Royal Horseguards Hotel Royal Horseguards Hotel The Royal Horseguards Hotel is a 5-star London hotel situated in the area of Whitehall. It is operated by Guoman Hotels, a subsidiary of Thistle Hotels. Whitehall Court was constructed as a block of luxury residential apartments in 1884 by the Liberal MP and property developer Jabez Balfour. The building's construction was the centrepiece of an elaborate pyramid scheme for fraud by Balfour, through the Liberator Building Society which he controlled. In 1892 the Society collapsed, leaving thousands of investors penniless. Instead of advancing money to home buyers, the Society had advanced money to property companies to
John Townsend (British politician) John Townsend (British politician) John Townsend (2 April 1819 – 22 December 1892) was a British actor and Liberal Party politician. Born in Deptford, in the south eastern suburbs of London, Townsend was the son of an auctioneer and estate agent in the neighbouring town of Greenwich. He began acting at the age of 12. In 1841 he married Sarah Mitchell, also an actor, and they had at least seven children all of whom were trained for the stage. In 1842 he took out a lease on the Theatre Royal in Richmond, specialising in Shakespearian productions. In 1852 his father