From Sloane Square tube walk ahead, crossing Lower Sloane Street. Go past Peter Jones and then on your left, the Saatchi Gallery (free). Turn left into Cheltenham Terrace then bear left into Franklin's Row.
Turn right on the Royal Hospital Road. Cross over and walk past the striking buildings of the Royal Hospital. If it is open you can enter the grounds at the entrance opposite Ormonde Gate to visit the Great Hall, chapel and museum. Otherwise continue to reach Tite Street.
Number 34 Tite Street was once home to Oscar Wilde. Continue walking along Royal Hospital Road, then turn left into Paradise Walk. The houses in this narrow, quiet road have window boxes and roof terraces. Turn right and then sharp left towards the Embankment and walk past the Chelsea Physic Garden.
At the Albert Bridge traffic lights cross Oakley Street and bear right along the narrow Cheyne Walk. Turn right by the Cheyne Walk Brasserie into Cheyne Row, where Thomas Carlyle lived. At the end turn left into Upper Cheyne Row. Turn left again into Lawrence Street - where there is a plaque to mark the Chelsea Porcelain Works - then turn right into Justice Walk. (Don't be fooled into thinking the sign of a red-robed judge is a pub, it merely identifies where the old courthouse used to be!)
Turn left into Old Church Street and at the bottom is Chelsea Old Church, with a statue outside of Thomas More, who worshipped here. Turn left, walk through Chelsea Embankment Gardens and cross the Albert Bridge.
At a 'Riverside Walk' sign turn left through the gate into Battersea Park. Follow the Thames Path, past the Peace Pagoda in the park, along to Chelsea Bridge.
Turn left to cross the bridge and continue ahead, passing the site of Chelsea Barracks on the right before joining Lower Sloane Street. Turn right to retrace your steps back to Sloane Square tube station.
Pick up any book about walking in London and you will notice one thing: the walks are either north or south of the river – surprisingly few combine both, which doesn't do much to erase the north/south divide that, as odd as it may sound, still clearly exists. So this walk includes not only those... elegant streets of Chelsea but also the gratifying expanse of Battersea Park to the south. Keeping up appearances Somewhere just off the fashionable King's Road lies a building as majestic as any you're likely to encounter. Some say it's as great as St Paul's Cathedral, and, although this is debatable, Sir Christopher Wren certainly left his mark on it. The building in question, the Royal Hospital Chelsea, was founded by Charles II and completed in 1692 for veteran soldiers who had either served in the army for 20 years or been wounded. The minimum age for entry is now normally 65 and there is still accommodation for 300. Living here, the pensioner surrenders his or her army pension and in return receives a small room or berth, all meals (taken in the spectacular Great Hall where the Duke of Wellington lay in state before his burial), clothing and medical care. Hearts of oak Each year, on a day close to the 29 May (the birthday of King Charles II), the hospital celebrates Founder's Day. The statue of Charles II in the Centre Court is decorated with oak leaves to commemorate the time when he hid in an oak tree after escaping from the Battle of Worcester in 1651. Chelsea Pensioners are easily recognised by their unusual three-cornered hats and their scarlet coats, adorned with military medals. It is indeed a joy to see them, both north and south of the river. Oddly the coats have become a distinguishing feature of the Pensioners' identity. They are modelled on the red coats worn by British troops from the Civil War onwards and have changed little since the Royal Hospital's foundation. The grass is greener on the other side Before Queen Victoria came on the scene, Battersea Park, as we now know it, was merely derelict marshland with ditches full of water that flowed into the river. But, in the 19th century, Sir James Pennethorne created the 200-acre (81ha) landscape we see today. Battersea is the sort of park that has something for everyone (duels notwithstanding – the last being between the Duke of Wellington and Lord Winchelsea). In the summer months you'll hear anything from jazz music to the thud of a football, and see picnickers enjoying the sun along with joggers and cyclists. And there's also another section of the Thames Path that runs alongside the river, with views over to the Chelsea Embankment and its constant flow of traffic. But over here it's different: it's peaceful and more than just a back garden for the Chelsea set – and, if the Peace Pagoda could speak, it would probably agree.
Greater London is one of the world’s largest urban areas; 33 boroughs stretching north to Enfield, south to Croydon, east to Havering, west to Hillingdon and with central London at the heart of it all. Greater London contains a multitude of parks and green spaces, from the six Royal Parks to other huge open spaces like Hampstead Heath and Clapham Common.
From Sloane Square tube walk ahead, crossing Lower Sloane Street. Go past Peter Jones and then on your left, the Saatchi Gallery (free). Turn left into Cheltenham Terrace then bear left into Franklin's Row.
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Turn right on the Royal Hospital Road. Cross over and walk past the striking buildings of the Royal Hospital. If it is open you can enter the grounds at the entrance opposite Ormonde Gate to visit the Great Hall, chapel and museum. Otherwise continue to reach Tite Street.
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Number 34 Tite Street was once home to Oscar Wilde. Continue walking along Royal Hospital Road, then turn left into Paradise Walk. The houses in this narrow, quiet road have window boxes and roof terraces. Turn right and then sharp left towards the Embankment and walk past the Chelsea Physic Garden.
3 of 7
At the Albert Bridge traffic lights cross Oakley Street and bear right along the narrow Cheyne Walk. Turn right by the Cheyne Walk Brasserie into Cheyne Row, where Thomas Carlyle lived. At the end turn left into Upper Cheyne Row. Turn left again into Lawrence Street - where there is a plaque to mark the Chelsea Porcelain Works - then turn right into Justice Walk. (Don't be fooled into thinking the sign of a red-robed judge is a pub, it merely identifies where the old courthouse used to be!)
4 of 7
Turn left into Old Church Street and at the bottom is Chelsea Old Church, with a statue outside of Thomas More, who worshipped here. Turn left, walk through Chelsea Embankment Gardens and cross the Albert Bridge.
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At a 'Riverside Walk' sign turn left through the gate into Battersea Park. Follow the Thames Path, past the Peace Pagoda in the park, along to Chelsea Bridge.
6 of 7
Turn left to cross the bridge and continue ahead, passing the site of Chelsea Barracks on the right before joining Lower Sloane Street. Turn right to retrace your steps back to Sloane Square tube station.
Pick up any book about walking in London and you will notice one thing: the walks are either north or south of the river – surprisingly few combine both, which doesn't do much to erase the north/south divide that, as odd as it may sound, still clearly exists. So this walk includes not only those... elegant streets of Chelsea but also the gratifying expanse of Battersea Park to the south. Keeping up appearances Somewhere just off the fashionable King's Road lies a building as majestic as any you're likely to encounter. Some say it's as great as St Paul's Cathedral, and, although this is debatable, Sir Christopher Wren certainly left his mark on it. The building in question, the Royal Hospital Chelsea, was founded by Charles II and completed in 1692 for veteran soldiers who had either served in the army for 20 years or been wounded. The minimum age for entry is now normally 65 and there is still accommodation for 300. Living here, the pensioner surrenders his or her army pension and in return receives a small room or berth, all meals (taken in the spectacular Great Hall where the Duke of Wellington lay in state before his burial), clothing and medical care. Hearts of oak Each year, on a day close to the 29 May (the birthday of King Charles II), the hospital celebrates Founder's Day. The statue of Charles II in the Centre Court is decorated with oak leaves to commemorate the time when he hid in an oak tree after escaping from the Battle of Worcester in 1651. Chelsea Pensioners are easily recognised by their unusual three-cornered hats and their scarlet coats, adorned with military medals. It is indeed a joy to see them, both north and south of the river. Oddly the coats have become a distinguishing feature of the Pensioners' identity. They are modelled on the red coats worn by British troops from the Civil War onwards and have changed little since the Royal Hospital's foundation. The grass is greener on the other side Before Queen Victoria came on the scene, Battersea Park, as we now know it, was merely derelict marshland with ditches full of water that flowed into the river. But, in the 19th century, Sir James Pennethorne created the 200-acre (81ha) landscape we see today. Battersea is the sort of park that has something for everyone (duels notwithstanding – the last being between the Duke of Wellington and Lord Winchelsea). In the summer months you'll hear anything from jazz music to the thud of a football, and see picnickers enjoying the sun along with joggers and cyclists. And there's also another section of the Thames Path that runs alongside the river, with views over to the Chelsea Embankment and its constant flow of traffic. But over here it's different: it's peaceful and more than just a back garden for the Chelsea set – and, if the Peace Pagoda could speak, it would probably agree.
Greater London is one of the world’s largest urban areas; 33 boroughs stretching north to Enfield, south to Croydon, east to Havering, west to Hillingdon and with central London at the heart of it all. Greater London contains a multitude of parks and green spaces, from the six Royal Parks to other huge open spaces like Hampstead Heath and Clapham Common.
