Royal Buildings South / King Edward Hotel / Chung Tin Building [1902-c.1953]

Submitted by David on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 21:10
Current condition
Demolished / No longer exists
Date completed
(Day & Month are approximate.)
Date closed / demolished
(Day, Month, & Year are approximate.)

The original Royal Building, built in two phases, ran the length of Ice House Street between Des Voeux Road C. and Chater Road. It was on the west side of the street. Part of Alexandra House now occupies this site.

This page describes the south section. For the north section, which housed the Cecil Hotel, see: http://gwulo.com/node/33451

Later place(s) at this location
Alexandra House (1st generation) [1952-1974]

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Photos that show this Place

c.1906 View over Mid-levels and Central to harbour
1906
1911 Map of Central
1911
1910s Des Voeux Road Central near Ice House Street.
1915
See more photos of this place

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Submitted by
Annelise Connell (not verified)
on
Mon, 06/15/2009 - 21:57

I've found these bits on the Internet:

King Edward Hotel - 3 Des Voeux Road (entrance on the corner of Ice House and Des Voeux - big fire in 1929)

Chung Tin Building - 5 Des Voeux Road (address from in a court case)

There was an alleyway between the King Edward Hotel and Alexandra Building. The top floor of the adjoining Savoy hotel, was gutted in the fire. (newspaper hotel fire story 11 March 1929)

In 1952 the, Alexandra Building, Royal Building and Chung Tin Building — were demolished and the 13-storey Alexandra House was erected

(Hong Kong Land 1889/1989)

Barbara Anslow writes:

[I was in Hong Kong] in late 1928 or early 1929 when the King Edward Hotel in Central caught fire.   With some other children  from the Garrison School on Garden Road, we trotted down to Central in our tiffin hour to view the scene.  The fire was out by then, but hoses were still dribbling water in the gutters.   About 7 lives were lost, we were told that some of the victims missed the safety nets held out by firemen below.

A few more notes from the newspapers, marking the fire, its reconstruction, and eventual re-opening:

  • 11 March 1929, China Mail, page 1: "The King Edward Hotel was the scene of a disastrous fire in the early hours of this morning, the outbreak being attended with loss of life, European and Chinese.
    [...]"
  • 7 August 1930, Hongkong Telegraph, page 10: "When the building which was known as the King Edward Hotel until fire devastated it in March last year emerges from the builders' hands, some three months hence, a fine structure will have evolved, which will be ranked as one of the impressive edifices of its kind in the Colony.
    [...]
    The whole of the interior structural arrangements have been reconstructed with reinforced concrete as the best means of attaining the desired immunity from fire, while careful regard has also been given to the provision of fire escapes. After consultation with Fire Department and Building authorities, it is understood their approval has been obtained for the construction of iron ladder escapes joining the verandahs of the different floors, on both the Ice House Street and Des Voeux Road frontages.
    [...]"
  • 1st April 1931, Hong Kong Daily Press, page 11: "Royal Building, which was once the King Edward Hotel, will be the new home of the Hong Kong branch of the Nederlansch Indische Handelsbank.
    The bank will move into its new quarters on the ground floor of Royal Building during the Easter holidays and will resume business after the holidays without any interruption.
    [...]"

Royal/ Chung Tin buildings

 

Inland Lot 1724, secured July 1900

Architect was Leigh & Orange

 

Phase 1 (King Edward Hotel end) completed in 1902, leased to Dhunjeebhoy Dorabjee, severely damaged by fire in March 1929

Rebuilt as office block which opened in 1931 (original façade kept), rebuilt portion renamed Chung Tin Building

 

Phase 2 completed in 1904, lower five floors leased to Lane Crawford until 1924

After 1924 building was leased as Hotel Savoy which became Hotel Cecil

 

Buildings sold to Lau Kwai Cheuk after construction in 1904 but possession regained by HK land on his death in 1936 due to unpaid HKD500,000 mortgage

 

Demolished in 1954 to build Alexandra House

 

Source: HK Land at 125