Providence House, Chelsea

Providence House sits quietly within the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea, but its recent history is defined by absolute seclusion and record-breaking opulence. Originally known as Gordon House, the building was designed in eighteen hundred and nine by the architect Thomas Leverton for Colonel James Willoughby Gordon. It served as his private residence until his death in eighteen fifty-one, after which the property was absorbed by the Royal Hospital, serving variously as nursing quarters and staff housing for over a century.