Chelsea pensioner A Chelsea pensioner is an in - pensioner at the Royal Hospital Chelsea , a retirement home and nursing home for former members of the British Army located in Chelsea , London . Historically , however , the phrase applied more widely , referring to both in - pensioners and out - pensioners . In - and out - pensioners . During the reign of King William III and Queen Mary II , the Royal Hospital was still under construction , so they introduced a system for distribution of army pensions in 1689 . The pension was to be made available to all former soldiers who had been injured in service , or who had served for more than 20 years . By the time the Hospital was completed , there were more pensioners than places available in the Hospital . Eligible ex - soldiers who could not be housed in the Hospital were termed out - pensioners , receiving their pension from the Royal Hospital but living outside it . In - pensioners , by contrast , surrender their army pension and live within the Royal Hospital . In 1703 , there were only 51 out - pensioners . By 1815 this figure had risen to 36 , 757 . The Royal Hospital remained responsible for distributing army pensions until 1955 , following which the phrase " out - pensioner " became less common , and " Chelsea pensioner " was used largely to refer to " in - pensioners " . Life of in - pensioners . Upon arrival at the Royal Hospital , each in - pensioner is given a " berth " in a ward , a small room ( 9 feet x 9 feet ) on a long corridor , and is allocated to a company . In - pensioners surrender their army pension , in return receiving board , lodging , clothing and full medical care . The size of the hospital berths has increased over time . There are 18 berths to a ward . Conditions for admission as an in - pensioner . To be considered for admission as an in - pensioner , a candidate must be : Admission of women . Until 2009 , only male candidates were admitted . It was announced in 2007 that female ex - service personnel would be admitted on the completion of modernisation of the long wards . In March 2009 the first women in the Hospital ’ s 317 year history were admitted as In - Pensioners . Dorothy Hughes ( aged 85 ) was the first , soon followed by Winifred Phillips ( aged 82 ) . Hughes had joined the British Army in 1941 , later working as part of 450 Heavy Anti Aircraft Battery in the London Division . In 1945 the Battery was deployed near Dover to defend against V1 rocket attacks . Phillips trained as a nurse and later joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service in 1948 before enlisting in the Women ' s Royal Army Corps in 1949 while serving in Egypt . After 22 years service she retired with the rank of Warrant Officer Class 2 . Clothing . In - pensioners are entitled to come and go from the Royal Hospital as they please , and are permitted to wear civilian clothing wherever they travel . However , within the Hospital , and in the surrounding area , in - pensioners are encouraged to wear a blue uniform . If they travel further from the Hospital , they should wear the distinctive scarlet coats instead of the blue uniform . The scarlet coats are also worn for ceremonial occasions , accompanied by tricorne hats . ( At other times a peaked hat , known as a shako , is generally worn ) . In uniform , the pensioners wear their medal ribbons and the insignia of the rank they reached while serving in the military . They may also wear other insignia they earned during their service and many pensioners now wear parachute jump wings and even SAS jump wings . It is illegal to impersonate an in - pensioner ; at one time this was punishable by death . Men In Scarlet Album . Seven Chelsea Pensioners at the Royal Hospital Chelsea released an album on 8 November 2010 in order to raise money for the Chelsea Pensioners ' Appeal . Featuring Dame Vera Lynn , Katherine Jenkins , The Soldiers , and Janey Cutler , the album is full of well known wartime songs and includes their traditional march , " The Old Brigade " . The Chelsea Pensioners ' Appeal is currently trying to raise £30 million for the refurbishment of the Chelsea Pensioners ' living accommodation . On 13 December on " The Alan Titchmarsh Show " , it was announced that the album had sold 100 , 000 copies . Chelsea Football Club . Nearby Chelsea Football Club has been affiliated with the Chelsea Pensioners for many years ; the club ' s first nickname was the " Pensioners " and until the 1950s the club crest featured a Chelsea pensioner . Residents of the Hospital can still be seen attending Chelsea ' s home games at Stamford Bridge . When Chelsea won the Premier League title in 2005 , Chelsea pensioners formed a guard of honour as the players and management came out for the trophy presentation . In tribute to the trademark red coats worn by the pensioners , Chelsea ' s kit for the 2010 - 11 season featured a red trim on the collars .