Historic Building Details

HB Ref No:
HB26/27/030

Address :
'The Regency Hotel and Metro Brasserie' 13 Lower Crescent Belfast Co Antrim BT7 1NR

Townland:
Malone Lower

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Survey 2:
Record Only

Date of Listing:

Date of De-listing:

Current Use:
Hotel

Former Use
House

Conservation Area:
Yes

Industrial Archaeology:
No

Vernacular:
No

Thatched:
No

Monument:
No

Derelict:
No

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OS Map No:
147/1

IG Ref:
J3364 7305

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Owner Category

Commercial

Exterior Description And Setting

Large, double fronted four storey French Mannerist style town house of 1874-75, with stucco façade with prominent window mouldings and quoins, now converted to a hotel. The property was originally three storey with an attic, but the attic level was heightened in brick c.1965, giving the building its present flat roof and ‘block’-like appearance. To the rear there is a large two and half storey hipped roof return, which evidence suggests originally housed a dancing academy. The property is set on the corner of Lower Crescent and Botanic Avenue. The front elevation is (almost) symmetrical and faces roughly S. To the centre of the ground floor is the main entrance. This consists of a panelled and glazed double door with a segmental arched fanlight, the whole ensemble encased with a moulded surround with decorative keystone. The doorway is flanked by prominent pilasters with tall bases. These pilasters are topped with curved brackets which support a cornice-like hood with blocking course above. The pilasters are in turn flanked by broad quoin-like pilasters which ascend through the first and second floors (the full height of original portion of the façade). At ground floor projecting ‘period’ lanterns have been attached to these pilasters. Quoins identical to these ‘quoin-pilasters’ frame this and the E elevation. To left of the entrance are two segmental headed sash windows with Georgian-like panes (9/9) and lugged & heeled moulded surrounds with keystones. There are two identical windows to the right of the entrance. These windows are set on a plain cill course and each has a recently added cheval de fris and equally recent awning above. To the first floor are five windows. All of these windows have recent top hung frames (made to resemble sash), each has a moulded surround, and all are set on a cill course. The surrounds to the 1st, 2nd, 4th and 5th windows have lugged surrounds with a small decorative arched moulding above and brackets below cill course level, except that to the centre which has a heeled surround with segmental hood above supported on curved brackets, with decorative mouldings to the tympanum space. There are five shorter windows to the second floor with frames as first floor. All have lugged & heeled surrounds with small decorative arched panels above and all are set on a cill course. The centre window has a segmental arched head, (as opposed to the rest which are flat arched), with keystone. To the third floor (the c.1960s addition) there are three unevenly spaced windows, smaller than before with modern frames. These are set on what was the original (cornice-like) eaves course with dentillations beneath. There is a moulded string course between ground and first floors, and between first and second floors. The front façade is finished in plain painted render, apart from the third floor level which is in painted brick. The E elevation consists of the main four storey block to left and the long two and half (or two and a quarter) storey hipped roof return to centre and right. To the ground floor of the four storey section there is a pair of windows to right as ground floor front. To the second floor (directly in line with the ground floor windows) is a pair of windows, as those to right and left on first floor front. To the second floor right is a window as second floor (left and right) front. The third floor is blank. To the centre of the third floor the lower (and originally free-standing) section of the chimney stack is still visible. (With the heightening of the attic storey only the uppermost third of the chimneystacks to E and W are still freestanding). The E face of the return there are four evenly spaced segmental arched windows to the ground floor. These windows are relatively short (compared to other ground floor windows), have recent frames, moulded surrounds, with a cheval de frise to each also. To far right is a large (garage-like) flat arch doorway. To the first floor (which is set at a lower level than that of the main building), there are two widely spaced windows with lugged & heeled surrounds. These windows are filled with recent frames and ventilators. These windows are set on a cill course. Between the windows there is a projecting chimney breast with a moulded shield motif (set within a moulded quatrefoil) thereon. The chimney stack itself has been removed. To the second floor there are two wide but squat windows with recent casement frames with Georgian-like panes. To the far right of first and second floor levels of the façade is recessed (this section appears to be an addition). The whole E elevation is finished as front (though there are no quoins to the return). The short N face of the return is blank. The W face of the return is almost completely covered by a relatively recent two storey flat roofed extension, only a gabled portion to the left hand side is visible and within this is a fire escape door. The rear (N) façade of the main building is only visible at third floor level, where, to right of centre there is a fire escape door, with a window to far left and one to far right. Both windows have recent frames. This third floor level is finished in the same painted brick as the same level to the E and S. The main portion of the building is flat roofed with a broad potless chimney stack to E and to W. To the centre of this roof there is a small, single storey, flat roofed projection [?a water tank].

Architects

Hastings, William

Historical Information

Upper and Lower Crescent The selling off of much of Lord Donegall’s Belfast estate in the early to mid 19th century opened up large areas of land around the town for development. The lands to the south, along the Malone Ridge, were particularly attractive to developers and lead to the building of many the many fine late Georgian style terraces from the mid 1830s onwards, a trend accelerated by the establishment of the prestigious Queen’s College in the area in the later 1840s. These new grand terraces were occupied by Belfast’s professional and business classes, leaving their older residences in the centre of the town, which in turn were gradually turned into shops and offices. Upper Crescent was perhaps the grandest terrace development undertaken to the south of the town, an elegantly curving row of three storey dwellings in a late regency style built in 1846 by timber and shipping merchant Robert Corry. The authorship is uncertain, but Dr Paul Larmour has suggested that the hand of Charles Lanyon may have been involved. Corry himself undertook the building work and took up residence in the house to the east end, and, for the first few years of its existence, the row was known as ‘Corry’s Crescent’. To the immediate south of the Crescent, where the church and small park now are, there was a large lawn which Corry held as a garden. Shortly after this garden was laid out, however, Corry had it ploughed up and used for the cultivation of vegetables for relief of local workers suffering as a result of the Great Famine. To the north of this ran an old water course (which flowed northwards into the ‘Basin’- a reservoir east of the Dublin Road), to the east some smaller gardens (belonging to other occupants of the Crescent) and further to the east and to the north-east, ran Albion Lane, a narrow semi-rural laneway stretching from the north end of Bradbury Place to the east end of the present University Terrace. In 1852 Corry built another terrace to the north of his garden and just south of the old water course. This new development (the erroneously named Lower ‘Crescent’) was much in the same style as that to the south and was occupied by the same mix of professionals and businessmen, though by as early as 1860 the ground floors of some of the properties were used as offices. In the later 1860s a railway line was cut to the immediate north of Lower Crescent (along the line of the old water course), in 1873 the large sandstone building, (originally ladies Collegiate later Victoria College), was added to the west end of the terrace, with two houses added to the east end by the close of the decade, the most easterly of which, ‘Rivoli House’, (designed by William Hastings), originally contained a dance academy run by a Frederick Brouneau. The new railway line cut across Albion Lane and presaged the laying out of a new broader thoroughfare, ‘Botanic Avenue’. Upper Crescent also witnessed further building in the 1860s and 70s, with two large William Hastings designed properties erected to the west end in 1869, one of which, Crescent House’ (the present Bank of Ireland) also fronted on to University Road. In 1878-79 two further houses were added to this end, on the ground between those of 1869. In 1885-7 the large Presbyterian church (the present Crescent Church) was erected to plans by Glasgow architect John Bennie Wilson, on the west side of Robert Corry’s former garden, with a two storey terrace, the present ‘Crescent Gardens’, built on the site of smaller garden plots to the to east end in 1898. During the first half of the 20th century most of the properties of Upper and Lower Crescent, as well as Crescent Gardens, remained private dwellings, but by 1960 many were given over to business use others divided into flats, with the former Rivoli House (later named ‘Dreenagh House’) becoming the ‘Regency Hotel’. This trend continued and by the beginning of the 21st century none were occupied as private dwellings. In the mid 1990s three of the 1860s to 70s houses at the west end of Upper Crescent were demolished and a modern office block built in their place, whilst in 2000 the railway cutting to the south of Lower Crescent was built over, in preparation for a new development. No.13 Lower Crescent This property, originally named ‘Rivoli House’, was built in 1874-5 for a Frederick Brouneau to designs by architect William Hastings. Brouneau was a dancing master who ran a ‘dancing academy’ within the building (probably in the return). Could his gallic sounding name account for the French Mannerist appearance of the façade? In the late 1880s, or 1890s the name of the property was changed to ‘Dreenagh House’, probably by Dr John Byers, who followed Brouneau as resident. The Byers family remained there until the 1930s, when the property was acquired by an Arthur Hamilton, who reopened part of the building as a ‘School of Dancing’ once again. By 1951 their were three occupants, one which appears to have run a furniture business (presumably in the return). In the later 1950s the building was converted to a hotel (‘The Regency’). Either at this time or a few years later [?c.1960] the attic was heightened to form a fourth storey, with the return extended around the same time. In the 1980s the neighbouring property, no.12 Lower Crescent, was added to the hotel, with a restaurant stretching from the in the ground floor of the latter into the hotel itself. In the late 1990s this restaurant was converted to a public bar. References- Primary sources 1 ‘Henderson’s Belfast Directory’ [later ‘Belfast & Province of Ulster Directory’], 1849- 2 PRONI VAL/2B/7/1d Second valuation, Belfast, 1860 3 PRONI VAL/2D/7/43a Second valuation town plan of Belfast sh 43a, 1860 4 PRONI VAL/2D/7/43b Annual valuation revision town plan of Belfast, sh 43b, 1860-95 5 PRONI VAL/12B/43a/1-10 Annual valuation revision notebooks, Cromac Ward, Belfast, 1863-82 6 PRONI OS/8/30/2/43 OS town plan of Belfast, sh 43, 1871-73 7 PRONI OS/8/30/2/49 OS town plan of Belfast, sh 49, 1871-73 8 PRONI OS/8/30/3/43 OS town plan of Belfast, sh 43, 1883-84 9 PRONI OS/8/30/3/49 OS town plan of Belfast, sh 49, 1883-84 10 PRONI OS/8/30/3/49 OS town plan of Belfast, sh 49, 1894-95 Secondary sources 1 S.T. Carleton, ‘The growth of south Belfast’ (QUB MA thesis, 1967) 2 John Caughey, ‘Seize then the hour- A history of James P. Corry & Co. Ltd…’ (Belfast, 1974), pp.28-29 3 David Evans, ‘Historic buildings…Queen’s University’ (revised ed., 1980), p.11 4 Paul Larmour, ‘Belfast: An illustrated architectural guide’ (Belfast, 1987), p.12 5 Alison Jordan, ‘Margaret Byers, pioneer of women’s education…’ (QUB Inst. of Irish Studies, ?1988)

Criteria for Listing

Architectural Interest

Not listed

Historic Interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Large, much altered double fronted four storey French Mannerist style town house of 1874-75 with stucco façade with prominent window mouldings and quoins, now converted to a hotel. The property was originally three storey with an attic, but the attic level was heightened in brick c.1960s, giving the building its present flat roof and ‘block’-like appearance. To the rear there is a large two and half storey hipped roof return, which evidence suggests originally housed a dancing academy.

General Comments

Date of Survey

30 January 2002