Chelsea supposedly the home of Chelsea Football Club but are actually situated in Fulham, and the unexpected! Queen Elizabeth II (when she was Princess Elizabeth) was once a resident in Chelsea at the Manor House.
The Manor House in Chelsea was acquired by Queen Elizabeth II illustrious ancestor King Henry VIII, both Catherine Parr and Anne of Cleves (his ex wives) also lived there.
Chelsea always a popular location for the wealthy was once described as "a village of palaces". The Kings Road made famous in the 60s by Biba and in the 70s by Vivienne Westwoods shop "SEX", is still very much in vogue. It is full of small boutiques, but has also all the other High Street name shops such as Gap, M & S and others.
Whether you are looking for a palace, a five star hotel (Wyndham Grand), a boutique hotel (My Hotel Chelsea), or just a good hotel (
Jurys Inn Chelsea) then Chelsea has it all.
If you are into cakes and pastries, than this is for you, Chelsea was once famous for the manufacture of Chelsea buns (a Chelsea bun is made from a long strip of sweet dough tightly coiled, with currants trapped between the layers, and topped with sugar) delicious.
Chelsea is still famous for its "Chelsea China" ware, though the works, the Chelsea porcelain factory thought to be the first workshop to make porcelain in England were sold in 1769, and moved to Derby. Examples of the original Chelsea ware fetch high values.
Other potters set up workshops in the vicinity as that of David Rawnsley and his working partner Joice Morgan who set up open studios where other potters could come and learn an innovative way to teach others.
Chelsea was previously home to many painters such as Dante Gabriel Rossetti, J.M.W. Turner, James McNeill Whistler, William Holman Hunt, and John Singer Sargent who all lived and worked there.
Writers also made their homes in Chelsea, people like George Meredith, Leigh Hunt, and Thomas Carlyle. Today the area has many film, music and artists living there with Kylie Minogue recently joining the ranks but others have been in Chelsea for years, Bob Geldof being one.
The Chelsea Collection is a priceless anthology of prints and pictures of old Chelsea and is found in the Chelsea Library, some of the artists are very well known such as Rossetti and Whistler.
The Chelsea Royal Hospital opened in 1694 for invalided soldiers is a wonderful piece of architecture by Wren and stands in extensive grounds, the Chelsea Flower Show is held there annually. There is also the Duke of York's Square, which is full of shops and cafes and site of the weekly farmers market.
Locations very near Chelsea that offer shopping and entertainment are
Shepherds Bush and
Hammersmith, for culture there is
South Kensington and
Oxford Street is but 10 minutes by London Underground.
