History
The Cecil had quite modest beginnings in 1883 as a one storied house, the Tendril Cottage with its famed inhabitant- Rudyard Kipling. It is claimed that Rudyard Kipling frequented the house where he wrote his novels, including “Plain tales from the Hills”, inspired by Shimla.
Mohan Singh Oberoi arrived in Shimla in 1922, when after numerous owners the Cecil was bring run by John Faletti. Thus began an enduring legacy. Mohan Singh Oberoi quickly rose up the ranks and formed a strong relationship with the new manager Mr. Ernest Clarke.
Rai Bahadur Mohan Singh Oberoi acquired the Cecil as a part of the acquisition of the Associated Hotels of India in 1944. Soon, The Cecil became the address that every one wanted to be seen at. The famous Balls and Floor shows and Lola, the dancer added to the charm of the hotel.
The hotel was closed in 1984 for extensive renovation and refurbishment and was reopened in 1997, restored to a style befitting its past glory, worthy of the Oberoi’s present.
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Famous quotes containing the word history:
“Every generation rewrites the past. In easy times history is more or less of an ornamental art, but in times of danger we are driven to the written record by a pressing need to find answers to the riddles of today.... In times of change and danger when there is a quicksand of fear under men’s reasoning, a sense of continuity with generations gone before can stretch like a lifeline across the scary present and get us past that idiot delusion of the exceptional Now that blocks good thinking.”
—John Dos Passos (1896–1970)
“Like their personal lives, women’s history is fragmented, interrupted; a shadow history of human beings whose existence has been shaped by the efforts and the demands of others.”
—Elizabeth Janeway (b. 1913)
“The history of reform is always identical; it is the comparison of the idea with the fact. Our modes of living are not agreeable to our imagination. We suspect they are unworthy. We arraign our daily employments.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)