On This Day

British Museum opens at Montagu House in London

Montagu House (sometimes spelled "Montague") was a late 17th-century mansion in Great Russell Street in the Bloomsbury district of London, which became the first home of the British Museum.

Montagu House (sometimes spelled "Montague") was a late 17th-century mansion in Great Russell Street in the Bloomsbury district of London, which became the first home of the British Museum. The first house on the site was destroyed by fire in 1686. The rebuilt house was sold to the British Museum in 1759, and demolished in the 1840s to make way for the present larger building.

Historical Significance

Montagu House (sometimes spelled "Montague") was a late 17th-century mansion in Great Russell Street in the Bloomsbury district of London, which became the first home of the British Museum.

Events Before

  1. The International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature establishes the starting point for standardized species names ac

    The International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature establishes the starting point for standardized species names across the animal kingdom, based on the binomial nomenclature in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae by Carl Linnaeus

  2. French astronomer Charles Messier mistakes the Crab Nebula for a comet while searching for Halley's Comet, leading him t

    French astronomer Charles Messier mistakes the Crab Nebula for a comet while searching for Halley's Comet, leading him to begin his Messier Catalogue

  3. Russian troops occupy Königsberg, East-Prussia [NS=Jan 22]

    Russian troops occupy Königsberg, East-Prussia [NS=Jan 22]

  4. Russian troops occupy Königsberg, East Prussia [OS=Jan 11]

    Russian troops occupy Königsberg, East Prussia [OS=Jan 11]

  5. Poems by Jamaican Black intellectual and writer Francis Williams are published

    Poems by Jamaican Black intellectual and writer Francis Williams are published

Events After

  1. Afghans defeat the Indian Maratha Empire in the Battle of Barari Ghat

    Afghans defeat the Indian Maratha Empire in the Battle of Barari Ghat

  2. Princess Carolina marries Gen Charles Christian van Nassau-Weilburg

    Princess Carolina marries Gen Charles Christian van Nassau-Weilburg

  3. The Great Upheaval: New England planters arrive in Nova Scotia, Canada, to claim land taken from the Acadians

    The Great Upheaval: New England planters arrive in Nova Scotia, Canada, to claim land taken from the Acadians

  4. Comet C/1760 A1 (Great comet) approaches within 0.0682 AUs of Earth

    Comet C/1760 A1 (Great comet) approaches within 0.0682 AUs of Earth

  5. Battle of Wandiwash, India: British troops defeat French forces

    Battle of Wandiwash, India: British troops defeat French forces

More from the 1750s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on January 15, 1759?
Montagu House (sometimes spelled "Montague") was a late 17th-century mansion in Great Russell Street in the Bloomsbury district of London, which became the first home of the British Museum. The first house on the site was destroyed by fire in 1686. The rebuilt house was sold to the British Museum in 1759, and demolished in the 1840s to make way for the present larger building.
Why is British Museum opens at Montagu House in London significant?
Montagu House (sometimes spelled "Montague") was a late 17th-century mansion in Great Russell Street in the Bloomsbury district of London, which became the first home of the British Museum.

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