The Turn of 1900s ? The Golden Age

1246年，薩伏伊公爵彼得在泰晤士河畔的一片土地上建立了薩伏伊城堡，盡管城堡在1381年農(nóng)奴起義中被付之一炬，但這個地方從此被命名為薩伏伊。1881年，出生于倫敦的天才劇院經(jīng)理人理查德·德歐萊·卡特在此建成薩伏伊劇院，上演由好友詩人吉爾伯特和作曲家沙利文創(chuàng)作的歌劇。有感于當(dāng)時美利堅大地上的新型酒店，卡特決心在倫敦建成一座劃時代的酒店，于是在1889年8月6日，耗時5年的倫敦薩伏伊酒店落成了。

這是倫敦第一家真正意義上的奢華酒店，她的全電燈照明、升降電梯、傳音筒和不間斷冷熱水供應(yīng)的豪華獨立浴室宣告著新世代的到來，引起廣泛轟動。天才的卡特還做出一項英明決定，聘請被后人譽(yù)為世界酒店之父的凱撒·里茲擔(dān)任倫敦薩伏伊的第一任總經(jīng)理，一舉奠定酒店卓越的服務(wù)品質(zhì)。不得不提的是凱撒·里茲帶來的法國精英廚師Auguste Escoffier，他為倫敦薩伏伊引入的法國高級料理毫無疑問地征服了英倫。

在上個世紀(jì)之交的倫敦，薩伏伊酒店成為了演繹歷史進(jìn)程的舞臺，也為人們帶來了一場驚世繁華夢。1890年，也就是酒店開業(yè)的第二年，奧斯卡·王爾德為其寫出名作《無足輕重的女人》的Constance Gwladys Robinson女士召集女性朋友們在倫敦薩伏伊酒店聚餐，公開爭取兩性平等，從此以后，女性們在公共場所就餐而無需丈夫陪同終于被社會廣為接受。1899年起，大畫家莫奈在倫敦薩伏伊斷斷續(xù)續(xù)住了兩年，他鐘愛房間窗前的泰晤士河美景，從同一角度畫了70多幅畫作傳于后世。1905年，美國富豪George A. Kessler舉辦了青史流芳的一場晚宴，倫敦薩伏伊的中庭被灌入深達(dá)四英尺的水，用來漂浮一艘 岡朵拉船，酒店為客人再造了一個小型威尼斯。

In 1246， Count Peter of Savoy built the Savoy Palace on land by the side of the river Thames. Though the palace was burned to the ground during the Peasant's Revolt of 1381， the name remains to the present day. In 1875， The London-born theatrical impresario Richard D'Oyly Carte built the Savoy Theatre named after the Savoy Palace site on which it was built， to stage his own productions of lyricist William Schwenk Gilbert and composer Arthur Sullivan's operas. Impressed by the new hotels in America at the time， Carte decided to build an epoch-making hotel in London. After five years of building， The Savoy hotel London opened on 6th August， 1889.

The Savoy London was the first true luxury hotel in London， its full lightings by electricity， the first electric lifts， the speaking tubes and the luxurious private bathroom with separated cold and hot water marked the coming of a new era. The genius Richard D'Oyly Carte also made a smart and profound decision to recruit César Ritz， later known as the king of hoteliers， as the first hotel manager who helped the hotel to establish a huge reputation for excellence. A name must be mentioned was Auguste Escoffier， a brilliant French chef brought by César Ritz to Savoy kitchen who introduced the English to the subtlety and delicacy of French haute cuisine.

The Savoy London was the platform of the city's history and prosperity during the turn of 1900s. In 1890， Society hostess Lady de Grey gathered a group of female contemporaries to dine at the hotel as a strike for equality， making it socially acceptable for women to gather for meals in public without their husbands. In 1899， Claude Monet took up residence at The Savoy for two months， painting his famous series of views of London and the River Thames. He returned in 1900 and 1901 to continue the work. In 1905， the American millionaire George A. Kessler hosted a \"Gondola Party\" where the central courtyard of Savoy was flooded to a depth of four feet， and scenery was erected around the walls. Costumed staff and guests re-created Venice.