Royal Pavilion & Garden

Useful Information

Location:	4/5 Pavilion Buildings, Brighton and Hove, Brighton BN1 1EE, United Kingdom. (50.82244, -0.13798)
Open:	07-MAY to 20-AUG Tue 10:30. Online booking required. [2024]
Fee:	Adults GBP 30, Members GBP 15, Annual Ticket Holders GBP 15. [2024]
Classification:	Cellar World War II Bunker
Light:	Incandescent
Dimension:
Guided tours:	D=1 h.
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Royal Pavilion & Garden, Royal Pavilion Gardens, Brighton BN1 1FN, Tel: +44-1273-071273. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

1787 to 1823	Royal Pavilion built in stages by King George IV.
1821	tunnel constructed at a cost of GBP 1,783.
1837	extension by King William IV for his wife.
1850	sold to the town of Brighton for over GBP 50,000.
1851	opened to the public.
1914	converted into a hospital.
1944	cellars used as air raid shelter.

Description

The Basement & Tunnel Tour is offered at the Royal Pavilion & Garden in summer, from MAY to AUG. The Royal Pavilion in Brighton was constructed as the seaside pleasure palace of King George IV. In the mid 1780s George, Prince of Wales, rented a small lodging house overlooking a fashionable promenade in Brighton. At this time the fishing town was developing to an established seaside retreat for the rich and famous, mostly because it was rather close to London and easy to reach. George was sent to Brighton by his physicians to benefit from the climate and the therapeutic health-giving sea water. He hired architect Henry Holland to transform his Brighton lodging house into a modest villa which became known as the Marine Pavilion. After he was sworn in as Prince Regent in 1811, the building was not suitable for the large social events any more. In 1815, George commissioned John Nash to extend it. George became king in 1820, and as a result he made only two further visits. He died young in 1830 and was succeeded by his younger brother, William IV.

The oriental palace is a collection of minarets, domes and pinnacles, with opulent decoration and exquisite furnishings. William IV added buildings for his wife, but they have been demolished later. After he died in 1837, again a short reign, he was succeeded on the throne by his niece Victoria. She was not happy with the palace, it was too extravagant and too small, so she sold it to the town of Brighton for over GBP 50,000 in 1850. The first idea was to demolish it, but Lewis Slight, Clerk to the Town Commissioners, persuade them of the economic and symbolic importance of the former palace. It was redecorated and opened to the public, and it was used for different kinds of events. From 1851 to the 1920s, the admission fee to the Royal Pavilion was sixpence.

However, the Basement & Tunnel Tour is dedicated to the underground part of the building. Most of those tunnels were used by the servants, and there was an underground tunnel to George’s royal stables and riding school. The tunnels connect the Pavilion under the Gardens with the Museum and Art Gallery basement. According to local lore, the tunnels were built for George VI, so he could visit his mistress, Maria Fitzherbert. She lived nearby and is today commemorated with a pub bearing her name. However, the tunnel connects the palace with the former stables, and it was a way for George VI to cross his estate without being seen. It was built in a time when he was rather unpopular, obviously he wanted to avoid the public. Later it was used to install all kinds of water pipes and other infrastructure.

A part of the basement was converted into an air raid shelter during World War II. These areas of the building are normally not open to the public. The tours are very popular and often sold out, online booking is mandatory.