Chelsea Barracks : A Fascinating Lens For History

Chelsea Barracks occupies one of the most prestigious postcodes in the UK and perhaps anywhere in the world. This is an area that now confidently claims to be London’s Most Coveted Neighbourhood and even the most cursory glance around here certainly makes it difficult to argue against that. 

A beautiful mix of luxury apartments and penthouses combine with Georgian revival townhouses and mews homes across 12 acres that sit neatly between Belgravia, Chelsea and Pimlico. Seven purpose-built new garden squares tie this community together with an elegant sense of heritage and calm, all supported by a private residents’ club with spa and sauna and a private cinema. With 24-hour concierge and biometric security measures, it also proudly claims to be amongst the safest residential neighbourhoods in all of the capital.

It is little wonder that recent reports show how this alluring new neighbourhood has already achieved over £1.5 billion in sales, with the rollout of new phases and developments set to continue in the next decade. 

As ever with the city of London, the land that new developments and homes lie upon always has its own story to tell. For Chelsea Barracks this is a tale of marshland to the military in a historical part of West London. 

Humble Beginnings

Belgravia was once known as the Five Fields, where open marshland and the occasional market garden made its home, but no great development had ever settled there due to the unfavourable conditions of the marshes. The famous Grosvenor Estate, which owned rights to much of the land here since the 1600s, set out to transform it in the 18^th and 19^th centuries with a long-term plan that created what we now know as the districts of Mayfair and Belgravia. It was here in 1825 that the master builder Thomas Cubitt marked out a plan for the most prestigious residential community in London with homes, businesses and leisure all attended to through innovative methods, enduring materials and timeless style.

An outcrop of underdeveloped land remained unused on the fringes of this rapidly emerging aristocratic haven until the 1860s, when a familiar requirement reared its head for the country and the capital.

A Military Home

During the mid-19th century, the British Army had recognised that many of its barracks were outdated and overcrowded. Following the Crimean War, it was decided that reform was needed and new facilities would be sourced to help maintain the country as a leading military force across the world. 

The architect George Morgan proposed a site on the open land between Chelsea, Belgravia and Pimlico to be called The Infantry Barracks at Chelsea. It would benefit from the proximity to central London and easily fit into the military infrastructure that already existed there, with plenty of space for accommodation, training grounds and parade capabilities. 

When the Army commissioned Morgan’s plans, they wanted to build everything in a single coordinated phase to get it up and running as soon as possible. The Main Barrack Range was a long brick building running opposite Chelsea Bridge Road that housed two full infantry battalions in separate wings. This structure was defined by a central entrance complete with two campanile-style towers that served as a symbol of strength and power visible from the newly created Chelsea Bridge.

The March of Time

Chelsea Barracks continued to be an important part of the British Army’s development over the next 150 years. In 1897, it was an essential component of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations, welcoming more than 1000 soldiers from India and across the globe to be a part of the official parade celebrations.

After the Second World War, its facilities were deemed unsuitable and redevelopment began for two 13-storey modern towers that would accommodate four companies of Guards regiments. Time eventually caught up with the barracks at the beginning of the 21^st century and the Ministry of Defence made the decision to sell the land as part of a streamlining project for military buildings in the capital. It went through several planning stages and redevelopment proposals until construction finally began in 2015.

The Chapel Holds Clues

When the first residents moved into the new Chelsea Barracks in November 2019, everything had changed. However, amongst the beautiful new homes and wonderful open spaces, one edifice remains as a wayfinder to the past. What was once the Guards’ Chapel is now a Grade II-listed building created in a Romanesque-Byzantine manner that acts as an exhibition & arts venue called The Garrison’s Chapel. Its round arched windows with rose details signify a simple and subtle clue to what came before, with memorials inside that commemorate the lives of the soldiers who once lived here.

Onwards and Upwards

A new public space is currently being completed for the next phase of Chelsea Barracks, which brings us full circle. Five Fields Square is the largest of all garden spaces in the development, created to the impeccable standards of ‘heritage planting with contemporary garden design’.  This represents a fitting tribute to both the origins of the land itself and the colourful order of soldiers’ parades that would once have taken place on the ground.