Hotspur Limited was established in 1924 Frederick Kern (known as F.E.L.K.) (1868-1958) and Rob Kern (1907-1977). The family originally came from Germany, and Frederick became a director of the Paris based firm Carlheim & Beaumartz, famous for period rooms and interior decoration, which at the time had a branch in London. He remained with Carlheim until 1914, when he became a director of Monday, Kern and Herbert, 27 Soho Square, London, which made reproduction antique furniture. Hotspur was initially established at 16 Buckingham Palace Road, but within a few years had moved to the 18th century house of the writer William Hazlitt (1778-1830), at 6 Frith Street, Soho, London. Major clients at the time included the American collector William Randolph Hearst. Rob was one of the founders of the Grosvenor House Antiques Fair in 1934.
Hotspur moved in 1939 to a 17th century house in Richmond, Surrey – Streatham Lodge. On 17th February 1940 an exhibition was held at Streatham Lodge in aid of Norwegian refugees, which was attended by Her Majesty Queen Mary. In 1951 Hotspur moved to 14 Lowndes Street, London, and Robin Kern joined the firm in 1956, followed by his brother, Brian, in 1963.
Hotspur sold to many influential collectors, including Samuel Messer, Judge Untermeyer and Noel Terry, whose collections now reside at Fairfax House in York; and many public museums, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, The Huntington in California, and The Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
In June 1977 both Rob and his wife Betty died in a car accident. The directors of the firm in 1967 were R.A. Kern, B.C. Keates, R.A.S. Kern and B.S. Kern.
