The Sarkies Brothers , Martin (1852–1912), Tigran (1861–1912), Aviet (1862–1923), and Arshak (1868–1931), were a group of brothers of Armenian ethnicity best known for founding a chain of luxury hotels throughout Southeast Asia . The brothers were born in Isfahan , Iran .
8-725: The 23-year-old Tigran opened the Eastern Hotel (now Eastern & Oriental Hotel) in George Town , Penang on 15 April 1884. The brothers went on to found several hotels in the region, including the Raffles Hotel in Singapore , and the Strand Hotel in Rangoon (Yangon). Arshak, the last of the brothers, died on January 9, 1931. On June 10 of the same year, a bankruptcy case was filed against
16-399: A decision was made by the management to temporarily close down the hotel for major reconstruction. Although the front wing of the hotel, which would later be known as the "Heritage Wing", received restoration work, the rest of the hotel, including the easternmost 1929 "New Wing", was either gutted and refurbished or completely reconstructed in the style of the hotel's older architectural design;
24-618: Is named after the brothers. Arathoon's descendants continue to reside in Singapore. In chronological order, the hotels founded or run by the brothers were: In addition, Kartika Wijaya (originally Jambe Dawe ) in Batu , Java , Indonesia was built in 1891 originally as a vacation villa for the Sarkies, and was later turned into a hotel. The brothers' cousin Arathoon Sarkies (1882–1932) also managed
32-557: The Adelphi Hotel in Singapore from 1903 to 1908, while Hotel Majapahit (as Hotel Oranje ) in Surabaya , Indonesia was founded in 1910 by Martin's son Lucas Martin Sarkies (1876–1941), which stayed in the hands of their descendants until 1969. Eastern %26 Oriental Hotel The Eastern & Oriental Hotel (popularly known as E&O Hotel ) is a British colonial-style luxury hotel in George Town , Penang , Malaysia that
40-514: The Raffles Hotel, eventually resulting in the Sarkies family losing control of their hotels. The Sarkies name still lives on in Singapore through the namesake Sarkies Road. However, the road was named after Regina Sarkies (née Carapiet), the wife of Arathoon Sarkies, who was a cousin of the brothers and fellow hotelier. In addition, Sarkies Corner, the coffee shop in the Eastern & Oriental Hotel,
48-448: The brand led the brothers to establish sister hotels, the Raffles Hotel in Singapore in 1887 and the Strand Hotel in Rangoon , Burma , in 1901. Under the management of the brothers the E & O hotel would receive several major expansion works, culminating to the completion of the present hotel complex in 1929. Having failed to adapt to competition following World War II , the hotel underwent several decades of decline, and in 1996
56-406: The mid-century E&O shopping annexe, which occupied the site of the original 1884 Eastern Hotel building, was also completely leveled for the new central wing of the hotel, which prominently features faux-cast iron-framed verandahs similar in style to those at the Raffles Hotel. Under its new owner, The E&O Group , the hotel was reopened to the public in 2001. In 2013, the old Victory Annex
64-613: Was established in 1885 by the Sarkies Brothers . The sea-fronting hotel is known for its luxurious accommodation and restaurants. The Eastern Hotel was founded by the Sarkies Brothers in 1884. Within one year, the hotel had prospered and surged in popularity such that the brothers established another hotel, the Oriental Hotel, in 1885, leading to a merger of both hotels into the Eastern & Oriental Hotel in 1889. The success of
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