The ladies in red: Chelsea Pensioners welcome first female recruits in 300-year history | Daily Mail Online The ladies in red: Chelsea Pensioners welcome first female recruits in 300-year history comments Isn't life cruel? You wait 317 years for a sexual revolution and by the time one comes along, you're too old to do much about it. Not that romance was uppermost on the minds of Dorothy Hughes, 85, and her companion Winifred Phillips, 82, when they broke through the centuries-old male bastion of Chelsea Pensioners. But yesterday - as they settled into life as the only two women among several hundred men - you couldn't help noticing the faintest hint of a twinkle in their eyes. Dorothy Hughes (left) and Winifred Phillips (right) pose with their fellow Chelsea Pensioners in their new home of The Royal Hospital today The sprightly octogenarians stood side by side at the Royal Hospital Chelsea to become the first females permitted to wear the bright red coat that distinguishes these proud Army veterans. To describe the pair as feisty may not adequately convey the breath of fresh air they are due to introduce from today.

One was already familiar enough with a chap approaching his 90th birthday to hold his hand at a photocall. The other warned jauntily that the women might soon outnumber the men if other girls follow suit. Don't get the idea that these delightful Ladies in Red are scarlet women, however. They have earned their coveted place at the hospital through years of Army service - and they're quite capable of fitting in simply as 'just part of the team... one of the boys', as they each put it yesterday. And maybe even sorting a few of the boys out. Watching girls go by: The male occupants greet their new female companions During several hours of media interviews they mounted a barrage of tongue-in-cheek one-liners in response to inevitable questions about being so heavily outnumbered. What will it be like to be two women among 300 men? Winifred was asked. 'Wonderful,' she beamed. 'Can't wait.' Are you going to behave yourself? 'Not likely. We're both spoiled for choice here.' What are the chaps like? 'All very polite.

And anyway, we've heard it all before.' Winifred (left) enjoyed a long service in the armed forces, while Dorothy (right) enlisted in 1941 Wasn't the atmosphere a bit blokey? 'Oh no. That's the reason we're here.' Then Dorothy was asked how had she enjoyed being so much in the spotlight? 'Fantastic. Never been paid so much attention in all my life.' Might she form any relationships? 'He'd have to be an older man. And a millionaire, of course.' Did she object to wearing trousers as part of the uniform? 'The men wanted us to wear leather mini-skirts and crop tops but we thought it probably wouldn't be good for their hearts.' Enlarge Winifred and Dorothy share a joke with their new companions Why did she apply to become a Chelsea Pensioner? 'I didn't want to end up sitting in a chair and knitting.' Dorothy, a widow for 18 years, enlisted in 1941 at the age of 18. She served for a time with the Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery on the South Coast to defend the country against V1 rocket attacks, later working with a research group developing shells used against the V2s.

She left in 1946 with the rank of sergeant, retrained as a teacher, and became heavily involved in voluntary work after retiring in 1982. She said everyone at the hospital had been 'extremely kind and welcoming' and added: 'I thought my life was coming to an end at one stage but now it's just beginning again. It's a great privilege.' Enlarge The former servicewomen will wear the same distinctive scarlet uniforms as the men Winifred, whose RAF boyfriend was killed in the Second World War, trained as a nurse before joining the Auxiliary Territorial Service in 1948 and enlisted in the Women's Royal Army Corps a year later. After travelling the world for 22 years she retired with the rank of Warrant Officer Class 2 and took a variety of office and administration jobs. Admission to the hospital, which opened 11 years after King Charles II issued a royal warrant to build it in 1681, serves only those drawing an Army pension. They must also be single. If they fall in love and marry, they can't stay.

Dorothy Hughes (second left) adjusts her scarlet Female army veterans become first women Chelsea pensioners | UK news | The Guardian Female army veterans become first women Chelsea pensioners Royal Hospital, Chelsea, takes new step after 300 years Thursday 12 March 2009 09.20 EDT First published on Thursday 12 March 2009 09.20 EDT Close This article is 7 years old One of the army's oldest institutions took the arrival of two pioneers from what some – but not old soldiers – might think of as the monstrous regiment of women in its stride today, as two female veterans became the first women Chelsea pensioners. It has taken the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, founded by Charles II in 1682 for "the succour and relief of veterans broken by age and war", more than 300 years to accept women army veterans; though Dorothy Hughes and Winifred Phillips, both in their 80s, looked very far from broken as they posed in their new uniforms. "I think it's wonderful," confided Phillips. "I like men. I am alone.

And I wanted to be looked after in my old age." By their side, the male pensioners on parade to welcome their new comrades were equally enthusiastic. Ralph Dickinson, in the Parachute Regiment for 22 years and at the Royal Hospital for nine, said: "I don't see there's a problem. Women can come anywhere now, even working men's clubs, can't they? They've served just like us. Of course, you're going to get some who grumble, but they're the sort who always do." For now, the women will have rooms of their own in the hospital's new Margaret Thatcher infirmary, which will be inaugurated by Prince Charles in a couple of weeks' time, but as further refurbishment work is carried out and more women join, they may eventually be moved into the sort of dormitories that have served the men, who have their own cubicles. They will wear the same uniforms as the men too, though perhaps less in need of the tailoring that shows off the so-called Chelsea chest – the stomachs of portly elderly gentlemen – unless to place it slightly higher up. Consideration is even apparently being given to designing a pensioner's handbag.

The hospital houses 300 army veterans from the ranks of non-commissioned officers and below. All are looked after until they die and, at normal rates of attrition, that means there's a new place available each week – 17 have died since the start of this year. With women volunteers joining the queue, their numbers are expected to rise, though as women make up only about 10% of the army, they are unlikely ever to reach parity. Each of the women is invited for a four-day stay first to see if they like it. Dorothy Hughes, 85, was asked by reporters, inevitably, about the prospect for hanky-panky with the men. Fixing the questioner with a gimlet eye – she used to be a teacher – she said: "Don't spoil the fun. I have been 18 years alone." Then she added: "No way," shaking her head vigorously. Both women's service record stands comparison with any male pensioner's.

Hughes joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) in 1941 and served with a heavy anti-aircraft battery in London and later Rye, fending off incoming V1 flying bombs, before being posted to the army's operational research group, developing the fuses in shells to be fired against the later German V2 rockets. Phillips, 82, enlisted with the Women's Royal Army Corps (WRAC) in 1948 and served for 22 years at bases across the world, including as personal assistant to a number of generals. The hospital's governor, General Lord Walker, welcomed the women's arrival as a historic moment. "Both Dorothy and Winifred are – ah – new boys, so to speak," he said. "There has been no serious opposition. There are always people who view change as a bad thing and sometimes the older you are, the more difficult you find it, but even the grumblers now accept it. The vast majority accepted they were just as much soldiers.

These two ladies have had distinguished careers." First women welcomed by Chelsea Pensioners | Metro News First women welcomed by Chelsea Pensioners metrowebukmetro Thursday 12 Mar 2009 6:50 pm Women were accepted as Chelsea Pensioners for the first time in the group’s 317-year history. Dorothy Hughes, 85, and 82-year-old Winifred Phillips were officially welcomed to the Royal Hospital Chelsea in west London. Home sweet home: Dorothy Hughes dons the famous red coat to begin life as a Chelsea Pensioner They will wear the famous red coat and live alongside 300 men at the site, which is home to war veterans with no dependants. ‘It’s been fabulous,’ said Miss Phillips, who served in the Army for 22 years. ‘It’s just like the Army all over again but you don’t have so much to do.’ Miss Phillips, who moved from Deal in Kent to the site, said she had always preferred male company. Mrs Hughes, from Kidlington in Oxfordshire, applied for her place after seeing the hospital on television. ‘This is fantastic,’ she said.

‘There are a lot of women staff around anyway, so you don’t feel isolated, and once you’ve been in the army, you don’t see them as men, they’re mates.’ But she has ruled out any romance. ‘I’ve been 18 years a widow and no way would I go into a relationship, it’s my own life now and I’m living it,’ she said. And the pair have received a warm welcome. ‘I spoke to one man when they came in and he said “As long as there’s one for each of us, it’s all right”,’ said 79-year-old Geoff Crowther Alan Swain, 79, added: ‘There will be different kinds of conversations on the mess table, we’ve got to moderate our language.’ The Royal Hospital was founded in 1682 for war veterans. Women have been included because of the increasing number of female soldiers at pensionable age. More 'Now I feel just like Cinderella at the ball' - Telegraph 'Now I feel just like Cinderella at the ball' Women are about to join the ranks of the Chelsea pensioners for the first time.

First lady: Dorothy Hughes (85) at the Royal Hospital Chelsea, with two fellow pensioners Photo: MARTIN POPE By Emma Cook 7:00AM GMT 05 Mar 2009 Stepping through the iron gates of London's Royal Hospital Chelsea – home of the Chelsea pensioners – you can see why change might be something of a rarity around here. Just five minutes from the civilised bustle of Sloane Square rush hour, it feels an awful lot closer to three centuries away. I follow a grand sweep of gravel lined with ancient-looking canons to an 18th-century quadrangle overlooking a manicured lawn. Here, tucked away behind Sir Christopher Wren's grand façade, are the living quarters of 300 male pensioners who enjoy a way of life that hasn't altered significantly for the last two hundred years or so.

I am met by a man in red-striped trousers and black jacket who, disappointingly, doesn't click his heels as he greets me but directs me instead to an office past an oak-panelled door with a plaque reading "Master Butler." Everywhere there are reminders of past military glories: portraits of soldiers at war; men charging into battle on horseback, men locked in mortal combat; men triumphant on bloody battlefields. In other words, a world glaringly absent of women – on the battlefield or in the hospital for that matter. Until now. Within a fortnight, the first women will be joining the ranks of Chelsea pensioners, and by the end of the month, the sight of a lady in the distinctive scarlet coats should be a familiar one on Chelsea's Kings Road. Two will be joining now, and another two in the summer. One wonders if the prospect of all that attention, inside and out, could be a little intimidating for the new girls. "Not at all," says Dorothy Hughes, a sprightly 85-year-old who can't wait to leave her Oxford home and move in with the all the men. "I honestly expected hostility when I first visited – from what I read in the papers the men wanted to keep us out.

But it isn't like that. They were so friendly and I really wanted to come here. "My husband died 18 years ago and I've outlived many of my friends. I realised my future could be grim and lonely. My social life has been nil. I'm a people person and it gets harder to meet new friends, so this feels very exciting." Hughes was 18 years old when her home in Swansea was bombed at the start of World War II. Two years later, she was called up and, against her father's will, she took a posting in London as a gunner, defending sights across the city against the Blitz. "I operated naval guns that were cemented into the ground. It was dangerous, and now I look back and think, 'How did we get through it?'" Hughes became a sergeant and, after the war, she transferred to a research group working on a space programme with Cambridge scientists. After five years she left to get married and later re-trained as a teacher. "It's been a complete uplift for me to talk to people who immediately take me back to a time 60 years ago – it's lovely having that bond. I feel very humble.

I never expected to be accepted." She'll be moving in with Winifred Phillips, 82, who joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service in 1948 and served in Egypt, Singapore, Cyprus and Germany. Any woman can now become a Chelsea pensioner as long as they fulfil the same three criteria as the men, explains the Commissioner, Adjutant David Radcliffe, who is responsible for admissions. "They have to be over 65 years old, free of a dependent spouse and drawing an Army pension." In years gone by, evidence of an Army pension would deter impostors eager to enjoy an easy living and, until recently, it was on statute that impersonating a Chelsea pensioner was punishable by death penalty. Then, as now, it was a privileged lifestyle. Radcliffe explains, "When Charles II started building the hospital in 1682, his vision was to look after old soldiers and offer 'succour and relief of veterans broken by age and war.' That's what this place is still for. You can come here and we look after you until you die.

There aren't many places who can offer that." But despite advertising on their website and in regimental magazines, Radcliffe hasn't exactly been inundated with inquiries from the ladies in the last year. "I only had four applications initially but I'm hoping that once the ladies move in and word is out, there will be more." One could ask, why has it taken so long to get this far, given that around 10 per cent of the Army is now female? "It has been talked about for the last four to five years", says the hospital's Governor General the Lord Walker. "I think it was always an inevitable outcome since women joined the Army in increasing numbers from the 1950s and became pensionable, and the comment you get most from the men you ask is that the ladies have got every right to be here – as much as they have." We are sitting in Lord Walker's office sipping tea and discussing the imminent arrival of "the ladies", as they are referred to throughout, with much excitement. "We've been scanning the horizon for booby traps but we haven't found any yet," he says, robustly optimistic about any potential teething problems. No detail has been overlooked, particularly in all matters sartorial.

"At the last meeting for the board of commissioners, Professor Dame Janet Husband said, 'Have you designed a handbag?' We all looked completely blank because, of course, we haven't. I think we probably will, though." So far they have decided that 'the ladies' will wear scarlet coats outside and, like the men, anything as long as it's blue, indoors. "I'm advised, although I'm not an expert, that the ladies quite enjoy wearing trousers." Their uniforms are already being adapted, says Lord Walker, to suit the female figure. "The traditional shape of the man is quite a large tummy, often called the Chelsea chest," he says. "I think the Chelsea chest from now on will be a bit higher, don't you?" he twinkles. Walker is confident the men will feel relaxed and unphased living alongside women; female guests have always come to visit. "Not only do they have their ladies in the club (the bar), they can bring their ladies to lunch so they do see a lot of them already. We had a little opera group from Covent Garden recently, and they gave a stunning performance. There were three very pretty girls from well-known operas.

They didn't just stand up and sing, they sat on knees, too. The face of Archie, one of our pensioners, was an absolute picture." It's hard to detect any overt hostility among the pensioners I'm introduced to. "I can see the odd boy moaning and groaning but it's in their nature," says Ralph Dickinson, 82, who worked in the Parachute Regiment for 17 years. "I don't see a problem with ladies coming. Why shouldn't they reap the benefits?" One serious concern has been where, exactly, the ladies will live. Later on, Radcliffe shows me the men's quarters, which consist of a row of 18 berths in a single dormitory, nine foot square, opening onto a communal corridor known as a "ward". "The downside of this, as far as the ladies are concerned are, um, the ablutions," says Radcliffe gravely, while we are inspecting Ralph's berth. "Ralph, describe the ablutions," prompts Radcliffe. Ralph begins to describe his early morning timetable. "The point is," chips in Radcliffe, "there are 18 men on this ward, with only two showers and five loos.

And old people need to go to the loo a lot in the night." Which is why the ladies will be living in the brand new luxurious-looking infirmary where they will be in great comfort – and their own private rooms – until more accommodation is completed next spring. Not that the quality of accommodation will be top priority for Dorothy, one suspects. Towards the end of the visit, our photographer asks her to sit between Ralph and pensioner Geoff Crowther, 79, both replete in scarlet coats. There is an instant repartee between the three of them. "How old are you Dorothy?" asks Ralph. "Eighty five," she replies. "Well, you don't look a day over 21." "You've made my day," she giggles, and looks in our direction. "Now I feel just like Cinderella at the ball." • 'Ladies In Waiting' will be shown on BBC2 at 7pm on March 6, as part of the series 'Once A Soldier' The ladies who are causing a stir in Chelsea | UK | News | Daily Express The ladies who are causing a stir in Chelsea THE twitching curtains and furtive glances from every window said it all.

00:00, Fri, Mar 13, 2009 ONE OF THE BOYS: Dorothy and Winifred (left) share a laugh For parading through a military quad which has been an all-male bastion for some 300 years were two rather different old soldiers yesterday – women. Amid a fanfare of publicity, the home to the world-famous Chelsea Pensioners threw open its doors to female veterans for the first time. And their presence instantly caused quite a stir among the 300 men. Proudly taking their places at The Royal Hospital, Chelsea, Dorothy Hughes, 85, and Winifred Phillips, 82, became the first women to be known as “In-Pensioners”. Dressed in their traditional scarlet coats and with medals glistening, Mrs Hughes and Miss Phillips said they were all too aware that their presence was causing somewhat of a commotion among the male veterans. But undeterred by the whispering, nudging and pointing in every corridor, the two female old soldiers said they were delighted to be taking up home in west London. Miss Phillips, who served in the Women’s Royal Army Corps, said: “I like men.

And I want to be looked after in my old age. It’s been fabulous. It’s just like the Army all over again but you don’t have so much to do.” After a 22-year career in the Army, it was Miss Phillips who first raised the question of why women were not allowed to become Chelsea Pensioners. She explained: “When I was living in Shropshire 10 years ago I read a magazine called The Legion and it said they wanted more men, so I wrote and said ‘why not women?’. “They wrote back to me later saying they agreed, but it’s taken me 10 years to get here.” Mrs Hughes, who during the war served with the Auxiliary Territorial Service in the 450 Heavy Anti Aircraft Battery in London, added: “When you are soldiers you are not male or female, you are members of a team. Here you are in a community and never alone. It’s just a wonderful feeling of companionship and I enjoy the discipline of soldiering.” Miss Phillips, who moved from Deal in Kent to the site, said: “It will work out fine.

I’m just one of the boys.” Mrs Hughes, from Kidlington in Oxfordshire, applied for her place after seeing the hospital on television. She said: “I’m 85 and I kept thinking ‘well, you don’t know how long your health is going to last’, so I had to make arrangements for the future.” With respect to all the men that would be surrounding her, she added: “Once you’ve been in the Army, you don’t see them as men, they’re mates.” Most read in UK How Winnie got to be a lady in red: MUM'S ARMY BY WINIFRED PHILLIPS | Daily Mail Online How Winnie got to be a lady in red MUM'S ARMY BY WINIFRED PHILLIPS (Simon & Schuster £6.99) Published: 13:17 EST, 21 February 2013 | Updated: 11:09 EST, 25 February 2013 Chelsea girls: Winifred Phillips, right, and Dorothy Hughes attract admiring glances There was no sound of walls falling down but it was a significant revolution all the same.

In 2007, the venerable scarlet-clad army of Chelsea Pensioners dispensed with 300 years of tradition and agreed to open the doors of the Royal Hospital to a woman. The admission rules for the retirement home, founded by King Charles II in 1692, were very clear. Candidates had to be in receipt of an Army pension, be over 65, have at least 22 years’ Army service and be free of the obligation to support a wife, partner or family. And, be a man. Then Winifred Phillips put up her hand, after serving in Singapore, Cyprus and Egypt. In news reports at the time, she said she’d had little trouble convincing the institution. I doubt it was quite that easy (she wrote many, many letters) but I also doubt many people could say no to this strong-minded, charming woman. It took two years for the building to be brought up to scratch for its first female residents, and then - with lots of chuckling and cheeky jokes - 82-year-old Winifred entered her new home, accompanied by 85-year-old Dorothy Hughes.

Winifred’s long life is a cornucopia of merry stories and positive thinking, and the fact she has written a memoir is a testament to her indomitable spirit.If there’s one saying that sums up the ethos of this book, it is: ‘We just got on with it.’ You often hear it from those who lived through the war - and the rest of us could learn much from that stoical philosophy. The events of Winifred’s early life would have today’s youngsters scurrying for anti-depressants. She was born in 1927, the third child of a couple whose marriage was ‘not made in heaven’. Her father was strangely absent most of the time, and money was scarce. Then came the day when little Win’s mother was suddenly seen packing cases. Winifred was told only that her brother Ken (ten years older) would be in charge of her and her baby brother Cliff, and they were going on a train. She writes: ‘I felt a cold hard knot form in the pit of my tummy. I knew better than to ask questions though.

You just did what you were told when you were told.’ Their mother ‘waved goodbye briskly’ - and that was the last they saw of her for years. She had dispatched them to their father in Coventry. ‘Somehow I knew we’d been abandoned. I was being sent away. It’s a feeling that’s stayed with me for the rest of my life,’ writes Win. That comment is the nearest we get to self-pity. It wasn’t long before she was shuttled off again, to live with Auntie Annie, who ‘was a stranger really’. In fact, she proved to be a gem. The memoir's subtitle is 'Love and Adventure from the NAAFI to Civvy Street' - and there's no doubt in my mind that Winifred Phillips was just waiting to join the Army, probably even before she knew it. There she would find the comradeship, fun and sense of belonging she’d always craved. But first came nursing - and meeting the love of her life. Around 1942, Winifred met RAF trainee George Wheeler, 19, and fell in love after a few dates. They had a happy year together before George was sent on bombing missions to Germany.

Winifred treasured his letters and poems, then in August 1944 came a letter from his mother to say he was missing in action. There was nothing for Winifred - and all the others like her - to do but to tuck away her grief and carry on working. When the war ended she fulfilled her dream and join the Auxiliary Territorial Service - which was to take her all over the world. In 1949 she enlisted in the Women’s Royal Army Corps, travelling to exotic places that her childhood self could never have imagined. At the age of 70 she decided to find out what happened to George. With the help of the RAF and the War Research Society she discovered his plane had crashed in France after being hit by enemy fire from Stuttgart. So she takes a coach to the Commonwealth cemetery in Lisieux and finds her boy. The tears flow at last. She comments that visiting this and other war graves ‘was a humbling and fascinating experience and something everyone could learn from’. And so is reading this utterly delightful book.

In Royal Circles - Photo 10 - Pictures - CBS News In Royal Circles Next Britain The president of Mexico, Felipe Calderon, center left, and Britain's Prince Philip, inspect a Guard of Honour of the 1st Battalion, The Irish Guards, on Horse Guards Parade in London, on the first day of the president's state visit to Britain, Monday, March 30, 2009. Credit: AP Carriages transporting Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, Mexican President Felipe Calderon, his wife, Margarita Zavala, and Britain's Prince Philip arrive at Buckingham Palace in London, Monday, March 30, 2009. Credit: AP Mexico's President Felipe Calderon and Britain's Prince Philip, inspect a Guard of Honour of the 1st Battalion, The Irish Guards, on Horse Guards Parade in London, on the first day of the president's state visit to Britain, Monday, March 30, 2009. Credit: AP Mexico's President Felipe Calderon and Britain's Queen Elizabeth II visit an exhibition of Mexican items from The Royal Collection, in the Picture Gallery at Buckingham Palace, London, Monday, March 30, 2009.

President Calderon and his wife were on a four-day State visit to the United Kingdom from March 30 to April 2, 2009. Credit: AP Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, right, and Prince Philip, left, stand with Mexico's President Felipe Calderon and first lady Margarita Zavala in Buckingham Palace in London, Monday, March 30, 2009, before the state banquet during the state visit of the president to London. Credit: AP Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, right, seen with Mexico's President Felipe Calderon, as he addresses guests, during a state banquet inside the ballroom at Buckingham Palace, during the state visit of the president to London, Monday, March 30, 2009. Credit: AP Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, right, is seen with Mexico's President Felipe Calderon, as they toast during a state banquet inside the ballroom at Buckingham Palace, during the state visit of the president to London, Monday, March 30, 2009.

Credit: AP From left; The Duchess of Gloucester; Lady Mayoress Lin Luder; Mexico President Felipe Calderon; the Lord Mayor of the City of London Ian Luder; Margarita Zavala, the wife of Mexico's president; and the Duke Of Gloucester pose for a photo before the state banquet at the Guildhall, in London, Tuesday, March 31, 2009. Credit: AP Mexican President Felipe Calderon, left, and his wife, Margarita Zavala, third left, bid farewell to Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, second left, and Britain's Prince Phillip, right, at Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday April 2, 2009, after a four day state visit. Credit: AP Britain's Prince Charles, and former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher are joined by the first ever women Chelsea pensioners, Dorothy Hughes, 85, left, and Winifred Phillips, 82, right, as they attend the opening of the new Margaret Thatcher Infirmary at the Royal Hospital Chelsea, in London, Wednesday March 25, 2009.

Credit: AP Photo Britain's Prince Charles smells a ladle of food, during a visit to the kitchens of the City Hospital in Nottingham, England. Credit: CBS Britain's Prince Charles, left, patron of The United Kingdom branch of the Friends of the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia, talks with the High Commissioner for Australia, his former Press Officer, John Dauth, right, watched by the Chairman of the Directors, Marina Ritossa, during a reception at Clarence House, London. Credit: AP Photo Britain's Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall visit the Dawoodi Bohra Mosque in Northolt, England. Numbering over a million and settled in over 40 countries, the Shiah Fatemi Ismaili Tayyibi Dawoodi Bohras aim to integrate and assimilate with the cultures of the countries in which they have made their homes. Credit: AP Britain's Prince Harry arrives to present awards at Westminster Abbey in London. Credit: AP The Netherlands Turkish President Abdullah Gul, left, welcomes Netherlands' Prince Willem-Alexander in Istanbul, Turkey, Monday, March 16, 2009, for the opening ceremony of the 5th World Water Forum.

Credit: AP Netherlands' Prince Willem-Alexander takes a picture before the Head of States Summit at the Ottoman-era Ciragan Palace in Istanbul, Turkey, Monday, March 16, 2009, during the 5th World Water Forum. Credit: AP Japan Japanese Crown Prince Naruhito, left, Crown Princess Masako, right, and their 7-year-old daughter Princess Aiko wait for a limousine as the crown prince prepares to leave Togu Palace in Tokyo Saturday, March 14, 2009, for Turkey, where he will attend the World Water Forum. Credit: AP Photo Japanese Crown Prince Naruhito, left, bids farewell to 7-year-old daughter Princess Aiko, center, as Crown Princess Masako looks on at the entrance of their residence Togu Palace in Tokyo, March 14, 2009, before his departure for Turkey to attend the World Water Forum. Credit: AP Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov, second right, tells Japan's Prince Akishino about a gold amphora which was excavated in during the Bulgarian Exhibition at the Daimaru Museum in Tokyo.

Credit: AP Thailand Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, princess of Thailand, receives a bunch of flowers as she arrives for the official inauguration of the Thai pavilion, a gift from Thailand to the city of Lausanne, Switzerland, Tuesday March 17, 2009. Credit: AP Photo Women accepted as Chelsea Pensioners for first time - Telegraph Women accepted as Chelsea Pensioners for first time Women have been accepted as Chelsea Pensioners for the first time in the institution's 300-year history. New Chelsea pensioners Winifred Phillips (C) and Dorothy Hughes (L) walk past their fellow In-Pensioners in their new home of The Royal Hospital Photo: GETTY 2:37PM GMT 12 Mar 2009 Dorothy Hughes, 85, and Winifred Phillips, 82, were officially welcomed to the Royal Hospital Chelsea in west London. They will live alongside 300 men at the site, which is home to war veterans with no dependants. Declaring "I like men", Miss Phillips said: "It's been fabulous.

It's just like the Army all over again but you don't have so much to do." After a 22-year career in the Army, she raised the question of why women were not allowed to become Chelsea Pensioners. She said: "When I was living in Shropshire 10 years ago I read a magazine called The Legion and it said they wanted more men, so I wrote and said 'why not women?'. Then they wrote back to me later saying they agreed, but it's taken me 10 years to get here." Related Articles Chelsea Pensioners' new homes 11 Jun 2010 Miss Phillips, who moved from Deal in Kent to the site, said she has always preferred male company. Her sole fellow female (in-pensioner) Mrs Hughes, from Kidlington in Oxfordshire, applied for her place after seeing the hospital on television. She said: "I'm 85 and I kept thinking 'well, you don't know how long your health is going to last', so I had to make arrangements for the future." Mrs Hughes added: "This is fantastic.

There are a lot of women staff around anyway, so you don't feel isolated, and once you've been in the army, you don't see them as men, they're mates." But she has already ruled out any romance with the male pensioners. She said: "It's a new beginning for me and maybe it's a second childhood and I'm going to love every minute of it. I've been 18 years a widow and no way would I go into a relationship, it's my own life now and I'm living it." The two women moved to the site on Monday, having spent a few trial days there in January. So far, they have been given a warm welcome despite being the first females there for 317 years. Geoff Crowther, 79, from Halifax in West Yorkshire, said: "I think they certainly deserve it. I spoke to one man when they came in and he said 'As long as there's one for each of us, it's all right'." Fellow pensioner Lewis Prangle, 89, from Winchester, Hants, said: "I think it's good to have the ladies in. I don't think it will make a lot of difference to us.

There will be different kinds of conversations on the mess table, we've got to moderate our language." Women have been included in the scheme because of the increasing number of female soldiers at pensionable age. The men have known for three or four years that they would eventually have female company. Alan Swain, 79, from Sheffield, looked after the women on their initial visit. He said: "They blended in very well, they were very well received. "The boys in the dining hall were saying 'Come and sit here', it was done very well." Mr Swain added: "I don't think it will change that much. They've (the women) been in the services and they know what it's like." The Ladies In Red | Military History Forum Military History Forum Chelsea Peansioners Welcome Female Recruits for the First Time in Over 300 Years. Isn't life cruel? You wait 317 years for a sexual revolution and by the time one comes along, you're too old to do much about it. Not that romance was uppermost on the minds of Dorothy Hughes, 85, and her companion Winifred Phillips, 82, when they broke through the centuries-old male bastion of Chelsea Pensioners.

But yesterday - as they settled into life as the only two women among several hundred men - you couldn't help noticing the faintest hint of a twinkle in their eyes. The sprightly octogenarians stood side by side at the Royal Hospital Chelsea to become the first females permitted to wear the bright red coat that distinguishes these proud Army veterans. To describe the pair as feisty may not adequately convey the breath of fresh air they are due to introduce from today. One was already familiar enough with a chap approaching his 90th birthday to hold his hand at a photocall. The other warned jauntily that the women might soon outnumber the men if other girls follow suit. Don't get the idea that these delightful Ladies in Red are scarlet women, however. They have earned their coveted place at the hospital through years of Army service - and they're quite capable of fitting in simply as 'just part of the team... one of the boys', as they each put it yesterday. And maybe even sorting a few of the boys out. During several hours of media interviews they mounted a barrage of tongue-in-cheek one-liners in response to inevitable questions about being so heavily outnumbered.

What will it be like to be two women among 300 men? Winifred was asked. 'Wonderful,' she beamed. 'Can't wait.' Are you going to behave yourself? 'Not likely. We're both spoiled for choice here.' What are the chaps like? 'All very polite. And anyway, we've heard it all before.' Wasn't the atmosphere a bit blokey? 'Oh no. That's the reason we're here.' Then Dorothy was asked how had she enjoyed being so much in the spotlight? 'Fantastic. Never been paid so much attention in all my life.' Might she form any relationships? 'He'd have to be an older man. And a millionaire, of course.' Did she object to wearing trousers as part of the uniform? 'The men wanted us to wear leather mini-skirts and crop tops but we thought it probably wouldn't be good for their hearts.' Why did she apply to become a Chelsea Pensioner? 'I didn't want to end up sitting in a chair and knitting.' Dorothy, a widow for 18 years, enlisted in 1941 at the age of 18.

She served for a time with the Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery on the South Coast to defend the country against V1 rocket attacks, later working with a research group developing shells used against the V2s. She left in 1946 with the rank of sergeant, retrained as a teacher, and became heavily involved in voluntary work after retiring in 1982. She said everyone at the hospital had been 'extremely kind and welcoming' and added: 'I thought my life was coming to an end at one stage but now it's just beginning again. It's a great privilege.' Winifred, whose RAF boyfriend was killed in the Second World War, trained as a nurse before joining the Auxiliary Territorial Service in 1948 and enlisted in the Women's Royal Army Corps a year later. After travelling the world for 22 years she retired with the rank of Warrant Officer Class 2 and took a variety of office and administration jobs. Admission to the hospital, which opened 11 years after King Charles II issued a royal warrant to build it in 1681, serves only those drawing an Army pension. They must also be single. If they fall in love and marry, they can't stay.

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Question: Dorothy Hughes and Winifred Phillips became at 85 years old the first what?
Answer: Chelsea Pensioners