Wimbourne House

[1] Henry Pelham, Prime Minister between 1743 and 1754, hired William Kent to design the house located at 22 Arlington Street in two phases.

Leveson-Gower resided at 22 Arlington while the house he was having built by architect Sir William Chambers was being completed, and he was followed by another Prime Minister, Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton.

Upon his death, the house passed to his widow, who sold it via auction in 1867 to Sir Ivor Bertie Guest, who was engaged to Lady Cornelia Spencer-Churchill, daughter of the 7th Duke of Marlborough.

[10] Wimbourne House had been greatly expanded during the 18th and 19th centuries, but most of these additions were removed in the 1970s,[10][4] and an effort to restore the "Kentian character" of the building was made.

[2] In 2000, the architectural firm of Ettwein Bridges Architects was hired to create rooms as function suites for the adjacent Mewès & Davis's Louis XVI style Ritz Hotel.

After extensive study to try to preserve the elements and special characters of both of the heritage sites, an area was identified to connect the two buildings, which was filled with the inner-working machinery of the hotel.

Drawing inspiration from the existing ceilings, his features include painted faux wood panelling and air conditioning units hidden inside chests of drawers.