Anna Michelle Behr: Understanding the English Country House Hotel: The First Country House Hotel Conversions in the mid-Nineteenth Century until the Second World War

Supervisor: Prof Timothy Brittain-Catlin

Research overview:

Michelle Behr’s research focuses on the first English country house hotel conversions in the mid-nineteenth century until the Second World War.  Rather than being a post-Second World War phenomenon, as popularly believed, there is evidence this  new type of hotel emerged in the mid-to late nineteenth century and rose in ever-increasing popularity during the interwar years.  Her research will aim to contribute a new body of scholarship for these often lesser-known big houses in the countryside. The purpose is to understand the architectural, interior and setting challenges and opportunities posed.  While the range of conversion-led changes and new building works varied from property to property, patterns emerge that reflect the influence of country houses, purpose-built urban hotels and advances in technology that all led to a distinctly new building typology.  Supply and demand as well as the rise in leisure and rural tourism were significant contributors to the rise in country house hotels. The history of the English country house hotel and its architecture has received relatively little attention from architectural historians, her research aims to help address that gap and provide a deeper understanding for this complex building type.  

Biography:

Michelle Behr began her PhD in October 2023.  She holds a Master of Science in Real Estate Development from New York University and a Master of Studies in Building History from University of Cambridge.  Prior to Cambridge, she worked as Director of Design and Development at Belmond, a luxury hospitality company based in London. During her time in NYC she worked for luxury hospitality firms and started her career at Skidmore, Owings and Merrill.    Michelle is also a Trustee at St Osyth Priory and Parish Trust and volunteers with the London based heritage charities The Georgian Group and SAVE Britain’s Heritage.