While there are a lot of military museums in the United Kingdom, the National Army Museum is the British Army’s central museum as opposed to focusing on a single regiment or battle.
The museum has recently undergone a big renovation and some visitors complain that this has dumbed down the exhibits with the museum now focusing more on interactive displays for children rather than informative displays that adults can learn from.
What to see at the National Army Museum
The National Army Museum has five galleries on four floors that depict the history and culture of the British Army.
The museum has the following five galleries:
- The Soldier gallery, which shows what life is like as a soldier.
- The Army gallery, which shows the history of the army, its role in politics and impact on global history.
- The Society gallery, which shows the army’s cultural impact and how it interacts with society.
- The Battle gallery, which shows how the army fights battles from the 17th century to the present day.
- The Insight gallery, which shows the impact the British Army has made throughout the world.
The museum is located next door to the Royal Chelsea Hospital, which is actually a retirement home for former members of the British Army. Residents of the home are called Chelsea Pensioners and are noted for their distinctive uniforms (they wear a blue uniform for general day-to-day life and a red uniform for ceremonial occasions).
Visiting the National Army Museum
The National Army Museum is located in Chelsea between the Chelsea Physic Garden and the Royal Chelsea Hospital. It is a 10-minute walk from Sloane Square tube station and bus 170 stops outside en route between Victoria and Clapham Junction railway stations.
Most people spend 1–2 hours visiting the museum.
There are no comments yet.