Luxury Glasgow hotel pays homage to historic city square location

With 9,000 square metres of Harris Tweed for its interiors - the biggest design order of the fabric since the QE2 was built in 1967 - no expense was spared in converting the magnificent Georgian building, which was the starting point for the prestigious 1955 Monte Carlo Rally, into one of Glasgow’s most luxurious hotels - the only one with an AA five-star accreditation. 

The opening of the hotel allowed the historic Blythswood Square - where Glasgow's wealthy merchants and shipping magnates built their homes - to once again lay claim to being one of the city’s most desirable addresses. 

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In her 2023 book 'Fragments of Glasgow', Rosalie Menon, architect and senior lecturer at the renowned Mackintosh School of Architecture, The Glasgow School of Art's dedicated architecture school, examines Victorian era buildings in the city, and explores how conservation, creativity and investment has repurposed these architectural treasures for the 21st century.  

Ms Menon believes Blythswood Square's status as one the most fashionable places to be for Glaswegians in its Victorian heyday was well-earned.

She said: "Close to Blythswood Square is Sauchiehall Street, it was a wonderful avenue of retail emporiums, drapers, and department stores during the late Victorian era. Blythswood was an important residential area and had many community facilities nearby including several churches and schools. Some of the most impressive ecclesiastical buildings built in a melange of classical styles are located in close vicinity to Blythswood Square including St Judes Church, 1839 (now Malmaison) built in an Graeco- Egyptian style; Alexander Thomson’s stunning St Vincent Street Church, 1859; TL Watson’s Adelaide Place Church built in an Italianate style in 1877, and John Burnet’s temple-fronted Elgin Place Congregational Church, 1856 (formerly the blacked church converted to Follie’s nightclub and later tragically gutted by fire in 2004).

“In the Victorian era, wealthy residents from Blythswood soon started to send their children to the newly established private school, Glasgow Academy on nearby Elmbank Street. Again, no expense was spared in this impressive Italian Renaissance building by architect Charles Wilson in 1848. The area has changed so dramatically as a commercial area there has been a preference for purpose-built office accommodation and many of these spectacular buildings are awaiting repurposing for 21st Century needs.”

Ms Menon also feels that the 200-year-old square is overlooked and underappreciated today as one of Glasgow’s most historic (green) spaces.

She said: “Glasgow has many parks and green spaces, many of which were built during the Victorian Era for the health and wellbeing of the city’s residents. However, there are very few green spaces within Glasgow's grid-iron streetscape and whilst this historic green space was initially developed as a gated pleasure garden for the residents of Blythswood Square, over time it had been used as public space and a welcome retreat for office workers once the residential townhouses were converted to offices. These well-maintained gardens are unfortunately not so accessible to the public now.”

Blythswood Square has been a prestigious address since the early 19th century

Meanwhile, in respect of the hotel, Ms Menon believes it is illustrative of the flexibility afforded by Glasgow's built heritage.

She told The Herald: “The building had been neglected for some time after the RAC Club moved out, so it is always wonderful when they have a ‘glow up’ and brought back to life. 

“The private investment brought by the Blythswood Hotel owners allowed the eastern edge of the square to recapture some of the opulence of the architect James Miller's Royal Scottish Automobile Club scheme completed in 1926 retaining the stunning façade onto the square.

“It's another example of how adaptive Glasgow's stone buildings can be - initially from a series of residential townhouses to the creation of a private club headquarters to then a luxury hotel.”

Two centuries on from Blythswood Square's transformation from a pretty much unused barren area of land between the old town and the more fertile agricultural lands along the River Kelvin into a new focal point of the city, Daniel Moran, general manager of Kimpton Blythswood Square, believes the legacy and rich history of the square remain “woven into the fabric” of the hotel which overlooks it. 

He told The Herald: “When travelling to Glasgow, one of the most striking things is the outstanding architecture. Our guests thoroughly enjoy getting to stay in a piece of history, with views of the serene gardens and square itself. Many of the buildings in the city tell a story, and those in and around Blythswood Square speak to that.

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“Our guests never tire of our surroundings, and we’re proud to be a part of a location steeped in history. From the Royal Scottish Automobile Club established in 1901 to the Monte Carlo Rally in the 1950s and ‘60s, Blythswood Square has seen it all. 

“The square has seen everything from events, festivals and markets that continue to bring the community together and its iconic green space has captivated the hearts and minds of Glaswegians for centuries. 

“From being Glasgow’s first suburb, to becoming a hub of activity and business central to our city’s economic and cultural health in the 21st century, it’s important to remember Blythswood Square is not just a witness to the past – it’s a vibrant and important part of Glasgow’s present and future.”