National Army Museum London
By Robert Kelly
The National Army Museum is located in a modern building almost next door to the famous Royal Hospital Chelsea, home of the famous Chelsea Pensioners.
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While I was visiting London there were a number of transportation strikes on. Some days it was the trains and some days it was the Tube, or Underground. On the day I chose to visit the Household Cavalry and National Army Museums, the trains and buses were running, but the Tube was not. I was able to get close to the Household Cavalry Museum by bus, but it was closed as the staff couldn’t get into work.
I then hopped on another famous London double decker bus to visit the National Army Museum. After sitting on the upper deck of the bus for 20 minutes with no air conditioning, we had travelled 200 metres. It was then that I decided to start walking. I kept hoping that the bus would catch up with me, but it never did.
I ended up walking back to my club, The Victory Services Club at Marble Arch after the museum and was totally tired out. At least I got my steps in that day. If you have military service and are planning on visiting London, I would recommend that you look into joining the Victory Services Club. Victory Services Club – Prestigious Military Members Club, London (vsc.co.uk) The rooms and restaurant are very reasonably priced for London and they even let Americans join.
A Berlin Brigade Challenger tank guards the entrance to the museum. Be aware that the museum is closed on Mondays. Admission is free. There will be a quick security check (it is Europe after all) but the staff is very pleasant. Again, I pretty much had the museum to myself. Hopefully, that was due to the Tube strike.
A nice shot of an Army Lynx helicopter hanging from the ceiling.
As you walk in you are greeted by a number of ceremonial uniforms. And the British Army does ceremonial uniforms like no one else. Note the figure that is second from the right. Yes, he is wearing crimson pants. This honour was bestowed on the King’s Royal Hussars by Prince Albert before his wedding to Queen Victoria. I’ve heard it said that you don’t join the British Army, you join a regiment. And all the various uniforms, traditions, and accouterments are proof of that.
This shows the clothing that is issued to new recruits when they join the army.
This photo shows all the kit that soldiers carried on operations and is compared to what soldiers carried back in the Napoleonic Wars.
A display of the various headdresses through the years.
They had a number of display cabinets showing toy soldiers and vehicles. I wish I could have taken some home.
They had a very nice set of displays covering the occupation of Germany after WW2 up until the Cold War. There was even a veteran on duty to answer questions.
In the middle of this area was Wolfgang’s Brat Wagon. If you have been playing Team Yankee for a few years you will recognize the van. It never got lost and never got stuck in the training areas. When Battlefront talked about how well-loved Wolfgang was by the British troops they weren’t exaggerating. I had a nice chat with the veteran about Wolfgang. I’ve even talked to British soldiers who served in Germany during the Cold War and remember him fondly.
This is a “Pig” armoured vehicle quelling a riot in Northern Ireland during The Troubles. Note the shield wall to the left.
There were a few armoured vehicles in this museum including this Dingo and a Universal carrier. You will notice that the Dingo is elevated. It’s designed so that children can crawl underneath it like a soldier.
This is the Rapier Air Defence system.
They had a cool Churchill tank cutaway that was unfortunately closed when I was there. It was obviously painted by someone who did models. Note the streaks and highlights.
A collection of WW1 weaponry.
This is a large diorama of the Waterloo Battlefield. My pocket camera just couldn’t capture it as well as I had wanted it to.
Here is a display dedicated to Wellington including the dark coat that we are all familiar with.
Here is their salute to Napoleon including the skeleton of his horse, Marengo.
This shows the evolution of the British Army’s combat uniform and equipment.
The British started off wearing their own distinctive desert uniform in Iraq and Afghanistan and finished up wearing their own version of Multicam. One thing to note (though not quite visible) is that the protective plates on the body armour got bigger as they spent more time in battle.
A display of all the different headdress of today’s British Army.
One thing I learned is that there was a Canadian regiment in the British Army.
There was also a display chronicling the late Queen’s wartime service.
And this one depicted one of my favourite subjects, army rations.
They had an area called “Society and the Army”. It was full of movie posters, military-themed beer items, and pop culture items.
They have a play area for children that looks like a lot of fun. You have to reserve a one-hour slot and the cost is 6.25 pounds.
You even have to salute as you enter the men’s room.
Obviously, this is a must-see museum if you are in London. I like that it focused on the army and not the other services. Its also not far from King’s Road and Sloane Square if you have to drop off those family members who don’t want to visit the museum.
More photos can be found here. National Army Museum London 2022 | Flickr
Next up is the Hungarian Army Museum as a change of pace from British Museums.