Unspecified/General

Regarded as one of the finest groups of Baroque buildings in Britain, the Old Royal Naval College at Greenwich was designed by Christopher Wren and forms the centrepiece of the riverside ensemble recognised by UNESCO as the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. The buildings were begun at the end of the seventeenth century as the Royal Hospital for Seamen, a charitable home for elderly and injured sailors of the Royal Navy, conceived as a naval counterpart to the soldiers' hospital in Chelsea, and they were deliberately arranged in two great matching blocks so as not to obstruct the view from the river to the older Queen's House beyond. In the nineteenth century the hospital closed and the site became the Royal Naval College, training officers for more than a century before that role too came to an end and the buildings opened to the public. The two outstanding interiors are the Painted Hall, an enormous decorated dining hall whose walls and ceiling are covered with an elaborate allegorical scheme by the artist James Thornhill, often described as the finest such interior in the country, and the chapel opposite, with its delicate neoclassical decoration. The grounds, frequently used as a filming location for period dramas, are freely open, and a visitor centre explains the history of the site. Tickets are required for the Painted Hall, with the chapel and grounds free, and the college welcomes visitors throughout the year across every season of the calendar. The site's extraordinary visual drama, with its symmetrical domes and colonnades framing the river and the hills of the park behind, has made it one of the most sought-after filming locations in the country, standing in for grand settings in countless films and television series. The Painted Hall, recently restored to reveal the full brilliance of its decoration, repays close study, its ceiling crowded with figures celebrating British naval power and the monarchs of the age. Together with the neighbouring maritime museum, the old observatory on the hill and the elegant Queen's House, the college forms part of one of the finest historic ensembles in the country, and a visit combines great architecture, naval history and beautiful riverside surroundings throughout the year across the seasons of the calendar.

Type: Tourist Attraction

Address: King William Walk, London, United Kingdom

Telephone: +44 20 8269 4799

Website: https://ornc.org/

Opening Date: 01/01/1873