This estate was built in 1694 as a home for retired sailors. In 1873 it became the Royal Naval College. There are several buildings in the complex, including the College Chapel, and the Queen's House, designed by Inigo Jones in 1616. This is the first Italian renaissance building built in England. Locals tell two interesting stories about the place. First, they claim it was the jousting ground for Henry VIII. They also claim that during the country's antinuclear heyday in the 1970's, Greenwich declared itself a nuclear free zone, then had to reluctantly drop the title when it was discovered that the college maintained a nuclear laboratory under the grounds.

Photograph © Wayne Lorentz