History of Torquay - Torquay's Golden Age (late 19th Century)

Torquay's Golden Age (late 19th Century)

With the town becoming increasingly popular amongst the rich and privileged of Europe it started attracting more prestigious visitors, the Russian Romanoff noble family built themselves a private holiday home in the town called the Villa Syracusa (now the Overmead Hotel) at which they would often entertain. While the Romanoff family was in residence, they entertained the Russian Royal Family at the Villa. During their absences, the villa was often let privately. In August 1864 the Prince of Wales visited the Grand Duchess Maria of Russia while she was staying at the Villa Syracusa, amongst her party staying at the villa was the Count Gregoire Stroganoff and Countess Alexandra Tolstoy, the wife of noted novelist Leo Tolstoy.

The Imperial Hotel also welcomed many famous guests during this period, such as Emperor Napoleon III of France, the Queen of the Netherlands and King Edward VII. Benjamin Disraeli was also a prominent visitor to the resort through his political career.

Growth slowed up in the 1870s and 1880s, mainly because the upper classes, for whom Torquay catered to the exclusion of all others, now began to take their summer and winter holidays abroad. Meanwhile, the adjacent parish of St. Marychurch, had taken the overflow of Torquay, and had grown from 800 people at the beginning of the century to nearly 7,000 at the end. In the same period, Cockington had been transformed, in a milder degree, from a deep country parish to a villa-strewn suburb, though the old village remained untouched. In 1870, Lawrence Palk, 1st Baron Haldon commissioned the building of a new harbour in Torquay, which made the town popular amongst yacht sailors. Whilst not as commercial as nearby Brixham, the harbour at Torquay was heavily involved in importing coal and wool from Australia, which was then sent to the mills in the North of England. The upper class nature of the resort and the huge wealth of its residents during this period was further established when Worth's Tourist Guide To Devonshire (1886) declared of Torquay "in proportion to its population the wealthiest town in England".

Edward Cardwell, 1st Viscount Cardwell, the MP who reformed the British military after the Crimean War, was a prominent resident of Torquay during his latter years and died in the town on February 15, 1886. In later years Queen Victoria reviewed the entire Royal Navy in the waters of Torbay.

During this period, Torquay attracted a number of literary talents whose works reflected their stay in the town, Charles Kingsley, author of The Water Babies and Westward Ho! (novel) lived in the Livermead region of the town. Elizabeth Barrett Browning settled in Torquay in 1838 for health reasons and during her time in the bay she wrote literary work such as De Profundis and The Cry of the Children. Rudyard Kipling lived at Rock House, Maidencombe, in 1896 following a stressful period in his life. The building is thought to have been his inspiration for his story The House Surgeon in 1909. Furthermore two classic pieces of English literature Oscar Wilde's A Woman of No Importance and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles are reported to have been created while staying in Torquay. Finally Charles Darwin completed the last sections of The Origin of Species while staying at Hesketh Crescent in the Ilsham area of Torquay.

The next few years saw development in the recreational landscape of Torquay, with the town's first sporting arena, the Recreation Ground being opened in 1888 with a rugby match between Torquay Athletic and local rivals Newton Abbot. Then in 1889 the Winter Gardens were built to provide entertainment for winter holidaymakers. Its cast-iron and glass structure could seat up to 1,000 people for the concerts held by an Italian band, and also featured three tennis courts and a bowling alley. However, the Winter Gardens were not very successful and in 1903 the building was sold to Great Yarmouth. The structure was shipped by barge from Torquay without the loss of a single pane of glass and is still in use today (including a brief period during the 1990s as a nightclub, under the management of Jim Davidson). The Victorian walls of the base are still in their original position in Torquay, and are now the walls of the bar, under the Yardley Manor Hotel on Museum Road.

Agatha Christie was born in the town on September 15, 1890, and was christened at All Saints Church, Bamfylde Rd, Torre on October 20, 1890. She based many of her novels in a thinly-veiled version of Torquay.

In 1892 two events took place which radically changed both the appearance and outlook of Torquay: through trains were introduced, and Torquay was granted Borough status by a Royal Charter, adopting the motto Salus et Felicitas (Health and Happiness). The town was now ready for expansion and to start building a new image, the healthy were encouraged to come as well as the ailing and the Victorian watering place soon transformed into a holiday resort.

In 1899 the town acquired its first professional sports team with the founding of Torquay United by a group of school leavers under the guidance of Sergeant-Major Edward Tomney. After a season of friendlies the club joined the East Devon League and moved into the Recreation Ground, their home for the next four years. They went on to join the Football League in 1927.