The Windsor Hotel - Melbourne

Location: Spring St, Melbourne
Opened: December, 1883

It was Shipping magnate George Nipper who commissioned Architect Charles Webb to build the hotel under the original name of The Grand. When Nipper sold the the hotel to James Munro and James Balfour, they set about expanding the hotel, doubling the size and adding the grand ballroom and staircase.

During the Temperance movement in the 1880's, the hotel was converted to a Coffee Palace. Liquor was banned during this period. It was 1897 before the license was regained and the hotel was renamed the Grand Hotel. In 1898, the hotel became part of Australian history when it was the venue for the drafting of Australia's constitution.

The current name, The Windsor Hotel, was given in 1920 in honour of the British royal family.

In the 1970's the Windsor was under the threat of demolition. A group of new hotels had substantially eaten into its market share and it was becoming run-down. The State Government, lead by Rupert Hamer, purchased the building and in 1980 it as leased to the Oberoi Group who ensured its survival. In 2005, the Halim family from Indonesia purchased the hotel, with a controversial redevelopment set to start in late 2014.