoration project at a cost of approximately $2.5 million which was finally completed on 14 April 1981. While many historic interior features were intact including the grand staircase, verandah, second storey parlour, halls and arches and 1920s elevator most of the rooms were upgraded with modern facilities and the top storey beneath the mansard roof, which were subject to water ingress and pigeon roosting was boarded off and the basement level was closed. The hotel was leased to Clover Hotels. Among the high-profile guests after the reopening were

Charles, Prince of Wales Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, a ...

, and

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997), was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William, ...

, during a royal visit in 1983. The Shamrock is privately operated and was previously part of the

Comfort Inn Comfort is a state of physical or psychological ease, often characterized by the absence of hardship. Individuals experiencing a lack of comfort are typically described as uncomfortable or in discomfort. A degree of psychological comfort can b ...

chain. It remains one of Bendigo's most popular venue for functions and photography, particularly wedding receptions.

Heritage recognition

The Shamrock was given a state interim heritage protection order in 1975. The hotel was recognised with national significance to Australia in 1978 when it was added to the Register of the National Estate (4298). It is currently recognised by

Heritage Victoria Heritage Victoria is a branch of the Victorian Department of Transport and Planning. It is the regulator responsible for administering the Heritage Act 2017. The Heritage Act provides for the protection and conservation of the cultural heritage ...

as being of state heritage significance (H0914) and listed on the

Victorian Heritage Register The Victorian Heritage Register (VHR) lists places deemed to be of cultural heritage significance to the State of Victoria, Australia. It has statutory weight under the Heritage Act 2017. The Minister for Planning is the responsible Minister. ...

. The Shamrock is also classified by the

National Trust of Victoria The National Trust of Australia (Victoria) is a community-based, non-government organisation committed to promoting and conserving Australia's indigenous, natural and historic heritage places of cultural significance in Victoria. It was founded in ...

(B1853) as being of state significance.

References

External links

{{coord, 36, 45, 31, S, 144, 16, 50, E, region:AU-VIC_type:landmark, display=title Hotel buildings completed in 1897 1897 establishments in Australia Buildings and structures in Bendigo Second Empire architecture in Australia Hotels in Victoria (state) Victorian Heritage Register Loddon Mallee (region) Pubs in Victoria (state)