The Baden Powell or the BP House as it is commonly referred to, is a scouting hostel and conference centre in South Kensington, London that was constructed as a memorial to the founding father of the scouting movement Lord Baden Powell. The building which belongs to the Scouts Association holds a number of important memorabilia of Lord Baden Powell as well as the scouting movement, among them is the original painting of Baden Powell by David Jagger, a granite sculpture by Dan Potter and Powell’s last message to scouts.

The initiative to build the BP House was taken in 1942 by then incumbent World Scout Chief and later in 1953 a steering committee of the Scouts Association led by the London Mayor proposed to build a hostel cum conference hall for scouts. A property that was destroyed in the Nazi bombing of London during the Second World War at Cromwell Road in Queens Gate was allocated for this purpose.

A major part of the funding came as donations and collections by scouts from all over the world and in 1959 the foundation stone was laid by Lady Baden Powell who was also the Chief Guide at the time. Two years later in 1961 the building was ceremonially declared open by the Queen and a black marble panel with gold lettering was erected on the balcony of the building in commemoration of the event.

The building is known to reflect the modern architectural style, the chief architect Ralph Tubbs is said to have followed the trend set by Swiss architect Le Corbusier in the 1920’s, the style became extremely popular in the late 50’s.The six storied building contains a sandwich, a Star Bucks outlet and an outdoor garden in addition to being a 180 room hostel and a conference hall.

Located in South Kensington tourists to this area can also visit a number of other architectural and cultural delights in London. A number of hotels can be found close to these attractions including the Millennium Bailey’s Hotel a London luxury hotel.

Source: Travelbuzz