Midland Bank, 27-35 Poultry | |
---|---|
Type | Offices |
Location | Poultry, City of London |
Coordinates | 51°30′49″N 0°05′25″W / 51.5137°N 0.0902°W |
Built | 1924-29 |
Current use | Hotel |
Architect | Edwin Lutyens |
Architectural style(s) | Neoclassical |
Governing body | Privately owned |
Listed Building – Grade I | |
Official name | Midland Bank, 27-35, Poultry, EC2 |
Designated | 5 June 1972 |
Reference no. | 1064598 |
The Midland Bank, 27-35 Poultry stands on Poultry in the City of London. It was built between 1924 and 1929 as the headquarters offices of the Midland Bank. The architect was Edwin Lutyens. A Grade I listed building, its Historic England record describes it as one of Lutyens' "finest urban buildings". It is now a hotel, The Ned, named in Lutyens' honour.
The Birmingham and Midland Bank was founded by Charles Geach in Birmingham in 1836. In under a century, through a long series of amalgamations, and the establishment of a successful overseas business, it had become the largest bank in the world. Renamed the Midland Bank in 1923, in 1924 it commissioned a new headquarters building on Poultry in the City of London. [1] The architect was Edwin Lutyens. The first building was completed by 1929, but Lutyens returned to undertake a major expansion between 1935 and 1937. [2] Following the Midland's financial decline in the late 20th century, it was absorbed into HSBC in 1992 [1] and the Poultry headquarters was vacated and subsequently sold. [2] The building was repurposed, and opened as a hotel, named "The Ned" in Lutyens' honour, in 2017. [3] The building's restoration, a partnership between Soho House and the Sydell Hotels Group, has drawn praise from both architectural critics and travel writers. [4] [5] [6]
Lutyens' connection to the Midland Bank came through Reginald McKenna, a senior politician who became the bank's chairman in 1919. McKenna was married to a niece of Gertrude Jekyll, Lutyens' long-time collaborator, and Lutyens had been commissioned to design the McKenna's London townhouse, Mulberry House, in Smith Square in 1912. [a] [8] On McKenna's accession to the chairmanship of the Midland, he engaged Lutyens to design the bank's new headquarters. [b] [9]
The building is listed at Grade I by Historic England, which considers it one of Lutyens' "finest urban buildings". [10]
Midland Bank, 27-35 Poultry | |
---|---|
Type | Offices |
Location | Poultry, City of London |
Coordinates | 51°30′49″N 0°05′25″W / 51.5137°N 0.0902°W |
Built | 1924-29 |
Current use | Hotel |
Architect | Edwin Lutyens |
Architectural style(s) | Neoclassical |
Governing body | Privately owned |
Listed Building – Grade I | |
Official name | Midland Bank, 27-35, Poultry, EC2 |
Designated | 5 June 1972 |
Reference no. | 1064598 |
The Midland Bank, 27-35 Poultry stands on Poultry in the City of London. It was built between 1924 and 1929 as the headquarters offices of the Midland Bank. The architect was Edwin Lutyens. A Grade I listed building, its Historic England record describes it as one of Lutyens' "finest urban buildings". It is now a hotel, The Ned, named in Lutyens' honour.
The Birmingham and Midland Bank was founded by Charles Geach in Birmingham in 1836. In under a century, through a long series of amalgamations, and the establishment of a successful overseas business, it had become the largest bank in the world. Renamed the Midland Bank in 1923, in 1924 it commissioned a new headquarters building on Poultry in the City of London. [1] The architect was Edwin Lutyens. The first building was completed by 1929, but Lutyens returned to undertake a major expansion between 1935 and 1937. [2] Following the Midland's financial decline in the late 20th century, it was absorbed into HSBC in 1992 [1] and the Poultry headquarters was vacated and subsequently sold. [2] The building was repurposed, and opened as a hotel, named "The Ned" in Lutyens' honour, in 2017. [3] The building's restoration, a partnership between Soho House and the Sydell Hotels Group, has drawn praise from both architectural critics and travel writers. [4] [5] [6]
Lutyens' connection to the Midland Bank came through Reginald McKenna, a senior politician who became the bank's chairman in 1919. McKenna was married to a niece of Gertrude Jekyll, Lutyens' long-time collaborator, and Lutyens had been commissioned to design the McKenna's London townhouse, Mulberry House, in Smith Square in 1912. [a] [8] On McKenna's accession to the chairmanship of the Midland, he engaged Lutyens to design the bank's new headquarters. [b] [9]
The building is listed at Grade I by Historic England, which considers it one of Lutyens' "finest urban buildings". [10]