Francis Hotel - Bath, Somerset - UK Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

"The Francis Hotel is a four star hotel located in a Grade 1 listed building on the south side of Queen Square, Bath, Somerset, England. It is part of Accor's MGallery luxury boutique hotel collection.

The nine townhouses that make up the south side of Queen Square remained as individual dwellings until the late the nineteenth century.

In 1858, local builder Soloman Francis established a boarding house at No. 10 Queen Square. During the 1870s, his widow, Emily, started to buy up the adjacent properties and, by 1884 had expanded the business into Nos 6-9 and 11. In May 1884, the seven Georgian town houses were opened as the Francis Private Hotel.

In April 1942 during World War II, 24 metres (79 ft) of the hotel frontage was lost when a 500 kilograms (1,100 lb) Nazi Luftwaffe high explosive bomb landed on the east side of the square during the Bath Blitz. Casualties were low considering the devastation, with the majority of the guests and staff having taken shelter in the hotel basement.

J. Hopwood rebuilt the hotel in 1952-53, while The Beatles stayed in the hotel in 1963."

SOURCE - (visit link)

"The term Bath Blitz refers to the air raids by the German air force on the British city of Bath, Somerset, during World War II.

The city was bombed in April 1942 as part of the so-called "Baedeker raids", in which targets were chosen for their cultural and historical, rather than their strategic or military, value.

Bath was largely untouched during the Blitz, the German night bombing offensive against Britain's cities, though nearby Bristol was bombed severely throughout that period. Bath was subject to numerous air raid warnings as raiders flew overhead on their way to Bristol, but no bombs were dropped on Bath at this point.

This changed in April 1942 with the start of the Baedeker Blitz, mounted in response to a step-change in the effectiveness of the RAF's bombing offensive in March 1942, that resulted in the destruction of the city of Lübeck."

SOURCE - (visit link)

Type of Historic Marker: Plaque Age/Event Date: 04/27/1942 Give your Rating: Historical Marker Issuing Authority: Not listed Related Website: Not listed

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