From homes for the sick to homes for culture

This event will feature talks from Barts Heritage, Royal Hospital Chelsea, and the Charterhouse.

Barts Heritage

Fay McDermott, Engagement Officer, will talk about the conservation, repair and restoration work of the North Wing, and its new lease of life as a hub for the hopsital community and its wider cultural use.

Royal Hospital Chelsea

Hear from Chelsea Pensioner Mike Vowles as he shares his personal insight into what it’s like to call the Royal Hospital Chelsea ‘home’. How does it feel to wear the iconic scarlet coat? How does the Hospital today differ from the home of the original seventeenth century In-Pensioners? And why is it called a Hospital?

The Charterhouse

In 1611 the wealthiest commoner in England left a vast fortune to a new almshouse charity in a converted mansion on the edge of the City. It was originally known as The Hospital of King James founded in Charter House in the County of Middlesex at the humble Petition and only Costs and Charges of Thomas Sutton Esq. Today we know it simply as the Charterhouse, but its formal name is still Sutton’s Hospital – retaining that crucial word, ‘Hospital’.

This talk from James Spellane, Visitor Engagement Manager at the Charterhouse, will explore what the name of the charity means by looking at its communities down the centuries, from 14th-century monks to the almshouse residents of today.

About the Royal Hospital Chelsea

The Royal Hospital Chelsea first opened its doors in 1692 as a home for soldiers "broken by age and war”, having been established during the reign of King Charles II. With its historic buildings designed by Sir Christopher Wren and later Sir John Soane, over 300 years later The Royal Hospital continues to serve as a home for almost 300 Chelsea Pensioners - retired British Army veterans – offering camaraderie, care, and support, to those who have served.

https://chelsea-pensioners.co.uk/visit

About the Charterhouse

The Charterhouse (formally known as Sutton’s Hospital in Charterhouse) is an almshouse charity in a converted Tudor-period mansion on the edge of the City of London. Today, it provides a home to about 40 residents – traditionally called ‘Brothers’ – who are single men and women aged 60 and over with a housing need.

The charity’s goals are to create a community of excellence for the care of older people, and to share its heritage and preserve it for future generations.

To that end, the charity extended its hospitality to communities outside its walls by opening the almshouse to the public in 2017. A new visitor centre and daily guided tours of the 7.5-acre estate tell the story of the Charterhouse from its origin as a fourteenth-century plague cemetery and monastery to the present day. The residents welcome their neighbours – and anyone – to a free Community Space in Chapel Cloister every Friday morning.

https://thecharterhouse.org/