Angleterre Hotel and Hotel Astoria, St. Petersburg

Angleterre is a modern, luxury business-class hotel at Saint Isaac's Square in Saint Petersburg.

The first hotel on this site, a three-story structure known as Napoleon's, was established by Napoleon Bokin in 1840. The hotel was completely rebuilt in 1886鈥�89, with a fourth floor added and the interiors redone. Simultaneously, the name was changed to Hotel Angleterre, meaning 'Hotel England' in French.

Many great Russian poets, writers, and artists stayed here one time or another. Leo Tolstoy was a frequent guest. The hotel became infamous after poet Sergei Yesenin hanged himself in his suite on 28 December 1925.

While at Angleterre, it is worthwhile to visit the neighboring Hotel Astoria. Opened in 1912, it was built to host tourists visiting Russia for a huge celebration of the tercentenary of the Romanov imperial rule in May 1913. The luxurious hotel was used primarily to house guests of the royal family, and was afterwards popular with the aristocracy.

After the 1917 Revolution, Astoria accommodated members of the Communist Party. Lenin spoke from its balcony in 1919. During the Siege of Leningrad in World War II, the hotel served as a field hospital. Adolf Hitler reportedly planned to hold a victory banquet here, in the Winter Garden. He was so convinced Leningrad would fall quickly that invitations to the event were printed in advance.

Over the years, the hotel's many famous guests have included Vladimir Lenin, Isadora Duncan, Herbert G. Wells, Alexander Vertinsky, Prince Charles, Luciano Pavarotti, Madonna, Elton John, Jack Nicholson, Vladimir Putin, Alain Delon, Gina Lollobrigida, Marcello Mastroianni, Pierre Cardin, Jean Paul Gaultier, Margaret Thatcher, Jacques Chirac, Tony Blair and George W. Bush.

Writer Mikhail Bulgakov spent his honeymoon at Astoria in 1932 and is said to have written parts of "The Master and Margarita" in room 412.

Sight description based on Wikipedia.

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Sight Name: Angleterre Hotel and Hotel Astoria
Sight Location: St. Petersburg, Russia (See walking tours in St. Petersburg)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:

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