LONDON A-Z An alphabetical journey through the capital's museums Guards Museum
Location: Wellington Barracks, Birdcage Walk SW1E 6HQ [map] Open: daily (10am - 4pm) Admission: £3 (serving military personnel £1) Brief summary: battles, bayonets and bearskins Website:www.theguardsmuseum.com Time to set aside: up to an hour
And now for a museum so central you've probably never noticed it. Wellington Barracks runs along the southern edge of St James's Park (if you've ever been in the area your eyes have probably been on the park, not the barracks). These buildings are home to a battalion of the Household Division of the British Army (who have to be stationed incredibly close to Buckingham Palace because many of their ceremonial duties involve marching up and down in front of the Queen). Tourists know these soldiers better than locals, because they're the men in red coats and furry black hats who perform daily in the Changing of the Guard. They're representatives of the five regiments of the Foot Guards (Grenadier, Coldstream, Welsh, Scots and Irish). And yes, they have their own museum.
Step off Birdcage Walk into the small courtyard at the eastern end of Wellington Barracks, and you may wonder precisely which building the museum is. The small squat building to the right, maybe (er, no, that's the gift shop, with its masses of shelves of toysoldiers for sale). The much larger Mediterranean-style box to the left, perhaps [photo] (er, no, that's the GuardsChapel, a strikingly modern place of worship open for public perusal on weekdays). No, it's none of the buildings round here, grand or otherwise. The Guards Museum is hidden underground, off to the right between two sentry boxes and down some steps into the basement. Maybe that's why you've never noticed it before.
Prepare yourself for a military experience. The bloke on the front desk, undoubtedly a retired soldier, will take your money and check your bag, then direct you off into a world of medals and insignia. If you're lucky the DVD in the mini theatre will be playing to provide an outline of the Guards' historic role, although last weekend the machine appeared to be buggered so I had to skip that. An example of each of the ceremonial uniforms is on display here, including those iconic black bearskins that tower unfeasibly above parading guardsmen's heads. Pay careful attention and you'll be able to differentiate between a Scots Guard and a Coldstream Guard across a crowded parade ground. And then into the museum proper - a series of about five or six rooms outlining the regiments' chronological story.
Try not to be disturbed by the initial tableau of three life-sized guardsman dummies waving a big flag and roaring in battlefield defiance. Instead start to make your way round the walls looking at the artefacts and reading about the history. The Guards started out as a Stuart defence force protecting the King, and have been involved in every major skirmish ever since. Prepare to read about them all. Or, if you're a visiting American child, just whoop at all the weaponry and imagine what fun it must have been stabbing, hacking and slicing through your enemies with it.
There are an awful lot of strange hats. The guards have always been game for wearing particularly ostentatious headgear, some of which make a bearskin helmet look positively tame. There's also a lot of assorted memorabilia, much of it campaign related, with a particular emphasis on the horrors and glories of the Crimea. Some general earned that dangly silver thing, some footsoldier banged that drum in the heat of battle, and some proud veteran donated that letter of commendation. It'd be hard to ever describe the collection as exciting, unless you're the sort who really gets off on all things military, but the artefacts do generate a convincing historical atmosphere.
And it's not all old stuff. After a reminder of the Guards contribution to both World Wars comes an unexpectedly up-to-date section detailing life on the frontline in Afghanistan. There's a mock up of a soldier's desert quarters, complete with army rations and a copy of the Sun newspaper, alongside a caption dating the scene to 2008. It's not all parading up and down for tourists and providing silver service for Her Maj, these guys still put their life on the line during lengthy foreign tours of duty. If that thought stirs your heart, you might appreciate a tour round the basement to pay your respects. by tube: St James's Park
Step off Birdcage Walk into the small courtyard at the eastern end of Wellington Barracks, and you may wonder precisely which building the museum is. The small squat building to the right, maybe (er, no, that's the gift shop, with its masses of shelves of toy soldiers for sale). The much larger Mediterranean-style box to the left, perhaps [photo] (er, no, that's the Guards Chapel, a strikingly modern place of worship open for public perusal on weekdays). No, it's none of the buildings round here, grand or otherwise. The Guards Museum is hidden underground, off to the right between two sentry boxes and down some steps into the basement. Maybe that's why you've never noticed it before.
There are an awful lot of strange hats. The guards have always been game for wearing particularly ostentatious headgear, some of which make a bearskin helmet look positively tame. There's also a lot of assorted memorabilia, much of it campaign related, with a particular emphasis on the horrors and glories of the Crimea. Some general earned that dangly silver thing, some footsoldier banged that drum in the heat of battle, and some proud veteran donated that letter of commendation. It'd be hard to ever describe the collection as exciting, unless you're the sort who really gets off on all things military, but the artefacts do generate a convincing historical atmosphere.
