National Army Museum
Three hundred years of the British Army told for free in Chelsea, through uniforms, weapons and personal stories, with a brilliant play area that makes it a great free day with kids.
FREE
The lowdown
Next door to the Chelsea Pensioners at the Royal Hospital sits the National Army Museum, free and recently rebuilt, telling the long and complicated story of the British Army and the people caught up in it. It is honest rather than flag-waving, as interested in the soldiers' lives as in the battles.
Five themed galleries run from the everyday kit of a soldier to the experience of battle and the army's place in society, full of objects with real stories, medals, letters home, uniforms and the skeleton of Napoleon's horse. It is thoughtful, modern and never dusty.
It is also one of the best free museums in town for children, with a large soft play zone and a hands-on play base, so parents get a serious museum and kids get to burn off steam, all for nothing in a smart part of Chelsea.
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