American Colony Hotel

Infobox hotel
hotel_name = American Colony Hotel

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image_width =200px
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location =Jerusalem
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opening_date =1902
closing_date =
developer =Ustinov
architect =
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owner =
number_of_restaurants =
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website = [http://www.americancolony.com www.americancolony.com]
footnotes =The American Colony Hotel is a luxury hotel located in a historic building in East Jerusalem which previously housed the utopian American-Swedish community known as the American Colony.

History

The building was originally owned by Rabbah Daoud Amin Effendi al-Husseini, who lived there with his harem of four wives. Soon after his fourth marriage, al-Husseini died. In 1895, the building was sold to a group of messianic Christians who arrived in Jerusalem in 1881 and set up a commune. Their leader was Horatio Spafford, a lawyer from Chicago and his wife, Anna. In 1896, the Americans were joined by two groups of Swedish settlers. [ "Street People", Helga Dudman, Carta, Jerusalem, 1982, pp. 83-104.] This Christian utopian society became known as the American Colony. [http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=994589 The Englishwoman who ran an oasis in the heart of the conflict - Haaretz - Israel News ] ] In 1902, a Jaffa hotelier named Ustinov (grandfather of the British actor Peter Ustinov) was looking for a place to put up guests visiting Jerusalem and asked the Spaffords to accommodate them. Soon after, the building was turned into a hotel. [http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/199704/hotels.with.a.history.htm Saudi Aramco World : Hotels With a History ] ]

Today

Today the American Colony Hotel calls itself an oasis of neutrality in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. [ [http://www.americancolony.com Jerusalem Hotels | American Colony Hotel Jerusalem | Introduction ] ] It is still owned by descendants of the Spaffords. A grandson, Horatio Vester, was the manager until he retired in 1980. [ Unusual hotels of the world http://www.unusualhotelsoftheworld.com/HotelDetails.aspx?HotelID=339&sender=search&keyword=&location=&budget=&type=] His wife, Valentine, lived in the hotel until her death in June 2008. [ [http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/993649.html Valentine Vester, owner of famed American Colony hotel in J'lem, dies at 96 - Haaretz - Israel News ] ] Since 1980, the hotel has been run by a Swiss company. The effendi's original bedroom is called "Room One." In 1995, Peter Ustinov visited the hotel and planted a palm tree in the courtyard.

Famous guests

The American Colony Hotel, on the "seamline" between east and west Jerusalem, is the preferred hotel of many diplomats, politicians and foreign correspondents. Its famous guests include Leon Uris, Lawrence of Arabia, Bob Dylan, Tony Blair and John le Carre. Carre wrote one of his books at the hotel.

References

ee also

*American Colony

External links

* [http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20041002.SLEEPOVER02/TPStory/specialTravel Globe and Mail article]