2-634-954 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

Servants' fire brigade at the Hotel Cecil, London, c1903 (1903). The Hotel Cecil was built between 1890 and 1896 between the Thames Embankment and the Strand. Designed by architects Perry & Reed in a 'Wrenaissance' style, upon its opening the hotel was the largest in Europe with more than 800 rooms. The hotel was requisitioned for the war effort in 1917. The Royal Air Force was formed and had its first headquarters in the former hotel on 1 April 1918. From Living London, Vol. II, by George R. Sims. [Cassell and Company, Limited, London, Paris, New York & Melbourne, 1903]