For succour and relief

Royal Hospital Chelsea, London SW3, part I Managed by the Board of Commissioners of Royal Hospital Chelsea This year is the 300th anniversary of the death of Sir Christopher Wren. In the first of two articles, Roger Bowdler revisits one of his most celebrated creations

- Roger Bowdler

PROUDLY proclaimed on the cornice of the long loggia that extends across the exterior of Figure Court, the river frontage of the Royal Hospital Chelsea, is an inscription in large letters that succinctly records the purpose and history of the building. The Latin text, which is divided into two sections by the central portico, begins: ‘For the succour and relief of veterans broken by age and war founded by Charles II.’ The inscription continues: ‘Enlarged by James II and completed by William and Mary King and Queen A.D. 1692.’ There, in a nutshell, is the foundation story of this splendid institution, spread across three reigns, with a statement of its intended beneficiaries.

Charles II (r. 1660–85) was witness to the fighting of the Civil Wars at first hand. He was present as a 13 year old at Edgehill in 1642, the first and inconclusive battle in the conflict, and commanded the hugely outnumbered Royalist forces at the Battle of Worcester in 1651 at its military conclusion. In the aftermath of these events, the sorry lot of wounded and destitute soldiers must have been all too evident to him, not to mention the value of a magnificent royal gesture of charity towards those loyal to his cause.

There were other reasons, however, why the concept of a royal hospital appealed to the Crown. The place of the army was growing in importance; the Restoration of 1660 had been made possible by military power.

Politically, having a standing army was very controversial and the Crown had to tread very carefully if it wished to start building barracks. A royal hospital could prove useful, therefore, as a place for billeting troops. In an emergency, the veterans accommodated in a hospital might also do service and muskets were kept in readiness for possible use by Pensioners until 1854.