Chelsea Barracks

Last updated

Chelsea Barracks
London
Chelsea Barracks.jpg
Chelsea Barracks circa 1870
Greater London UK location map 2.svg
Red pog.svg
Chelsea Barracks
Location within London
Coordinates 51°29′20″N00°09′11″W / 51.48889°N 0.15306°W / 51.48889; -0.15306
TypeResidential (Former Army Barracks)
Site information
OwnerQatari Diar
Site history
Built1860–1862
Built for War Office
In use1862–2008

Chelsea Barracks was a British Army barracks located in the City of Westminster, London, between the districts of Belgravia, Chelsea and Pimlico on Chelsea Bridge Road. The barracks closed in the late 2000s, and the site is currently being redeveloped for residential use by Qatari Diar, a subsidiary of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA). [1]

Contents

History

Lorries of a mobile recruiting team lined up at Chelsea Barracks during the Second World War British Army Recruiting Campaign H43064.jpg
Lorries of a mobile recruiting team lined up at Chelsea Barracks during the Second World War
The 1960s tower blocks at Chelsea Barracks just before demolition in 2008 Chelsea Barracks 2.jpg
The 1960s tower blocks at Chelsea Barracks just before demolition in 2008
Chelsea Barracks, Stanford's Map Of Central London 1897 Chelsea Barracks map 1897.jpg
Chelsea Barracks, Stanford's Map Of Central London 1897

The original barracks, designed by George Morgan to house two battalions of infantry, were completed in 1862. [2] The barracks comprised a long and monotonous brick structure broken by towers in the centre. [3] The original arrangement included a chapel, which survives, and the interior of which includes pictures of King David, the Prophet Joshua, Saint John and Saint James, as well as some panels listing the names of soldiers killed in action. [4] It is now a Grade II listed building, [5] used by the King's Foundation for exhibitions and events. [6]

In the late 1950s, the original buildings, excluding the chapel, were demolished, and in June 1960, construction started on two 13-storey concrete tower-blocks designed by Tripe and Wakeham, which were completed in 1962. [7] The tower blocks were used to accommodate four companies from the Guards Regiments. [8] A nail-bomb attack on the barracks by the Provisional Irish Republican Army on 10 October 1981 killed two civilians and injured up to 50. [9] [10]

Development of the site

The Chelsea Barracks in the final stages of its demolition with The Baroness Thatcher Infirmary of the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, in the background Chelsea Barracks being demolished with Royal Hospital in background.jpg
The Chelsea Barracks in the final stages of its demolition with The Baroness Thatcher Infirmary of the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, in the background

On 6 September 2005 Secretary of State for Defence, John Reid, announced that Chelsea Barracks would be sold. [11] He described it as needing extensive renovations. The site was vacated in 2008 with the troops transferred to the Royal Artillery Barracks at Woolwich. The site was part of the Ministry of Defence's Project MoDEL that saw it and five other sites across London sold off, mainly for housing. [12]

Westminster City Council published its draft planning brief for the Chelsea Barracks site in September 2006. It included a commitment to develop 50% of the site with affordable housing. A Community Forum was established by local residents in April 2006 with the support of Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, John Hutton MP, to campaign for greater transparency in the sale of the barracks site and for the 50% affordable homes commitment to be realised. [13]

2007 sale

The barracks is in one of London's most expensive residential areas and was originally expected to sell for £250 million. [12] In April 2007 the Ministry of Defence agreed to sell Chelsea Barracks in its 12.8 acres (5.2 ha) site for £959 million to a consortium consisting of Qatari Diar and the CPC Group. On 1 February 2008, the joint venture took possession of the site. [14] Subsequently, CPC's interest in the joint venture company, Project Blue Ltd, was acquired by Qatari Diar, which now owns 100% of the site. [15]

Withdrawn Richard Rogers scheme

In 2008, a proposed scheme for the barracks site - designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners - was submitted to Westminster Council. The masterplan was a contemporary design with series of copper, glass and concrete pavilions - with 638 residential units including 50% affordable units. [16]

However, the proposal was criticised by Prince Charles, who preferred a more traditional design for the site. [17] [18] The developers Qatari Diar subsequently withdrew the planning application in June 2009. [19] Richard Rogers publicly criticised the Prince's intervention following the withdrawal. [20]

In May 2010, some of the developers made an £81 million claim at the High Court, blaming Prince Charles for the withdrawal of a planning application. The claim was later reduced to £68 million. [21] The High Court ruled that Qatari Diar breached a contract with developers CPC Group when it withdrew Richard Rogers' Chelsea Barracks scheme. The High Court handed a partial victory to property development firm CPC Group, who demanded compensation after plans to redevelop London's Chelsea Barracks were shelved. Christian and Nick Candy blamed an intervention by Prince Charles for giving their partners, Qatari Diar, cold feet. [22] Prince Charles was quoted as saying the Chelsea Barracks project would be "a gigantic experiment with the very soul of our capital city" and went on saying "it should be scrapped in favour of something more old-fashioned". High Court judge, Mr. Justice Vos ruled that Charles' intervention in the design of the project was immediately recognized and raised serious political issues that needed to be dealt with at the highest level, inferring that Charles had intervened unlawfully. [23]

New masterplan

A new masterplan - designed by Squire and Partners - was approved by Westminster Council in 2011. [24] The site will be built over multiple phases over several years. The scheme will have 448 residential units including 123 affordable units (27%), as well as a new leisure centre, NHS medical centre, community centre and local shops. [25]

In May 2014, Westminster Council granted detailed planning consent for the first phase of the scheme, consisting of 68 apartments across three eight-storey blocks and includes five new garden squares. [26] Construction on this first phase began in 2015. [27] Residents began to move into the development in October 2019. [28]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knightsbridge</span> District in central London, England

Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End. Knightsbridge is also the name of the roadway which runs near the south side of Hyde Park from Hyde Park Corner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St John's Wood</span> Area of London, England

St John's Wood is a district in the City of Westminster, London, England, about 2.5 miles (4 km) northwest of Charing Cross. Historically the northern part of the ancient parish and Metropolitan Borough of Marylebone, it extends from Regent's Park and Primrose Hill in the east to Edgware Road in the west, with the Swiss Cottage area of Hampstead to the north and Lisson Grove to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battersea Power Station</span> Decommissioned coal-fired power station

Battersea Power Station is a decommissioned coal-fired power station located on the south bank of the River Thames in Nine Elms, Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It was built by the London Power Company (LPC) to the design of Leonard Pearce, Engineer in Chief to the LPC, and CS Allott & Son Engineers. The architects were J. Theo Halliday and Giles Gilbert Scott. The station is one of the world's largest brick buildings and notable for its original, Art Deco interior fittings and decor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paddington Basin</span> Canal basin in Paddington, London, England

Paddington Basin is the name given to a long canal basin, and its surrounding area, in Paddington, London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Rogers</span> British architect (1933–2021)

Richard George Rogers, Baron Rogers of Riverside, was a British-Italian architect noted for his modernist and constructivist designs in high-tech architecture. He was the founder at Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners, previously known as the Richard Rogers Partnership, until June 2020. After Rogers' retirement and death, the firm rebranded to simply RSHP on 30 June 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wood Wharf</span>

Wood Wharf is a 23 acre site in Canary Wharf, London. It is currently under construction to provide offices, residential homes and retail space. The site is next to Canary Wharf. Wood Wharf will contain 5 million square feet of space, which will include 2 million sq ft of office space, 3,330 residential homes, 3.6 hectares of public spaces, and 380,000 sq ft of shops, restaurants and space for community use. It is estimated to be completed in 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">122 Leadenhall Street</span> Skyscraper in central London, England

122 Leadenhall Street, which is also known as the Leadenhall Building, is a 225-metre-tall (738 ft) skyscraper in central London. It opened in July 2014 and was designed by the Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners; it is known informally as The Cheesegrater because of its distinctive wedge shape, similar to that of the kitchen utensil of the same name. It is one of numerous tall buildings recently completed or under construction in the City of London financial district, including 20 Fenchurch Street, 22 Bishopsgate and The Scalpel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embassy of the United States, London</span> Diplomatic mission of the United States in the United Kingdom

The Embassy of the United States of America in London is the diplomatic mission of the United States in the United Kingdom. It is located in Nine Elms and is the largest American embassy in Western Europe and the focal point for events relating to the United States held in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allies and Morrison</span> British architectural firm

Allies and Morrison LLP is an architecture and urban planning practice based in London and Cambridge. Founded in 1984, the practice is now one of Britain's largest architectural firms. The practice's work ranges from architecture and interior design to conservation and renovation of historic buildings to urbanism, planning, consultation and research. The firm's notable projects include the redevelopment of the Royal Festival Hall, the masterplan for the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, BBC Media Village and the redevelopment of King's Cross Central. The practice has a reputation for designing modernist, yet stylistically restrained buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Exhibition Road</span> Street in South Kensington, London, England

Exhibition Road is a street in South Kensington, London which is home to several major museums and academic establishments, including the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Science Museum and the Natural History Museum.

RSHP British architectural firm

RSHP is a British architectural firm, founded in 1977 and previously known as the Richard Rogers Partnership which became Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners in 2007. The firm rebranded from Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners to simply RSHP on 30 June 2022, after the retirement and subsequent death of Richard Rogers on 18 December 2021. Its main offices are located in the Leadenhall Building, London, completed to the firm's designs in 2014. Previously, they were at the Thames Wharf Studios. In its various incarnations RSHP has designed many important buildings including the Lloyd's building and the Millennium Dome in London and the Senedd building in Cardiff.

Nicholas Anthony Christopher Candy and Christian Peter Candy are British luxury property developers. The brothers were estimated to share a joint net worth of £1.5 billion in the Estates Gazette rich list 2010, placing them at position 52 in the list of the richest property developers in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fitzroy Place (London)</span> London building

Fitzroy Place is an office, residential and retail estate in Fitzrovia, London. With 289 homes, with interiors designed by Johnson Naylor, and 220,000 sq ft of office space, Fitzroy Place houses a series of shops and restaurants, offices and community spaces, set around a publicly accessible central square. The square, which was the first new garden square in W1 for 100 years, incorporates the Grade II* listed Fitzrovia Chapel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Qatar Investment Authority</span> Sovereign wealth fund of Qatar

The Qatar Investment Authority is Qatar's sovereign wealth fund. The QIA was founded by the State of Qatar in 2005 to strengthen the country's economy by diversifying into new asset classes. In October 2023, the QIA has an estimated $475 billion of assets under management.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands</span>

Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands is a practice of architects, urban designers and masterplanners established in 1986 and practising out of London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Village, London</span> Human settlement in England

East Village is an area in Stratford, East London that was designed and constructed as the Olympic Village of the 2012 Summer Olympics and has been converted for use as a new residential district, complete with independent shops, bars and restaurants. The area was formerly contaminated waste land and industrial buildings to the north of Stratford town centre. More than 7,000 people now live in the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Mary's, Cadogan Street</span> Church in London, England

St Mary's, Cadogan Street, is a Grade II* listed Roman Catholic church in Cadogan Street, Chelsea, London. It was built between 1877 and 1879 by John Francis Bentley, most notable for his work as architect of Westminster Cathedral, and is one of the oldest Roman Catholic parishes in Central London.

Delancey Real Estate Asset Management Limited is a British property development company that has wholly owned subsidiaries such as DV4 based in offshore jurisdictions. The billionaire George Soros invested in the company in 1998. The company appears in the Panama papers. In 2011, the Qatari ruling family bought the Olympic Village used in the London 2012 Olympic Games. The area has been renamed the East Village.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oxley Woods</span>

Oxley Woods is a housing development in Oxley Park, a district of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The development was designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners and built by Newton Woods, who were subcontracted by Taylor Wimpey after winning the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's Design for Manufacture Competition, which was run by English Partnerships in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Y:Cube</span> Building in London, England

Y:Cube is a three-storey block of 36 one-bedroom affordable housing flats, owned by YMCA St Paul’s Group. They include George William Court, 148 Clay Avenue and flats 36A-E Woodstock Way in Mitcham in London, England. George William Court was named after the founder of YMCA, George Williams.

References

  1. ↑ "Chelsea Barracks | The Most Coveted 12.8 Acres In The World". www.chelseabarracks.com. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  2. ↑ "Chelsea Barracks chapel will not be listed but will survive". Evening Standard. 26 November 2009. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  3. ↑ "Military Life in 1900 London: Barracks". Imperial London. Archived from the original on 20 November 2005. Retrieved 21 August 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ↑ "Listing protects Guards Chapel in £3bn Chelsea Barracks scheme". 30 March 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  5. ↑ Historic England. "Guards' Chapel at former Chelsea Barracks (1401791)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  6. ↑ "THE GARRISON CHAPEL". The King’s Foundation. 2024.
  7. ↑ "Chelsea Barracks, London: the officers' mess at the north-west corner of the site". RIBA. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  8. ↑ "Barracks sell for record amount". BBC News. 31 January 2008. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  9. ↑ "'May have hit wrong target' say Guards". 16 October 1981. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  10. ↑ "London bomb kills one; hurts up to 50". New York Times. 11 October 1981. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
  11. ↑ "Chelsea Barracks to be sold off". BBC News . 6 September 2005. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  12. 1 2 "Chelsea Barracks to be sold off". BBC. 6 September 2005. Retrieved 1 April 2014.
  13. ↑ "Chelsea Barracks Community Forum" . Retrieved 1 April 2014.
  14. ↑ Judith Heywood (1 February 2008). "Record £959m buys Chelsea Barracks for developers". Times Online. London. Retrieved 2 September 2009.[ dead link ]
  15. ↑ "Qatari Diar eyes full control of Chelsea Barracks project". Reuters. 10 November 2008.[ dead link ]
  16. ↑ "Chelsea Barracks - Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners". Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners . Archived from the original on 14 November 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  17. ↑ "Barracks plan insane, says prince". BBC News . 6 October 2010. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  18. ↑ Angus Laurie and Mariana Leguia (16 August 2009). "The case of Chelsea Barracks – Prince Charles and Richard Rogers". Glass Magazine. Archived from the original on 29 August 2009. Retrieved 1 September 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  19. ↑ "Developers withdraw barracks plan". BBC News . 12 June 2009. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  20. ↑ "Richard Rogers: 'Prince Charles single-handedly wrecked my Chelsea project'". the Guardian . 15 June 2009. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  21. ↑ Prince Charles 'voiced local views' on Chelsea Barracks, BBC News, 29 June 2010
  22. ↑ Candy brothers win Chelsea Barracks case, Building.co.uk, 25 June 2010
  23. ↑ Booth, Robert (25 June 2010). "Prince Charles's role in Chelsea barrack planning row 'unwelcome'". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  24. ↑ "Chelsea Barracks plan approved by Westminster Council". BBC News . 21 June 2011. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  25. ↑ "Masterplan | Chelsea Barracks Engagement". Chelsea Barracks Partnership. Archived from the original on 3 August 2020. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  26. ↑ "Chelsea Barracks Development Exhibition" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 September 2016. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  27. ↑ "After eight years, work begins on £3 billion Chelsea Barracks". Evening Standard. 16 March 2015. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  28. ↑ "First look: The super-luxe apartments within a former army barracks in Chelsea". CityAM. 6 September 2019. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.