Embassy of Spain, London

Last updated

Embassy of Spain in London
Embassy of Spain in London 1.jpg
Embassy of Spain, London
Location Belgravia, London, UK
Address24 Belgrave Square
London, SW1
Coordinates 51°29′51.7″N0°9′14.7″W / 51.497694°N 0.154083°W / 51.497694; -0.154083
Ambassador José Pascual Marco Martínez

The Embassy of Spain in London is the diplomatic mission of Spain in the United Kingdom. [1] Formerly known as Downshire House, the embassy is located at 24 Belgrave Square in the Belgravia area of London. Spain also maintains a Consulate General at 20 Draycott Place in Chelsea, a Defence Office at 3 Hans Crescent in Knightsbridge, an Education, Employment & Social Affairs Office at 20 Peel Street in Holland Park, and an Economic & Commercial Section at 66 Chiltern Street in Marylebone. [2]

Contents

The embassy is situated in a detached, stucco house designed by Henry E. Kendall and built between 1840 and 1850 on Belgrave Square in Belgravia. The building is Grade I listed for its architectural merit. [3]

History

In the reign of Elizabeth I, the Bishops of Ely let their palace and chapel in Ely Place to the Spanish Ambassador and, until the reign of Charles I, it was occupied by the High Representative of the Court of Spain. During this period, the chapel (now St Etheldreda's Church) was freely used by English Roman Catholics. [4]

After the restoration of Charles II, the Spanish Embassy was re-established in London, first on Ormond Street and then at Hertford House on Manchester Square, where the Wallace Collection is now housed. Here, in 1793–96, [5] shortly after the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1791 repealed some of the laws affecting Catholic worship, a chapel, St James's, Spanish Place, was built to designs by Joseph Bonomi on the corner of Spanish Place and Charles Street (now George Street), Westminster, largely through the efforts of Thomas Hussey, chaplain at the embassy. In 1827, the official Spanish connection with the chapel ceased.

Between the late-20th century and onwards, the house was owned by Lord Pirrie, the director of Harland & Wolff, a prominent Belfast shipbuilding company, which generally built ocean liners for the White Star Line. [6] During one occasion in July of 1907, Pirrie was hosting White Star managing director J. Bruce Ismay at the residence, discussing the two-months subsequent voyage of the Lusitania in September. Having been longstanding rivals with Cunard throughout most of their history, Ismay expressed concern at the record-breaking transatlantic crossing of the Lusitania with Pirrie; Despite White Star's reputation for elegance and luxury, Cunard's notability for punctuality and speed posed a threat to both of their respective firms to a great extent. [7] Pirrie formulated the concept of a large three-stack liner constructed in order to compensate for the recent ascension of Lusitania, with an emphasis upon prestige as well as her design. Moreover, this would advance to a new class of three liners being constructed as opposed to Cunard's Mauretania and Luistania duo, with an additional liner laid upon to forward themselves ahead of Cunard.

These were the preliminary foundations for what would become known as the Olympic-class ocean liner, a trio of famous liners built between 1908 until 1914, thus being the Olympic, Titanic along with Britannic. After initial groundwork drawn up by Alexander Carlisle, a veteran architect of Harland & Wolff, and Thomas Andrews, another who was Pirrie's nephew, an additional smoke stack was extended to the blueprints, a feature designated to enhance the vessels' appearance, therefore rendering the original proposition a four-stacker liner. [8] The contract was agreed upon on in a drafted agreement between White Star and Harland & Wolff a year afterwards in July of 1908, facilitated as well as signatured by both Pirrie and Ismay in approval. The most famous of the three liners, Titanic, later sank on her maiden voyage to New York in April of 1912 after a collision with an iceberg, resulting in the deaths of over 1,500 aboard, with circa 706 rescued by the Carpathia. Pirrie and his subordinate engineers were not implicated in the subsequent British and American Inquiries over the shortage of lifeboats on board, however Ismay himself infamously received the brunt of the blame for the disaster, ruining his reputation amongst society. Pirrie later passed away over a decade later in 1924, ironically near the coast of the former Spanish colony of Cuba.

The house became a Spanish diplomatic representation less than five years after his death in 1928 after being purchased by the Spanish government. [9]

See also

Related Research Articles

RMS <i>Olympic</i> British transatlantic liner (1911–1935)

RMS Olympic was a British ocean liner and the lead ship of the White Star Line's trio of Olympic-class liners. Olympic had a career spanning 24 years from 1911 to 1935, in contrast to her short-lived sister ships, Titanic and Britannic. This included service as a troopship during the First World War, which gained her the nickname "Old Reliable", and during which she rammed and sank the U-boat U-103. She returned to civilian service after the war, and served successfully as an ocean liner throughout the 1920s and into the first half of the 1930s, although increased competition, and the slump in trade during the Great Depression after 1930, made her operation increasingly unprofitable. Olympic was withdrawn from service and sold for scrap on 12 April 1935 which was completed in 1937.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harland & Wolff</span> Shipyard in Belfast, Northern Ireland

Harland & Wolff is a British shipbuilding and fabrication company headquartered in London with sites in Belfast, Arnish, Appledore and Methil. It specialises in ship repair, shipbuilding and offshore construction. Harland & Wolff is famous for having built the majority of the ocean liners for the White Star Line, including Olympic-class trio – RMS Olympic, RMS Titanic and HMHS Britannic. Outside of White Star Line, other ships that have been built include the Royal Navy's HMS Belfast; Royal Mail Line's Andes; Shaw, Savill & Albion's Southern Cross; Union-Castle's RMS Pendennis Castle; P&O's Canberra; and Hamburg-America's SS Amerika of 1905. Harland and Wolff's official history, Shipbuilders to the World, was published in 1986.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belgravia</span> District in Greater London, England

Belgravia is a district in Central London, covering parts of the areas of the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White Star Line</span> British shipping company

The White Star Line was a British shipping line. Founded out of the remains of a defunct packet company, it gradually rose up to become one of the most prominent shipping companies in the world, providing passenger and cargo services between the British Empire and the United States. While many other shipping lines focused primarily on speed, White Star branded their services by focusing more on providing comfortable passages for both upper class travellers and immigrants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Pirrie, 1st Viscount Pirrie</span> British shipbuilder and businessman (1847–1924)

William James Pirrie, 1st Viscount Pirrie, KP, PC, PC (Ire) was a leading British shipbuilder and businessman. He was chairman of Harland & Wolff, shipbuilders, between 1895 and 1924, and also served as Lord Mayor of Belfast between 1896 and 1898. He was ennobled as Baron Pirrie in 1906, appointed a Knight of the Order of St Patrick in 1908 and made Viscount Pirrie in 1921. In the months leading up to the 1912 Sinking of the Titanic, Lord Pirrie was questioned about the number of life boats aboard the Olympic-class ocean liners. He responded that the great ships were unsinkable and the rafts were to save others. This would haunt him forever. In Belfast he was, on other grounds, already a controversial figure: a Protestant employer associated as a leading Liberal with a policy of Home Rule for Ireland.

<i>Oceanic</i> (unfinished ship) Unfinished motor vessel

Oceanic was the planned name of an unfinished ocean liner that was partially built by Harland and Wolff for the White Star Line. It would have been the third ship bearing the name Oceanic, after the one of 1870 and the one of 1899. It was envisaged in 1926, with the idea of modernizing the transatlantic service of the company. With the arrival of Lord Kylsant at the head of the company, the planned size of the project increased, until it became that of a large ship destined to be the first to exceed the symbolic limit of 1,000 feet (305 m) in length and 30 knots in speed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belgrave Square</span> Square in London, England

Belgrave Square is a large 19th-century garden square in London. It is the centrepiece of Belgravia, and its architecture resembles the original scheme of property contractor Thomas Cubitt who engaged George Basevi for all of the terraces for the 2nd Earl Grosvenor, later the 1st Marquess of Westminster, in the 1820s. Most of the houses were occupied by 1840. The square takes its name from one of the Duke of Westminster's subsidiary titles, Viscount Belgrave. The village and former manor house of Belgrave, Cheshire, were among the rural landholdings associated with the main home and gardens of the senior branch of the family, Eaton Hall. Today, many embassies occupy buildings on all four sides.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Mercantile Marine Company</span> Transatlantic shipping group

The International Mercantile Marine Company, originally the International Navigation Company, was a trust formed in the early twentieth century as an attempt by J.P. Morgan to monopolize the shipping trade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embassy of Germany, London</span> German diplomatic mission in the United Kingdom

The Embassy of Germany in London is the diplomatic mission of Germany in the United Kingdom. The embassy is located at Belgrave Square, in Belgravia. It occupies three of the original terraced houses in Belgrave Square and a late 20th-century extension.

<i>Olympic</i>-class ocean liner Trio of ocean liners

The Olympic-class ocean liners were a trio of British ocean liners built by the Harland & Wolff shipyard for the White Star Line during the early 20th century. They were Olympic (1911), Titanic (1912) and Britannic (1914). All three were designed to be the largest and most luxurious passenger ships at that time, designed to give White Star an advantage in the transatlantic passenger trade.

SS <i>Traffic</i> (1911)

SS Traffic was a tender of the White Star Line, and the fleetmate to the Nomadic. She was built for the White Star Line by Harland and Wolff, at Belfast, to serve the Olympic-class ocean liners. In Cherbourg, her role was to transport Third Class passengers and mails between the port and the liners anchored in the harbour, while the Nomadic was tasked with transporting First Class and Second Class passengers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Four-funnel liner</span> Ocean liner with four funnels

A four-funnel liner, also known as a four-stacker, is an ocean liner with four funnels.

Big Four (White Star Line) Class of ocean liners built 1901–1905

The "Big Four" were a quartet of early-20th-century 20,000-ton ocean liners built by the Harland & Wolff shipyard for the White Star Line, to be the largest and most luxurious ships afloat. The group consisted of Celtic, Cedric, Baltic and Adriatic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wilton Crescent</span> Street in Belgravia, Central London

Wilton Crescent is a street in Belgravia, Central London, comprising a sweeping elegant terrace of Georgian houses and the private communal gardens that the semi-circle looks out upon. The houses were built in the early 19th century and are now Grade II listed buildings. The street is the northern projection of Belgravia and is often taken to fall into the category of London's garden squares.

<i>Titanic: Blood and Steel</i> 2012 12-part television costume drama

Titanic: Blood and Steel is a 12-part television costume drama series about the construction of the RMS Titanic. Produced by History Asia, it is one of two large budget television dramas aired in April 2012, the centenary of the disaster; the other is Titanic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embassy of Italy, London</span> Diplomatic mission of Italy in the United Kingdom, located in London

The Embassy of Italy in London is the diplomatic mission of Italy in the United Kingdom. The front entrance is located on a private cul-de-sac in Mayfair, though there is also an entrance at the back on Grosvenor Square.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embassy of Austria, London</span> Austrian Embassy in London

The Embassy of Austria in London is the diplomatic mission of the Republic of Austria in the United Kingdom. The embassy is located at 18 Belgrave Mews West in the Belgravia area of London, and the residence of the ambassador is located at 18 Belgrave Square.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embassy of Belgium, London</span> Diplomatic mission

The Embassy of Belgium in London is Belgium's diplomatic mission to the United Kingdom. It is located at 17 Grosvenor Crescent, having moved from its historical location in Eaton Square in 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embassy of Portugal, London</span> Diplomatic mission

The Embassy of Portugal in London is the diplomatic mission of Portugal in the United Kingdom. The embassy is located on Belgrave Square, Belgravia, in two separate buildings, and there is also a Portuguese consulate in Portland Place, Fitzrovia.

Oceanic-class ocean liner Iron-hulled ocean liner class

The Oceanic class were a group of six ocean liners built by Harland and Wolff at Belfast, for the White Star Line, for the transatlantic service. They were the company's first generation of steamships to serve the North Atlantic passenger trade, entering service between 1871 and 1872.

References

  1. ↑ "The London Diplomatic List" (PDF). 14 December 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 December 2013.
  2. ↑ "The London Diplomatic List" (PDF). 14 December 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 December 2013.
  3. ↑ Historic England, "Spanish Embassy (1218320)", National Heritage List for England , retrieved 2 March 2016
  4. ↑ "Parish History". SJSP. 24 October 2013. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  5. ↑ Dates according to Howard Colvin, A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects 1600-1840, 3rd ed., s.v. Joseph Bonomi.
  6. ↑ "Downshire House - London". www.wikimapia.org. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
  7. ↑ "Downshire House". www.encyclopaedia-titanica.org. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
  8. ↑ "Downshire House; London". www.titanic.memorial. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
  9. ↑ "A brief history". exteriores.gob.es. Retrieved 1 July 2024.


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.