Greenwich Hospital

Greenwich Hospital. The Royal Hospital at Greenwich, built on the site of a royal palace, was founded by William and Mary in 1691 as a home for superannuated seamen and marines. These were formerly chosen by the Admiralty, and were lodged, victualled, and clothed by the Hospital, within or without its walls, as well as supplied with pocket-money; but since 1871 the pensioners have wholly ceased to reside on the spot, and the building has been devoted to the purposes of the Royal Naval College (for the technical instruction of officers) and of a naval museum and picture gallery. The pensioners numbered in 1708, 300; in 1728, 450; in 1738, 1,000; in 1751, 1,300; in 1782, 2,300; and in 1805, 2,410 in, and 3,234 out.