London Drum

Military Museums & Memorials

Military events on this week include watching some pomp and pageantry on the Changing the Guard walking tour, going to see Changing the Guard outside Buckingham Palace, and watching the daily Changing the Guard ceremony at Horse Guards

★★Apsley House

Apsley House - Apsley House was where the Duke of Wellington lived after his victory over Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo, and is filled with his war memorabilia4

★★★Bletchley Park

Bletchley Park - Bletchley Park was a top-secret facility where Alan Turing worked to crack the German Enigma codes during the darkest days of World War II6

The Cenotaph

Cenotaph - The Cenotaph stands in the centre of Whitehall and is the focus of the Remembrance Day Parade when veterans march past and salute6

★★★Ceremony of the Keys

Ceremony of the Keys - The Yeoman Warders have kept up this ceremony for 700 years. You can watch them lock up the Tower of London gates every night6

★★★Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace

Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace - This popular parade takes place on Buckingham Palace’s forecourt with marching bands and shouting sergeants10

★★Changing the Guard at Horse Guards

Changing the Guard at Horse Guards - Watch the Household Cavalry change-over at Horse Guards parade ground and outside the boxes on Whitehall4

★★Chatham Dockyard

Chatham Dockyard - This historic dockyard has lots of boats you can walk around: a 19th-century sloop, a World War II destroyer and even a cold war submarine

★★★Churchill War Rooms

Churchill War Rooms - The bunker underneath Whitehall where Churchill directed the war still looks exactly the same as VE day when they closed it6

★★Dismounting Ceremony

Dismounting Ceremony (4 O'Clock Parade) - Every day at 4 o’clock the Household Cavalry leave their horse-boxes on Whitehall to return back to the barracks7

★★Guards’ Museum

Guards’ Museum - Learn the history of the Foot Guards regiments: the Coldstream Guards, Grenadier Guards, Scots Guards, Irish Guards and Welsh Guards2

★★★HMS Belfast

HMS Belfast - This Second World War cruiser moored next to Tower Bridge allows you to explore all the decks, including the bridge, mess and missile room6

Household Cavalry Museum

Household Cavalry Museum - The highlight of this museum is a window into the stable where they groom the horses of the Household Cavalry3

★★Imperial War Museum

Imperial War Museum - This museum tells the story of the army from the early days of the British Empire right up to our modern-day wars10

★★National Army Museum

National Army Museum - The National Army Museum focuses on the land forces of the British military from the English Civil War up to World War II and beyond4

National Maritime Museum

National Maritime Museum - Greenwich has had a long association with the sea, and the National Maritime Museum tells the story of the British navy3

★★RAF Museum

RAF Museum - The RAF Museum has more planes than an airport – you can see everything from a Spitfire and Lancaster Bomber to a colossal Vulcan bomber6

★★★The Cenotaph

Remembrance Day Parade - The Remembrance Day Parade is a chance for the country to honour the fallen soldiers of all Commonwealth wars30

★★★State Opening of Parliament

State Opening of Parliament - The Household Cavalry leads the Queen to Parliament so she can read the government’s program for the coming year2

★★★Tower of London

Tower of London - This World Heritage Site is famous for the Crown Jewels, Traitor’s Gate, the grisly executions on Tower Green, and the Norman White Tower13

★★★Trooping the Colour

Trooping the Colour - This annual parade is held to celebrate the Queen’s birthday with military bands, marching soldiers and a flypast over the palace’s balcony4

Wellington Barracks

Wellington Barracks - This barracks on the northern edge of St. James’s Park is home to the Scots Guards, Grenadier Guards and Coldstream Guards1

Upcoming military events in London

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Guided Tour: Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace

Guided Tour: Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace Watch the soldiers marching after forming up outside St James's Palace

Gun salutes in the Royal Parks & Tower of London

Gun salutes in the Royal Parks & Tower of London Listen to a deafening gun salute to mark the monarch's birthday or accession to the throne3

Beating Retreat -- Musical military pageant at Horse Guards

Beating Retreat -- Musical military pageant at Horse Guards A floodlit pageant of military music on Horse Guards Parade with fireworks