The King and Queen of the Sandwich Islands paid a visit to the Royal Military Asylum in the year 1824.  Their Majesties were attended by Major-General Sir Willoughby Gordon, and appeared much delighted with the establishment, the nature of which was explained to them by the interpreter.  They were received by the full band playing “God save the King,” and were highly gratified with the skill of the juvenile musicians.  After having seen the children at dinner, their Majesties witnessed the various gymnastic exercises, and at their departure were saluted by the hearty cheers of the youthful regiment, which was drawn up before them.

His late Royal Highness the Duke of York was the founder of this Institution, and constantly bestowed his best exertions in promoting the welfare, and increasing the comforts, of the helpless inmates nurtured within its walls.  On his last visit, the children crowded round their benefactor, and gave him three hearty cheers.  Such was the effect produced by it that the Duke could not refrain from shedding tears; and, patting the head of the foremost boy, he ejaculated, as he passed down the steps, “God bless you, my lads.”

The following tribute to the memory of the Duke of York was written by Dr. Veitch, at that time physician to the Chelsea Dispensary:—“The knowledge which his late Royal Highness possessed of human nature, and what was becoming the character of British soldiers, induced him to impress on their minds a system of discipline at once correct and conveying lofty feelings; so that men thus trained were at all times ready to prefer death to subjugation.  We may here say, with truth, that to the love of his country and the army he has prematurely fallen a victim.  No self-gratification, no pleasures, were ever by him allowed to interfere with the duties he owed to the army and his country, and however late his hour of going to rest, he was invariably the first man at his post in the morning.  We find individuals who are distinguished as statesmen, as admirals, as generals, but who are without the smallest pretensions to true greatness, because their talents and their courage are not blended with the chivalrous, the gallant, and finer inspirations flowing from the heart.  Such men are generally anxious enough that their services should be appreciated by their Sovereign, while they overlook what they owe to others who have mainly contributed to their fame and to their fortune.  The late illustrious Duke had no such narrowness; his soul was surrounded with generous and delicate attributes, rendering all periods of his splendid career utterly inaccessible to deeds of darkness, and also ever ready to expand to the light of truth, to the claims of justice and of humanity; and he is therefore eminently entitled to the character of a great man; because his high attainments in military affairs were combined with an exalted and refined sense of courage and of honour.”

About the year 1810 part of the glebe opposite to the Royal Military Asylum was purchased, under the authority of an Act of Parliament, for the use of this Institution; and other land, at Merton, in Surrey, was bought with the money as glebe to the Rectory of Chelsea.

In concluding this brief description of the Royal Military Asylum, it may justly be observed that the contemplation of such a noble fabric is calculated to excite the liveliest emotions of gratitude for having been born in a country which abounds with charitable institutions.  To the soldier it must continually afford the most pleasing prospects for the comfort and support of his infant children, and it will induce him to serve, if possible, with greater confidence and energy, feeling assured that if he falls in battle his country has provided a home for his helpless children.

ST. JUDE’S CHURCH.

Proceeding in an easterly direction we arrive at what was formerly known as White Lion Street.  Here very considerable improvements have been effected.  The whole of one side of this street has been pulled down, by which means there is now a good road from the Suspension Bridge to Knightsbridge.

CHELSEA CHAPEL.

This Chapel was erected in 1865, and is situated on a part of the site we have just described, adjoining Lower Sloane Street.  The Church worshipping within its sacred walls formerly occupied Paradise Chapel, Queen’s Road West, which still remains, and which was originally a school room belonging to a scholastic establishment, which occupied for many years the site of Calthorpe Place.  It is still retained by the members of the above Church as a Ragged School.

The Chapel is a plain white brick building, without any particular attempt at architectural display.  Mr. James Cubitt was the architect.  It will seat probably 1000 persons.  There is a schoolroom underneath the Chapel, which will contain about 600 adults, in which there is a Day School for Girls and Infants in the week, and the Sunday School is also held in it, which numbers about 200.  The Rev. Frank H. White, who resides in Hemus Terrace, is the Minister, and is much esteemed not only by the members of the church, but by all with whom he is associated in life.

I must now proceed to Sloane Street, where first “I drew the breath of life,” and which is consequently endeared to me by recollections of the very earliest events of my life.

A very great improvement has at last been made at Grosvenor Bridge, in ancient times called Blandel Bridge.  Its name was probably corrupted to “Bloody Bridge,” in consequence of the numbers of robberies and murders formerly committed on this spot.  The entrance here into the parish, at the eastern end of Sloane Square, has been after years of delay considerably widened, and some spacious shops erected.  There is also now an Underground Railway Station, and the West London Commercial Bank has likewise extensive premises in Sloane Square, both of which will confer very great advantages on the inhabitants of Chelsea, and the public in general.

Trinity Church, Upper Chelsea.

This Church is situated at the south end of Sloane Street, near Sloane Square.  It is a brick structure of Gothic architecture, the western front consisting of a centre flanked by two wide towers rising to a level with the roof, and terminating with lofty octagonal spires.  A large entrance door occupies the space from tower to tower to the height of the first division, giving access both to nave and aisles, over which stands a large window separated by two mullions, with trefoil headings slightly ornamented; above this is placed a circular stone surrounded by tracery, intended, probably, at some future period for a clock.  The towers to the first blocking course are plain, but above they are enriched with trefoil-headed windows, divided into two compartments, slender buttresses separating the towers octagonally to the summit, crowned by a battlement and surmounted by obtuse-headed pinnacles.  At each side of the centre great door there is a smaller one for ingress and egress to the aisles and galleries.

The late Rev. H. Blunt, M.A., was the first Incumbent, and when he resigned the Rev. Richard Burgess, B.D., the present Rector of the Church, succeeded him.  Trinity Church, from its consecration in 1830, has always been very numerously attended.

In the Church are several tablets, amongst them is one to the memory of the Rev. H. Blunt.

SLOANE TERRACE WESLEYAN CHAPEL.

This Chapel was built in 1811.  It is a neat and substantial edifice.  The galleries extend round three sides of the interior, and the whole will accommodate about 1200 persons.  The erection of this place of worship is to be attributed to the liberality of several beneficent gentlemen, among whom may be especially mentioned Joseph Butterworth, Esq., who, at that time, had summer apartments in Chelsea.  The attention of these Christian friends had been arrested by observing a large number of the middling and poorer classes, in the vicinity of Jews’ Row, wandering about upon the mornings of the Sabbath.  They accordingly took a large room, or small chapel, at nearly the end of George Street, and subsequently erected Sloane Terrace Chapel.  The congregation and the members rapidly increased, and at various times many alterations have been made so as to render the chapel and schoolrooms more commodious.  It is a pleasing thought, that, amidst a vast amount of Sabbath desecration, there is not a Church or Chapel in the parish, where the Sabbath School is not well attended.

Thomas Hoblyn, Esq., who for many years was the Rector’s Churchwarden at St. Luke’s Parish Church, occupied a house at the corner of Cadogan Street, Sloane Street.  He was one of several newly-appointed magistrates, about the time of the passing of the first Local Act of Parliament for the better assessing and collecting the Poor’s Rate, &c.

The above house is now occupied as an Industrial Home for Girls, one of the many admirable institutions which reflect so much credit upon that part of Chelsea.

Captain G. Bague, R.N., resided also in Sloane Street, nearly opposite Cadogan Place, for a long period.  He was made a magistrate for the county at the same time as Mr. Hoblyn.

The late Rev. H. Blunt, M.A., resided for a considerable time in Sloane Street.

The present Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke, Bart., M.P., resides at his late father’s house in Sloane Street.  He has extensively travelled in America, and has published a very interesting work, entitled “Greater Britain,” and is the author of several pamphlets on social and political topics.

The Pavilion, Hans Place.—A few particulars respecting this once beautiful estate will no doubt be interesting to many of the readers of this work.  When Mr. Holland took the lease of the land, formerly known as “Blacklands,” now Upper Chelsea, he reserved to himself 21 acres of it, on which he built an elegant house for his own residence.  This was called the Pavilion, and it was purchased of Mr. Holland’s executors by Peter Denys, Esq., and became afterwards the property of his relict, the Right Hon. Lady Charlotte Denys, who resided in it with her family for some years afterwards.  It consisted of three sides of a quadrangle, open to the north, and the approach was from Hans Place.  The house was superbly furnished.

The south front faced an extensive and beautifully-planted lawn, gently rising to the level of the colonnade and principal floor.  This front was originally built as a model for the Pavilion at Brighton, and was ornamented by a colonnade of the Doric order, extending the whole length of the building.

On the west side of the lawn was an Ice-house, round which was erected an admirable representation of the ruins of an ancient Priory, in which the appearance of age and decay was strikingly faithful.  The Gothic stone-work was brought from the ancient demolished residence of Cardinal Wolsey, at Esher, in Surrey.  The lawn was ornamented by a fine sheet of water, which produced a most pleasing effect.  The Priory displayed considerable variety of fanciful intricate paths and scenery, profusely ornamented with shrubs, and had a private communication with the house by the walks of the shrubbery.

Lady Charlotte Denys gave annually a treat to the children of the “Hans Town Schools,” &c., and had booths erected in which they partook of tea, whilst others contained fruit and playthings to amuse them.  On these occasions the inhabitants were admitted to witness the pleasing juvenile scene.

Hans Place, Sloane Street.—Miss Landon (L.E.L.) was born in “snug Hans Place” in 1802, and spent the greater portion of her life in it.  She went to school at No. 22, kept by Miss Rowden, who published “A Poetical Introduction to the Study of Botany,” and “The Pleasures of Friendship,” and at length became the Countess of St. Queutin.

Among the inmates of the same house have been Lady Caroline Lamb, who married the Hon. W. Lamb, afterwards Viscount Melbourne, Miss Mitford, Lady Bulwer, &c.

Mr. and Mrs. Alfred Wigan, the talented artistes, resided for some time in Hans Place.

This Church is situated a little to the north of Hans Place, and near to Walton Street.  The exterior has no particular pretensions to architectural display.  The interior is neat, and possesses a greater degree of architectural design.  It will seat probably more than 1000 persons.  The Rev. W. Niven, M.A., was the first Incumbent, and retained it until recently, when the Rev. George Weldon, M.A., succeeded him.  Of Mr. Niven it may justly be said that he was zealous and faithful, kind to the poor, and respected by all classes.  There are excellent schools and many charitable societies which are liberally supported by the contributions of the congregation.

Cadogan Place.—These capital houses were principally erected by Mr. W. Whitehead, sen., on part of the land leased originally to Mr. Holland, as previously mentioned.  Amongst the residents at different periods may be selected the names of Capt. Acklom, R.N.; Thomas Bryan, Esq.; W. B. France, Esq.; each of whom were made magistrates for the county at the same time as Mr. Hoblyn and Capt. Bague; C. Hopkinson, Esq.; H. Warburton, Esq., M.P.; Sir William Clay, M.P.; Dr. Veitch; the Rev. Richard Burgess, and the Rev. J. B. Owen.

In Little Cadogan Place Mr. William Whitehead, jun., lived for a great many years.  He was an extensive builder, and occupied a very prominent position in the parish.

Botanic Gardens, Sloane Street.—This garden was first planned and laid out in 1807, by Mr. Salisbury.  The extent of ground was about six acres, and formed a delightful promenade for company.  In the original plan the whole collection of plants was arranged according to the system of Linnæus, and was disposed of in seventeen different compartments.  When Mr. Tate, in the year 1820, took possession of the premises, the inhabitants, wishing to make it a public promenade, the above arrangement was entirely superseded, and the interior of the ground laid out and converted into a Nursery.  Mr. Tate, however, still devoted the hothouses and greenhouses to the raising of curious and rare exotics.  Mr. Tuck, nurseryman and seedsman, is now in possession of a portion of the ground, but the whole presents a very different appearance to what it did many years ago.

Upon the site of the west end of Cadogan Street stood an ancient house, inhabited, in Bowack’s time, by Lady Matthews; it was afterwards known for many years as the Marlborough Tavern and Cricket Grounds.  It is probable that the house was first established as a tavern during the life-time of the great Duke of Marlborough, who, it is said, resided at one time in Chelsea; hence Blenheim Street, &c., all contiguous.

The old Admiral Keppel Inn, with its tea gardens, was pulled down in 1856, on the site of which is now a large tavern.

Chelsea Common was called in ancient records Chelsea Heath.  It was bounded on the north by the Fulham Road; on the east by Blacklands Lane, now Marlborough Road; on the south by College Place, abutting on the King’s Road; and on the west by Sydney Street.  It was attached to the Manor.  Certain ancient houses, cottages, and farms, had a right of pasturage for forty cows and twenty heifers.  To keep these there was always a cowkeeper, whose business it was to mark the cattle, to drive home the cows at night to the several owners, and to impound all cattle unmarked, or any horses which broke into the Common, or were found there.

When the Old Church was to be rebuilt, the Common was enclosed by the consent of Charles Cheyne, Esq., Lord of the Manor, and the several proprietors, for 21 years, to defray part of the charges, by a lease bearing date March 1674, and thereby let to George Hill and Francis Guildford, who enclosed it, and quietly enjoyed it till 1695, when it was thrown open again.  It would be an unnecessary waste of space to notice what took place for some years afterwards.

The Common (as was) has been for many years covered with houses, comprising Keppel Street, Whitehead’s Grove, College Street, Marlborough Square, Leader Street, &c.

The principal entrance to the Brompton County Court is in Whitehead’s Grove.  The house was formerly occupied by the Rev. Dr. Roberts, who gave instruction to a limited number of young gentlemen who resided with him.

The Catholic Apostolic Church is situated in College Street, near to Whitehead’s Grove.  The exterior has some claim to architectural design, although the entrance at the side is small, and there are no windows to give relief to its massive appearance.  There is ample light, however, in the interior of the structure, and it is in every respect commodious.

The spacious Drill Hall belonging to the 1st Middlesex Engineer Volunteers is also in College Street, near to the Fulham Road, where recruits are enlisted.

MARLBOROUGH CHAPEL.

The Brompton District Letter Sorting Post Office is situated nearly opposite to the northern side of St. Luke’s Cemetery.  It was erected a few years ago, and is well adapted and arranged for the intended purposes.

Near to Sydney Street, and to the north of St. Luke’s Church, was formerly situated a solitary small house, known as Cock’s Hall.  It was said to have been built by Captain Cock, a petty officer in the Royal Hospital.  On a stone in the front of it was an inscription, “Built in 1710, rebuilt in 1767.”

Dr. Biber, author of “The Life of Pestalozzi,” and editor of the John Bull newspaper, resided for some time in Sydney Street, as did also Thomas Wright, Esq., the antiquary and historical writer.

Henry Warren, Esq., President of the New Society of Water Colour Painters, resided for some time opposite St. Luke’s Church, and at a subsequent period at the corner of Church Street, which house has been recently pulled down.

Robert Ratcliffe, the first Earl of Sussex of that family, and Lord High Chamberlain of England, died at his palace at Chelsea, November 26, 1542.

Robert Viscount Fitzwalter was created Earl of Sussex by Henry VIII. in 1527.  He married first, Elizabeth, daughter of Edward Stafford, Duke of Buckingham; secondly, Margaret, daughter of Thomas, Earl of Derby; thirdly, Mary, daughter of Sir John Arundel.

Count D’Estrades was invited by letters from the Chancellor himself, in order to conclude the bargain; £900,000 were demanded, £100,000 were offered.  By degrees the English lowered their demands, and the French raised their offers.  The bargain was concluded at £400,000.

Sir Robert Atkyns, either Chief Baron of the Exchequer, or his son, the historian of Gloucestershire, appears by the Parish Books to have resided in Chelsea in 1684.

Sir Robert Atkyns, K.B., was Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer under William III., which office he held with distinguished ability and integrity.  This gentleman, by his influence, promoted the Revolution, and by his pen defended it in tracts replete with legal knowledge.

The Hon. Colonel Rieutort died at his house, Chelsea, on the 24th January, 1725–6, in his 66th year.  He was born of a good family, at Montpelier, in France, where he early bore arms; and, having left his native country, on account of the Protestant religion, he attended William III. in the wars of Ireland.  He afterwards served the Crown of Great Britain in Piedmont; and in 1703 assisted Count de Frise in the vigorous defence of Landau, then besieged by the French.  In 1704, he went into Portugal with the Earl of Galway, who sent him to the relief of the Prince of Hesse, then closely beset in Gibraltar, where he contributed very much to the preservation of that important place.  He was interred in Chelsea Church.

THE CANCER HOSPITAL.

This hospital is situated in the Fulham Road, almost facing the Consumption Hospital.  The ceremony of laying the foundation stone was performed on Monday, May 30, 1859, by Miss Burdett Coutts, in the presence of a very numerous and respectable company, including Dr. Tait, Bishop of London, Archdeacon Sinclair, Rev. D. Coleridge, Rev. J. B. Owen, the Rev. Fathers Ballard and Bagshawe, Priests of the Oratory, at Brompton, &c.

Miss Coutts having deposited the bottle, with the usual contents, in a cavity in the lower stone and spread the mortar, the upper stone was duly lowered into its place, after which Miss Coutts gave the customary knocks and declared the stone duly laid.

The Rev. J. B. Owen next addressed the assembly, after which John Abel Smith, Esq., proposed thanks to Miss Coutts for having done them the honour of laying the foundation stone of the hospital.  The Bishop of London said that he had been requested by Miss Coutts to acknowledge the compliment paid her, and to assure them that she should continue to take the greatest interest in the prosperity of the Institution.

The building has a frontage of 130 ft. and a depth of 50 ft., surrounded by an area of 10 ft., securing to the building the means of convenient external communication and ventilation.  It is constructed of plain white Suffolk bricks, relieved with bands of red brick, keystones, and cornices of stone dressing.  The lower story contains the kitchens, larders, and the rooms for the out-patients.  The principal ground floor is approached by a flight of steps, and this contains the hall and a handsome staircase of stone, apartments for the house-surgeon and medical officers, and wards for patients.  Apparatus for heating and ventilating the building is provided—everything, in short, that is calculated to add to the comforts and assist the recovery of the patients.  On the first story are the wards.  In the males it appears this direful disease shows itself more frequently in the face, lip, and tongue, and among some of them in the breast.  Of the females nearly five-sixths suffer in the breast.

The building, in all its details, has been open about six years.  It was erected from the design of David Mocatta, Esq., by Messrs. Lawrence, at a cost of £7,000.  William Marsden, M.D. was the founder.

This is another admirable Institution, and, although it is situated just beyond the boundary of Chelsea parish, on the north of the Fulham Road, it has a very strong claim to be noticed in this work.  It is a beautiful Elizabethan structure, built in the shape of the letter H, the depth of each wing being 190 ft., and the width of the building 200 ft.  It stands in a square piece of ground covering three acres, and faces the public road.  On entering the Lodge-gate there are three broad drives, one to the central entrance, which opens to a cheerful hall upon the first floor; another to the east entrance, which leads to the offices for the transaction of the hospital business; and the third to the west entrance, which is for the use of inmates and the friends of the in-patients on visiting days.

The ground floor is on a level with the gardens.  The west wing and part of the centre of this floor contain the Dispensary and Out-patient-rooms, Laboratory, Museum, and Sitting-rooms of the Resident Clinical Assistants.  The east wing contains the apartments of the Resident Medical Officer and Matron, Linen-room, Store-room, Secretary’s Office, Board-room, &c.

The first floor is devoted exclusively to Female Patients, saving small rooms for the Chaplain, and for each of the two Head Nurses, and the two requisite Sculleries, Baths, and Lavatories.

The arrangements of the second floor are precisely the same as those on the first floor; the wards being occupied by Male Patients, for whom there are about 107 beds.

The attic floor has comfortable dormitories for the Nurses and Servants, and in the Tower-rooms are the sleeping apartments of the Resident Clinical Assistants.

The Chapel stands on the north side of the hospital, and parallel with the centre portion.  The approach is by a corridor opposite the front entrance, to which the patients have immediate access from their respective galleries.  The chaplain is the Rev. E. B. Allen, B.A., whose faithful exhortations and kind manner of addressing the patients have gained for him the esteem of all who know his worth.

His late R.H. the Prince Consort laid the foundation stone of the hospital in 1844.

CHELSEA IMPROVEMENTS.

The Metropolitan Board of Works (Loans) Bill, empowering the Metropolitan Board of Works to raise money to construct the Chelsea Embankment, and to effect other improvements, having received the Royal assent, there is now no doubt that the Chelsea Embankment works will be very shortly commenced.

The Bills for the “Belgrave Market,” which will remove the unsightly block of buildings between Turk’s Row and Jew’s Row, and the “Belgravia and South Kensington New Road,” which will open a direct communication from Eaton Square to the South Kensington Museum, have also become law.