Кениядағы ағаш үстіндегі қонақ үй: Тарихы мен маңызы

Building in Kenya

Treetops Hotel was a hotel in Aberdare National Park in Kenya 10 mile (16 km) from the township of Nyeri, above sea level on the Aberdare Range and in sight of Mount Kenya. First opened in November 1932 by Eric Sherbrooke Walker, it was built into the tops of the trees of Aberdare National Park as a treehouse, offering the guests a close view of the local wildlife. The idea was to provide a machan (hunting platform on a tree during shikar in India) experience in relative safety and comfort. From the original modest two room tree house built into the top of a tree, it grew into a 35 room hotel. The original structure was replaced by a larger structure, also in the tree, but additionally supported on legs; this was burnt down by the Kenya Land and Freedom Army (KLFA) during the 1954 Mau Mau Uprising. The hotel was rebuilt near the same waterhole and became fashionable for wealthy clientele. It included an observation lounges and ground level photographic hides from which guests could observe the local wildlife at the nearby waterholes. The hotel closed in October 2021. Treetops is where Elizabeth II (then Princess Elizabeth) was staying in 1952 when she acceded to the thrones of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, upon the death of her father, King George VI.

The original idea of Major Eric Sherbrooke Walker, who owned land in the Aberdare Range, was to build a treehouse for his wife Lady Bettie. The idea grew, and in 1932 the couple oversaw the construction of a two room treehouse in a huge 300 year old fig tree well away from Nyeri itself; this was intended as an adjunct facility to the Outspan Hotel in Nyeri, which they had also built and owned.

The visit of Princess Elizabeth and her husband Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh to Kenya in 1952 included a visit to Treetops as personal guests of the Walkers. The visit cemented the fame of the Treetops. The princess' stay, which coincided with the death of her father King George VI on the night of 5–6 February 1952, and consequently her succession to the throne, involved the Treetops in the worldwide publicity surrounding these events. The same night, before the event was known, Sir Horace Hearne, then Chief Justice of Kenya, had escorted the princess and her husband, Prince Philip, to a state dinner at Treetops. After word of George VI's death reached the new Queen the following daywhen she had already left Treetops and was by this time at Sagana Lodgeshe returned immediately to Britain.</blockquote>
Corbett, the resident "hunter" at Treetops, also wrote about the visit in his final book Tree Tops, which was published by the Oxford University Press in October 1955, six months after Corbett's death (19 April 1955). Archival footage of the royal visit has also survived. Queen Elizabeth II made a return visit in 1983.

The Mau Mau Uprising, which began as a protest in 1951 and 1952 of British control in the Kikuyu homeland quickly became a violent uprising. It was suppressed by the British over the period 1953–1954. In 1953, the Aberdare forest provided refuge to many hundreds of Mau Mau rebels, led by Dedan Kimathi. In June 1953, the entire region was declared off limits for Africans, and orders to shoot Africans on sight were set in place. A major military operation in late 1953 ("Operation Blitz") left 125 guerillas dead. This was followed in January 1954 by "Operation Hammer", led by the King's African Rifles, which however failed to encounter many guerillas as most had already left the area. As a protest against the shoot on sight orders, and repeated military action, Mau Mau rebels burnt down the Treetops Hotel (which acted as a lookout for the King's African Rifles) on 27 May 1954 in a contentious military action or act of terror. The incident took place as the uprising was slowly being brought to an end by British military action.

Treetops was rebuilt in a nearby chestnut tree overlooking the same waterhole and salt lick near the elephant migration pathway to Mount Kenya. The facility became so popular that rising demand required a new, larger structure, and this was supported further by poles as well as the tree itself. Further demand required the Walkers to accommodate more visitors. Treetops had another level added, and was reinforced see picture below right. Its capacity was increased to four rooms, including one for a resident hunter. Visitors could observe the wildlife from the top deck, the viewing windows in the communal space, or from ground level hides. They could also take motor tours from the Treetops. While an overnight destination, only overnight luggage was allowed, with visitors being driven in from the Outspan Hotel for the night.

Famous personalities who have visited the Treetops include Charlie Chaplin, Joan Crawford and Lord Mountbatten, and a return visit by Elizabeth II in 1983. Lord Baden Powell, founder of the Boy Scouts movement, was a resident of Nyeri and a frequent visitor to Treetops. In 1938, he commissioned a cottage on the grounds of The Outspan Hotel, which he named Paxtu. The final resting place of Lord and Lady Baden Powell is located nearby. Jim Corbett, hunter, conservationist, and author, who accompanied Elizabeth II during her stay at Treetops on 6 February 1952, lived in the same house as Baden Powell, and is buried nearby, next to Lord Baden Powell and his wife Olave, Lady Baden Powell. Author Willard Price visited while researching his novel Safari Adventure. Paul McCartney and Beatles roadie Mal Evans stayed at the hotel while on safari in 1966. Returning from the safari trip, McCartney stated that he came up with the concept of "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" on the flight from Nairobi to London.