Beit Hall Explained

Beit Hall, forming part of Beit Quadrangle, is a hall of residence and one of Imperial College London's oldest and most historic buildings. Beit Hall is named after Alfred Beit and is located on Prince Consort Road, next to the Royal Albert Hall in London. The north side of the quadrangle forms the Union Building, home to Imperial College Union, and is not part of Beit Hall. The Union Building was the site of the first Queen concert, and has hosted events associated with the BBC Proms.^{[1] [2] [3]}

Beit Hall was built on architect Aston Webb's designs to accommodate Imperial College students. Parts of the building were originally used for academic purposes: ^[4]

• Students' Union built in 1910–11
• East side of the quadrangle: botany and plant pathology and physiology built in 1912–14
• West side: biochemistry built in 1921–23
• North/west side end: hostel built in 1925–26
• South side of the quad, fronting Prince Consort Road: Beit Building built 1930–31

It accommodates 330 students.^[5] During term-time, Beit Hall functions as student halls, whilst during the remaining 14 weeks Beit becomes a conference centre and hotel.^{[6] [7]} On the front façade is a relief of the coat of arms of Imperial College.^[8]

Books left by students in Beit were collected into a circulation library of around 400 items for personal reading in the Union Building in the mid-20th century. This later became the Haldane Library and is now part of the main library collection.^{[9] [10]}

External links

• Beit Hall Accommodation site
• Imperial College Union site
• Imperial Venus site

51.5°N -0.178°W

Notes and References

1. Web site: Queen: Remembering their "first proper gig" 50 years on. 28 Dec 2020. 18 Jul 2020.
2. News: The first virtual reality BBC Prom is a musical postcard from the First World War. Evening Standard. 28 Dec 2020. 8 Aug 2018.
3. News: First ever Virtual Reality BBC Prom will immerse audiences in First World War trenches. 19 Feb 2020. 8 Aug 2018.
4. Web site: Beit Quadrangle, London. bradbrookconsulting.com.
5. From an article originally published in IC Reporter, the staff newspaper of Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, October 2001 issue read on line
6. http://www.imperial.ac.uk/conferences/index.asp?page_id=4 Official Imperial College conferences page
7. http://www.travelstay.com/pages/BeitHall.htm Beit Hall, London
8. Web site: The College Crest, About Imperial. 3 Jan 2021.
9. Book: Gay, Hannah. The History of Imperial College London, 1907-2007. 418. 2007. Imperial College Press. 9781860947087.
10. Web site: Libraries of Imperial College. 23 November 2019. October 2000. Archives in London and the M25 Area.