EXHIBIT 4(c)

                           LASALLE HOTEL PROPERTIES

                     1998 SHARE OPTION AND INCENTIVE PLAN

                       As Amended Through March 27, 2003

     1. Purpose. The purpose of this Plan is to attract and retain qualified
key employees of, and consultants and other service providers to, LaSalle
Hotel Properties (the "Company") and its Subsidiaries (if any), to provide
such persons with appropriate incentives, and to provide an interest in the
Company to certain members of the Board. The Company has adopted the Plan
effective as of April 22, 1998 and approved by the Company's shareholders, and
unless extended by amendment in accordance with the terms of the Plan, no
Option Rights, Appreciation Rights or Restricted Shares will be granted
hereunder after the tenth anniversary of such effective date.

     2. Definitions. As used in this Plan,

        "Appreciation Right" means a right granted pursuant to Section 5 of
this Plan, including a Free-standing Appreciation Right and a Tandem
Appreciation Right.

        "Base Price" means the price to be used as the basis for determining
the Spread upon the exercise of a Free-standing Appreciation Right.

        "Board" means the Board of Trustees of the Company.

        "Code" means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time
to time.

        "Committee" means the Compensation Committee of the Board of Trustees,
as described in Section 12(a) of this Plan, or, in the absence of a
Compensation Committee, the full Board.

        "Common Shares" means (i) Common Shares of Beneficial Interest, par
value $.01 per share, of the Company and (ii) any security into which Common
Shares may be converted by reason of any transaction or event of the type
referred to in Section 8 of this Plan.

        "Date of Grant" means the date specified by the Committee on which a
grant of Option Rights or Appreciation Rights or a grant or sale of Restricted
Shares shall become effective, which shall not be earlier than the date on
which the Committee takes action with respect thereto.



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        "Free-standing Appreciation Right" means an Appreciation Right granted
pursuant to Section 5 of this Plan that is not granted in tandem with an
Option Right or similar right.

        "Incentive Stock Option" means an Option Right that is intended to
qualify as an "incentive stock option" under Section 422 of the Code or any
successor provision thereto.

        "Market Value per Share" means the fair market value of the Common
Shares as determined by the Committee from time to time.

        "Nonqualified Option" means an Option Right that is not intended to
qualify as a Tax-qualified Option.

        "Optionee" means the person so designated in an agreement evidencing
an outstanding Option Right.

        "Option Price" means the purchase price payable upon the exercise of
an Option Right.

        "Option Right" means the right to purchase Common Shares from the
Company upon the exercise of a Nonqualified Option or a Tax-qualified Option
granted pursuant to Section 4 of this Plan.

        "Participant" means a person who is selected by the Committee (or its
delegate) to receive benefits under this Plan and (i) is at that time a key
employee of, or consultant or service provider to, the Company or any
Subsidiary, or (ii) has agreed to commence serving in any such capacity.

        "Reload Option Rights" means additional Option Rights automatically
granted to an Optionee upon the exercise of Option Rights pursuant to Section
4(f) of this Plan.

        "Restricted Shares" means Common Shares granted or sold pursuant to
Section 6 of this Plan as to which neither the substantial risk of forfeiture
nor the restrictions on transfer referred to in Section 6 hereof has expired.

        "Rule 16b-3" means Rule 16b-3, as promulgated and amended from time to
time by the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934, or any successor rule to the same effect.

        "Spread" means, in the case of a Free-standing Appreciation Right, the
amount by which the Market Value per Share on the date when the Appreciation
Right is exercised exceeds the Base



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Price specified therein or, in the case of a Tandem Appreciation Right, the
amount by which the Market Value per Share on the date when the Appreciation
Right is exercised exceeds the Option Price specified in the related Option
Right.

        "Subsidiary" means a corporation, partnership, limited liability
company, joint venture, unincorporated association or other entity in which
the Company has a direct or indirect ownership or other equity interest;
provided, however, that for purposes of determining whether any person may be
a Participant for purposes of any grant of Incentive Stock Options,
"Subsidiary" means any corporation, partnership, limited liability company,
joint venture, unincorporated association or other entity in which the Company
owns or controls directly or indirectly more than 50% of the total combined
voting power represented by all classes of stock issued by such corporation at
the time of the grant.

        "Tandem Appreciation Right" means an Appreciation Right granted
pursuant to Section 5 of this Plan that is granted in tandem with an Option
Right or any similar right granted under any other plan of the Company.

        "Tax-qualified Option" means an Option Right that is intended to
qualify under particular provisions of the Code, including without limitation
an Incentive Stock Option.

     3. Shares Available under the Plan.

        (a) Subject to adjustment as provided in Section 8 of this Plan, the
number of Common Shares which may be (i) issued or transferred upon the
exercise of Option Rights or Appreciation Rights, or (ii) awarded as
Restricted Shares and released from substantial risk of forfeiture thereof,
shall not in the aggregate exceed 1.9 million Common Shares, which may be
Common Shares of original issuance or Common Shares held in treasury or a
combination thereof. For the purposes of this Section 3(a):

            (i) Upon payment in cash of the benefit provided by any award
     granted under this Plan, any Common Shares that were covered by that
     award shall again be available for issuance or transfer hereunder.

            (ii) Upon the full or partial payment of any Option Price by the
     transfer to the Company of Common Shares or upon satisfaction of tax
     withholding obligations in connection with any such exercise or any other
     payment made or benefit realized under this Plan by the transfer or
     relinquishment of Common Shares, there shall be deemed to have been
     issued



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     or transferred under this Plan only the net number of Common Shares
     actually issued or transferred by the Company less the number of
     Common Shares so transferred or relinquished.

        (b) Notwithstanding anything in Section 3(a) hereof, or elsewhere in
this Plan, to the contrary, the aggregate number of Common Shares actually
issued or transferred by the Company upon the exercise of Incentive Stock
Options shall not exceed the total number of Common Shares first specified in
Section 3(a) hereof.

        (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Plan to the contrary,
no Participant shall be granted Option Rights and Appreciation Rights, in the
aggregate, for more than 500,000 Common Shares during any calendar year,
subject to adjustment as provided in Section 8 of this Plan.

        (d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Plan to the contrary,
no Participant shall be granted Restricted Shares for more than 500,000 Common
Shares during any calendar year, subject to adjustment as provided in Section
8 of this Plan.

     4. Option Rights. The Committee may from time to time authorize grants to
Participants of options to purchase Common Shares upon such terms and
conditions as the Committee may determine in accordance with the following
provisions:

        (a) Each grant shall specify the number of Common Shares to which it
pertains.

        (b) Each grant shall specify an Option Price per Common Share, which
may be equal to or greater or less than the Market Value per Share on the Date
of Grant.

        (c) Each grant shall specify the form of consideration to be paid in
satisfaction of the Option Price and the manner of payment of such
consideration, which may include (i) cash in the form of currency or check or
other cash equivalent acceptable to the Company, (ii) nonforfeitable,
unrestricted Common Shares, which are already owned by the Optionee, (iii) any
other legal consideration that the Committee may deem appropriate, including
without limitation any form of consideration authorized under Section 4(d)
below, on such basis as the Committee may determine in accordance with this
Plan and (iv) any combination of the foregoing.

        (d) Any grant of a Nonqualified Option may provide that payment of the
Option Price may also be made in whole or in part in the form of Restricted
Shares or other Common Shares that are subject to risk of forfeiture or
restrictions on transfer. Unless otherwise determined by the Committee on or
after the Date of Grant, whenever any Option Price is paid in whole or in part
by means of any of the forms of consideration specified in this Section 4(d),
the Common Shares received by the Optionee



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upon the exercise of the Nonqualified Option shall be subject to the same
risks of forfeiture or restrictions on transfer as those that applied to the
consideration surrendered by the Optionee; provided, however, that such risks
of forfeiture and restrictions on transfer shall apply only to the same number
of Common Shares received by the Optionee as applied to the forfeitable or
restricted Common Shares surrendered by the Optionee.

        (e) Any grant may, if there is then a public market for the Common
Shares, provide for deferred payment of the Option Price from the proceeds of
sale through a broker of some or all of the Common Shares to which the
exercise relates.

        (f) Any grant may provide for the automatic grant to the Optionee of
Reload Option Rights upon the exercise of Option Rights, including Reload
Option Rights, for Common Shares or any other noncash consideration authorized
under Sections 4(c) and (d) above; provided, however, that the term of any
Reload Option Right shall not extend beyond the term of the Option Right
originally exercised.

        (g) Successive grants may be made to the same Optionee regardless of
whether any Option Rights previously granted to the Optionee remain
unexercised.

        (h) Each grant shall specify the period or periods of continuous
employment of, or continuous performance of services by, the Optionee that are
necessary before the Option Rights or installments thereof shall become
exercisable, and any grant may provide for the earlier exercise of the Option
Rights in the event of a change in control of the Company or other similar
transaction or event.

        (i) Option Rights granted pursuant to this Section 4 may be
Nonqualified Options or Tax-qualified Options or combinations thereof.

        (j) Any grant of an Option Right may provide for the payment to the
Optionee of dividend equivalents thereon in cash or Common Shares on a
current, deferred or contingent basis, or the Committee may provide that any
dividend equivalents shall be credited against the Option Price.

        (k) No Option Right granted pursuant to this Section 4 may be
exercised more than 10 years from the Date of Grant.

        (l) Each grant shall be evidenced by an agreement, which shall be
executed on behalf of the Company by any officer thereof and delivered to and
accepted by the Optionee and shall contain such terms and provisions as the
Committee may determine consistent with this Plan.



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     5. Appreciation Rights. The Committee may also authorize grants to
Participants of Appreciation Rights. An Appreciation Right shall be a right of
the Participant to receive from the Company an amount, which shall be
determined by the Committee and shall be expressed as a percentage (not
exceeding 100%) of the Spread at the time of the exercise of an Appreciation
Right. Any grant of Appreciation Rights under this Plan shall be upon such
terms and conditions as the Committee may determine in accordance with the
following provisions:

        (a) Any grant may specify that the amount payable upon the exercise of
an Appreciation Right may be paid by the Company in cash, Common Shares or any
combination thereof and may either (i) grant to the Participant or reserve to
the Committee the right to elect among those alternatives or (ii) preclude the
right of the Participant to receive and the Company to issue Common Shares or
other equity securities in lieu of cash.

        (b) Any grant may specify that the amount payable upon the exercise of
an Appreciation Right shall not exceed a maximum specified by the Committee on
the Date of Grant.

        (c) Any grant may specify (i) a waiting period or periods before
Appreciation Rights shall become exercisable and (ii) permissible dates or
periods on or during which Appreciation Rights shall be exercisable.

        (d) Any grant may specify that an Appreciation Right may be exercised
only in the event of a change in control of the Company or other similar
transaction or event.

        (e) Any grant may provide for the payment to the Participant of
dividend equivalents thereon in cash or Common Shares on a current, deferred
or contingent basis.

        (f) Each grant shall be evidenced by an agreement, which shall be
executed on behalf of the Company by any officer thereof and delivered to and
accepted by the Optionee and shall describe the subject Appreciation Rights,
identify any related Option Rights, state that the Appreciation Rights are
subject to all of the terms and conditions of this Plan and contain such other
terms and provisions as the Committee may determine consistent with this Plan.

        (g) Regarding Tandem Appreciation Rights only: Each grant shall
provide that a Tandem Appreciation Right may be exercised only (i) at a time
when the related Option Right (or any similar right granted under any other
plan of the Company) is also exercisable and the Spread is positive and (ii)
by surrender of the related Option Right (or such other right) for
cancellation.



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        (h) Regarding Free-standing Appreciation Rights only:

            (i) Each grant shall specify in respect of each Free-standing
     Appreciation Right a Base Price per Common Share, which shall be equal to
     or greater than the Market Value per Share on the Date of Grant;

            (ii) Successive grants may be made to the same Participant
     regardless of whether any Free-standing Appreciation Rights previously
     granted to the Participant remain unexercised;

            (iii) Each grant shall specify the period or periods of
     continuous employment of, or continuous performance of services by, the
     Participant that are necessary before the Free-standing Appreciation
     Rights or installments thereof shall become exercisable; and any grant
     may provide for the earlier exercise of the Free-standing Appreciation
     Rights in the event of a change in control of the Company or other
     similar transaction or event; and

            (iv) No Free-standing Appreciation Right granted under this Plan
     may be exercised more than 10 years from the Date of Grant.

     6. Restricted Shares. The Committee may also authorize grants or sales to
Participants of Restricted Shares upon such terms and conditions as the
Committee may determine in accordance with the following provisions:

        (a) Each grant or sale shall constitute an immediate transfer of the
ownership of Common Shares to the Participant in consideration of the
performance of services, entitling such Participant to dividend, voting and
other ownership rights, subject to the substantial risk of forfeiture and
restrictions on transfer hereinafter referred to.

        (b) Each grant or sale may be made without additional consideration
from the Participant or in consideration of a payment by the Participant that
is less than the Market Value per Share on the Date of Grant.

        (c) Each grant or sale shall provide that the Restricted Shares
covered thereby shall be subject to a "substantial risk of forfeiture" within
the meaning of Section 83 of the Code for a period to be determined by the
Committee on the Date of Grant, and any grant or sale may provide for the
earlier termination of such period in the event of a change in control of the
Company or other similar transaction or event.



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<PAGE>

        (d) Each grant or sale shall provide that, during the period for which
such substantial risk of forfeiture is to continue, the transferability of the
Restricted Shares shall be prohibited or restricted in the manner and to the
extent prescribed by the Committee on the Date of Grant. Such restrictions may
include without limitation rights of repurchase or first refusal in the
Company or provisions subjecting the Restricted Shares to a continuing
substantial risk of forfeiture in the hands of any transferee.

        (e) Any grant or sale may require that any or all dividends or other
distributions paid on the Restricted Shares during the period of such
restrictions be automatically sequestered and reinvested on an immediate or
deferred basis in additional Common Shares, which may be subject to the same
restrictions as the underlying award or such other restrictions as the
Committee may determine.

        (f) Each grant or sale shall be evidenced by an agreement, which shall
be executed on behalf of the Company by an officer thereof and delivered to
and accepted by the Participant and shall contain such terms and provisions as
the Committee may determine consistent with this Plan. Unless otherwise
directed by the Committee, all certificates representing Restricted Shares,
together with a stock power that shall be endorsed in blank by the Participant
with respect to the Restricted Shares, shall be held in custody by the Company
until all restrictions thereon lapse.

     7. Transferability.

        (a) No Option Right, Appreciation Right or other derivative security
(as that term is used in Rule 16b-3) granted under this Plan may be
transferred by a Participant except by will or the laws of descent and
distribution. Option Rights and Appreciation Rights granted under this Plan
may not be exercised during a Participant's lifetime except by the Participant
or, in the event of the Participant's legal incapacity, by his guardian or
legal representative acting in a fiduciary capacity on behalf of the
Participant under state law and court supervision. Notwithstanding the
foregoing, the Committee, in its sole discretion, may provide for the
transferability of particular awards under this Plan so long as such
provisions will not disqualify the exemption for other awards under Rule
16b-3, if such Rule is then applicable to awards under the Plan.

        (b) Any grant made under this Plan may provide that all or any part of
the Common Shares that are to be issued or transferred by the Company upon the
exercise of Option Rights or Appreciation Rights, or are no longer subject to
the substantial risk of forfeiture and restrictions on transfer referred to in
Section 6 of this Plan, shall be subject to further restrictions upon
transfer.



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     8. Adjustments.

        (a) The Committee may make or provide for such adjustments in the
number of Common Shares covered by outstanding Option Rights, Appreciation
Rights and Restricted Shares granted hereunder, the Option Prices per Common
Share or Base Prices per Common Share applicable to any such Option Rights and
Appreciation Rights, and the kind of shares (including shares of another
issuer) covered thereby, as the Committee may in good faith determine to be
equitably required in order to prevent dilution or expansion of the rights of
Participants that otherwise would result from (i) any stock dividend, stock
split, combination of shares, recapitalization or similar change in the
capital structure of the Company or (ii) any merger, consolidation, spin-off,
spin-out, split-off, split-up, reorganization, partial or complete liquidation
or other distribution of assets, issuance of warrants or other rights to
purchase securities or any other corporate transaction or event having an
effect similar to any of the foregoing. In the event of any such transaction
or event, the Committee may provide in substitution for any or all outstanding
awards under this Plan such alternative consideration as it may in good faith
determine to be equitable under the circumstances and may require in
connection therewith the surrender of all awards so replaced. Moreover, the
Committee may on or after the Date of Grant provide in the agreement
evidencing any award under this Plan that the holder of the award may elect to
receive an equivalent award in respect of securities of the surviving entity
of any merger, consolidation or other transaction or event having a similar
effect, or the Committee may provide that the holder will automatically be
entitled to receive such an equivalent award. The Committee may also make or
provide for such adjustments in the maximum numbers of Common Shares specified
in Section 3 of this Plan as the Committee may in good faith determine to be
appropriate in order to reflect any transaction or event described in this
Section 8.

        (b) If another corporation is merged into the Company or the Company
otherwise acquires another corporation, the Committee may elect to assume
under this Plan any or all outstanding stock options or other awards granted
by such corporation under any stock option or other plan adopted by it prior
to such acquisition. Such assumptions shall be on such terms and conditions as
the Committee may determine; provided, however, that the awards as so assumed
do not contain any terms, conditions or rights that are inconsistent with the
terms of this Plan. Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, such awards
shall not be taken into account for purposes of the limitations contained in
Section 3 of this Plan.



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     9. Fractional Shares. The Company shall not be required to issue any
fractional Common Shares pursuant to this Plan. The Committee may provide for
the elimination of fractional Common Shares or for the settlement thereof in
cash.

     10. Withholding Taxes. To the extent that the Company or any Subsidiary
is required to withhold federal, state, local or foreign taxes in connection
with any payment made or benefit realized by a Participant or other person
under this Plan, and the amounts available to the Company or such Subsidiary
for the withholding are insufficient, it shall be a condition to the receipt
of any such payment or the realization of any such benefit that the
Participant or such other person make arrangements satisfactory to the Company
or such Subsidiary for payment of the balance of any taxes required to be
withheld. At the discretion of the Committee, any such arrangements may
without limitation include voluntary or mandatory relinquishment of a portion
of any such payment or benefit or the surrender of outstanding Common Shares.
The Company or such Subsidiary and any Participant or such other person may
also make similar arrangements with respect to the payment of any taxes with
respect to which withholding is not required.

     11. Certain Terminations of Employment or Service, Hardship, and Approved
Leaves of Absence. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Plan to the
contrary, in the event of the termination of employment or service by reason
of death, disability or retirement, termination of employment or service to
enter public or military service with the consent of the Company or any
Subsidiary, or leave of absence approved by the Company or such Subsidiary, or
in the event of the hardship or other special circumstances, of a Participant
who holds an Option Right or Appreciation Right that is not immediately and
fully exercisable, or any Restricted Shares as to which the substantial risk
of forfeiture or the prohibition or restriction on transfer has not lapsed,
the Committee may take any action that it deems to be equitable under the
circumstances or in the best interests of the Company or such Subsidiary,
including without limitation waiving or modifying any limitation or
requirement with respect to any award under this Plan.

     12. Administration of the Plan.

        (a) This Plan shall be administered by the Committee, which shall be
composed of not less than two members of the Board, or, in the absence of the
Committee, by the full Board. At any time that awards under the Plan are
subject to Rule 16b-3, each member of the Committee shall be a "non-employee
director" within the meaning of such Rule 16b-3. In addition, at any time that
the Company is subject to Section 162(m) of the Code, each member of the
Committee shall be an "outside



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director" within the meaning of Section 162(m) of the Code. A majority of the
Committee shall constitute a quorum, and the acts of the members of the
Committee who are present at any meeting thereof at which a quorum is present,
or acts unanimously approved by the members of the Committee in writing, shall
be the acts of the Committee.

        (b) The interpretation and construction by the Committee of any
provision of this Plan or any agreement, notification or document evidencing
the grant of Option Rights, Appreciation Rights or Restricted Shares, and any
determination by the Committee pursuant to any provision of this Plan or any
such agreement, notification or document, shall be final and conclusive. No
member of the Committee shall be liable for any such action taken or
determination made in good faith.

     13. Amendments and Other Matters.

        (a) This Plan may be amended from time to time by the Committee;
provided, however, that except as expressly authorized by this Plan, no such
amendment shall cause this Plan to cease to satisfy any applicable condition
of Rule 16b-3 or cause any award under the Plan to cease to qualify for any
applicable exception to Section 162(m) of the Code, without the further
approval of the shareholders of the Company.

        (b) With the concurrence of the affected Participant, the Committee
may cancel any agreement evidencing Option Rights or any other award granted
under this Plan. In the event of any such cancellation, the Committee may
authorize the granting of new Option Rights or other awards hereunder, which
may or may not cover the same number of Common Shares as had been covered by
the cancelled Option Rights or other award, at such Option Price, in such
manner and subject to such other terms, conditions and discretion as would
have been permitted under this Plan had the cancelled Option Rights or other
award not been granted.

        (c) The Committee may condition the grant of any award or combination
of awards authorized under this Plan on the surrender or deferral by the
Participant of his or her right to receive a cash bonus or other compensation
otherwise payable by the Company or any Subsidiary to the Participant.

        (d) This Plan shall not confer upon any Participant any right with
respect to continuance of employment or other service with the Company or any
Subsidiary and shall not interfere in any way with any right that the Company
or such Subsidiary would otherwise have to terminate any Participant's
employment or other service at any time.



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        (e) To the extent that any provision of this Plan would prevent any
Option Right that was intended to qualify as a Tax-qualified Option from so
qualifying, any such provision shall be null and void with respect to any such
Option Right; provided, however, that any such provision shall remain in
effect with respect to other Option Rights, and there shall be no further
effect on any provision of this Plan.

        (f) Any award that may be made pursuant to an amendment to this Plan
that shall have been adopted without the approval of the shareholders of the
Company shall be null and void if it is subsequently determined that such
approval was required under the terms of the Plan or applicable law.

        (g) Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, this Plan is
intended to comply with Rule 16b-3 at all times that awards hereunder are
subject to such Rule.



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