Duke's Head Hotel, King's Lynn

Last updated

Duke's Head Hotel
The Duke's Head Hotel - geograph.org.uk - 681667.jpg
The Duke's Head Hotel
Norfolk UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Norfolk
General information
Location King's Lynn, King's Lynn and West Norfolk, Norfolk, England
AddressTuesday Market Place
Kings Lynn
Norfolk
PE30 1JS
United Kingdom
Coordinates 52°45′21.85″N0°23′42.31″E / 52.7560694°N 0.3950861°E / 52.7560694; 0.3950861
OpeningBuilt in 1683
Technical details
Floor count4 (connecting lift)
Design and construction
Architect(s)attributed to Henry Bell
Other information
Number of rooms81 en-suite bedrooms
Number of suites3 conferencing suites
Number of restaurants1 (Turners Restaurant)
Number of bars2 (Massey & Co/Function Bar)
ParkingYes, but limited
Website
Hotel Website
Listed Building – Grade II
Designated1 December 1951
Reference no.1212229 [1]

The Duke's Head Hotel is a 4 star hotel in the English town of King's Lynn within the county of Norfolk in the United Kingdom. [2] The hotel has been a grade II listed building since 1 December 1951.

Contents

Location

The hotel is situated in the centre of King's Lynn and is on the eastern side of Tuesday Market Place. It is 0.7 miles (1.1 km) west of King's Lynn railway station. [3] The hotel is 44.0 miles (70.8 km) west of the city of Norwich. The nearest airport is also at Norwich and that is 44.5 miles (71.6 km) west of the hotel.

History

The Duke's Head was built in 1683 for a King's Lynn Member of Parliament, Sir John Turner, [4] and is attributed to the King's Lynn architect Henry Bell. [5] Bell designed and built many buildings in King's Lynn and Norfolk including the Customs House in King's Lynn.

The Duke's Head in the 1930s was noted for its excellent English cuisine, appearing in Florence White's guidebook, Where Shall We Eat or Put Up? in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. A contributor to the guidebook, identified as a friend of Florence White's, wrote: "My husband and I had dinner there this Whitsun and were very much struck by the excellence of the menu. I cannot remember each course, but do most certainly recollect the excellent tiny asparagus served with the roast duke--quite evidently that afternoon's gathering from the hotel or nearby garden, and also the general 'Englishness' of the whole meal, ending with really good cheese." [6]

After World War II, however, the hotel went into some state of decline. It became part of Trust House Forte when Trust Houses Ltd. merged with Forte Holdings in 1970. One of the most infamous recollections of the state of the hotel and the quality of its food comes in a July 18 1971 letter that poet Philip Larkin wrote to novelist Barbara Pym. "One forgets that nobody stays in hotels these days except businessmen and American tourists: the food is geared to the business lunch or the steak-platter trade: portion control is rampant, and the material cheap anyway. . . . The presence of the hotel in the Good Food Guide is nothing short of a farce. Of course it's a Trust House, which guarantees a kind of depersonalized dullness. Never stay at a Trust House,' Larkin warns. [7]

The building was facaded[ clarification needed ] in the 70s/80s, and very little remains of the original interior.

Ghostly manifestations

The Duke's Head is reputedly haunted.[ citation needed ] [8] It stands on the site of an ancient inn called the Gryffin. There is a red lady who is thought to be a haunting manifestation of a woman who killed herself over her two lovers. [9] [ unreliable source? ] There is also a ghostly maid servant who was executed in Tuesday Market Place for poisoning her mistress. [10] [ unreliable source? ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blakeney, Norfolk</span> Coastal village in Norfolk, England

Blakeney is a coastal village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. Blakeney lies within the Norfolk Coast AONB and the North Norfolk Heritage Coast. The North Norfolk Coastal Path travels along its quayside. The village is 21.1 mi (34 km) north west of Norwich, 4.6 mi (7.4 km) NNW of the larger settlement of Holt, 11.5 mi (18.5 km) west of Cromer and 112 mi (180 km) NNE of London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King's Lynn</span> Port town in Norfolk, England

King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is 36 miles (58 km) north-east of Peterborough, 44 miles (71 km) north-north-east of Cambridge and 44 miles (71 km) west of Norwich.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swaffham</span> Town in Norfolk, England

Swaffham is a market town and civil parish in the Breckland District and English county of Norfolk. It is situated 12 miles east of King's Lynn and 31 miles west of Norwich.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A47 road</span> Road in England

The A47 is a major trunk road in England linking Birmingham to Lowestoft, Suffolk, maintained and operated by National Highways. Most of the section between Birmingham and Nuneaton is now classified as the B4114. From Peterborough eastwards, it is a trunk road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thetford</span> Town in Norfolk, England

Thetford is a market town and civil parish in the Breckland District of Norfolk, England. It is on the A11 road between Norwich and London, just east of Thetford Forest. The civil parish, covering an area of 29.55 km2 (11.41 sq mi), in 2011 had a population of 24,340.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Downham Market</span> Market town in Norfolk, England

Downham Market, sometimes simply referred to as Downham, is a market town and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It lies on the edge of the Fens, on the River Great Ouse, approximately 11 miles south of King's Lynn, 39 miles west of Norwich and 30 miles north of Cambridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fakenham</span> Town and civil parish in Norfolk, England

Fakenham is a market town and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It is situated on the River Wensum, about 25 miles north-west of Norwich. The town is at the junction of several local roads, including the A148 from King's Lynn to Cromer, the A1067 to Norwich and the A1065 to Swaffham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Dereham</span> Human settlement in England

West Dereham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It covers an area of 13.51 km2 (5.22 sq mi) and had a population of 450 at the 2011 Census. For the purposes of local government, it falls within the district of King's Lynn and West Norfolk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bawsey</span> Village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk

Bawsey is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is about 4 miles (6.4 km) east of the town of King's Lynn and 40 miles (64 km) west of the city of Norwich. The village sits astride of the B1145 Kings Lynn to Mundesley road that dissects North Norfolk west to east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Runcton</span> Human settlement in England

North Runcton is a village and a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is 43.2 miles (69.5 km) west of Norwich, 4.3 miles (6.9 km) south-south-east of King's Lynn and 102 miles (164 km) north of London. The village is located a small distance south-west of the A47 between King's Lynn and Swaffham. The nearest railway station is at King's Lynn for the Fen Line which runs between King's Lynn and Cambridge. The nearest airport is Norwich International Airport. The parish of North Runcton in the 2001 census, has a population of 266, increasing to 549 at the 2011 Census. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the district of King's Lynn and West Norfolk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A149 road</span> Road in Norfolk, linking Kings Lynn and Great Yarmouth

The A149 is commonly known as "The Coast Road" to local residents and tourists, as this road runs along the North Norfolk coast from King's Lynn to Great Yarmouth, via coastal villages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gayton, Norfolk</span> Village in Norfolk, England

Gayton is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is located 6 miles (9.7 km) east of King's Lynn and 32 miles (51 km) north-west of Norwich, along the Gaywood River and the B1145 between King's Lynn and Mundesley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walsoken</span> Human settlement in England

Walsoken is a settlement and civil parish in Norfolk, England, which is conjoined as a suburb at the northeast of the town of Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Walton</span> Human settlement in England

West Walton is a village and civil parish in the King's Lynn and West Norfolk District of Norfolk, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hotel de Paris, Cromer</span> Hotel in Cromer, Norfolk

The Hotel de Paris is a hotel in the English seaside town of Cromer in the county of Norfolk, United Kingdom. It has an AA three-star rating.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Hotel, Swaffham</span>

The George Hotel is a 3 star hotel located in the English town of Swaffham, within the county of Norfolk, United Kingdom. The hotel is a grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bell Hotel, Thetford</span>

The Bell Hotel is an AA 3-star hotel in the English town of Thetford within the county of Norfolk. The hotel has been a Grade II* listed building since 3 April 1951.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dales Country House Hotel, Upper Sheringham</span> Country house hotel in Norfolk, England

The Dales Country House Hotel is a grade II listed building which is in the English coastal village of Upper Sheringham in the county of Norfolk, United Kingdom. The hotel is also an AA 4-star hotel. The hotel also has 2 AA Rosettes for Food.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Hotel, Norwich</span> Former hotel in Norwich, England

The Royal Hotel is a Grade II listed building and was a former hotel located in the English city of Norwich in the county of Norfolk. The hotel closed its doors in 1977 and is now used as a business centre.

References

  1. ↑ Listed Building schedule
  2. ↑ OS Explorer Map 236” – King's Lynn, Downham Market & Swaffham. ISBN   0-319-23808-3.
  3. ↑ County A to Z Atlas, Street & Road maps Norfolk, ISBN   978 1 84348 614 5
  4. ↑ John Turner-Blue Plaque Retrieved 19 January 2013
  5. ↑ Local History website Retrieved 19 January 2013
  6. ↑ White, Florence (1936). Where Shall We Eat or Put Up? in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. London: Practical Press, Ltd. p. 167.
  7. ↑ Piepenbring, Dan (2 June 2015). ""The Spit of Recollection"". Paris Review. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  8. ↑ Hutchings, Ed (11 February 2024). ""A Historic Walk around King's Lynn"". Discover Britain. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  9. ↑ The Red Lady Retrieved 19 January 2013
  10. ↑ Haunted King’s Lynn Retrieved 19 January 2013
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.