A restaurant where a king entertained some of his many mistresses is now protected for future generations after it was donated to the National Trust.
Rules, in Covent Garden, is the oldest restaurant in the country and has been entertaining diners since the end of the 18th century.
Opened in the reign of King George III, it became a favourite of his great grandson, Edward VII, who used to wine and dine his mistresses there.
Edward VII was notorious for his affairs and had a string of liaisons throughout his marriage to Queen Alexandra.
Among his paramours was the actress Lily Langtry as well as society hostesshas been given to the charity by its current owner, J-P Mayhew.
The donation includes the freehold of building which houses the restaurant as well as the annual rent from the eatery itself.
The building is at Maiden Lane in Covent Garden. Rules is an oyster bar and has been popular with high society since opening in 1798.
Other guests in recent times include Harrison Ford and Madonna while Charlie Chaplin and Charles Dickens have also eaten there.
The history of the restaurant will be kept safe for posterity, too, as the donation also includes old signs and menus as well as visitor’s books where royalty and celebrities signed.
As the donation was announced, Hilary McGrady, the director-general of the National Trust, said ”Mr Mayhew’s extraordinary generosity, and the care he has poured into Rules over many decades, mean this beloved place has a future measured not in years but generations.”
She added ”This place is an outstanding piece of living history, with its corners where kings dined and writers and politicians plotted, and the traditions it kept alive through wars and upheaval.”
JP Mayhew said ”The Trust will protect this place in a way that no-one else could, safeguarding its bricks and mortar, its famous interior and its invisible atmosphere, too. I am grateful to them for believing in this idea and for protecting this building and two centuries’ worth of stories for people to enjoy forever.”
Rules will be the first historic restaurant to be housed in a property belonging to the National Trust.
