Burgh House is a historic house located on New End Square in

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, that includes the Hampstead Museum. The house is also listed as Burgh House & Hampstead Museum.

Brief history

Burgh House was constructed in 1704 during the reign of Queen Anne. At the time of construction the Hampstead Wells Spa was flourishing. In 1720 the Spa's physician, Dr. William Gibbons, moved to Burgh House, which he enlarged. He added the present wrought-iron gate which carries his initials. One inhabitant of the house was Israel Lewis, who was an upholsterer. He was involved in a court case in which he was found guilty of creating a nuisance by "making an inclosed Dung stall" in his garden, and was fined £5 and made to remove it. Until the 1870s the house was known as Lewis House. In 1858 Burgh House was taken over by the

Royal East Middlesex Militia The Royal East Middlesex Militia was an auxiliary regiment reorganised in Middlesex in the Home counties of England during the 18th Century from earlier precursor units. It later became part of the Middlesex Regiment. Primarily intended for home ...

, and served as the headquarters and officers' mess until 1881. The house returned to domestic use in 1884. From 1906–24 the house was occupied by Dr. George Williamson, an international art expert. He commissioned Gertrude Jekyll to design the garden, although only the terrace now remains. In 1925, a director of

Lloyds Bank Lloyds Bank plc is a British retail and commercial bank with branches across England and Wales. It has traditionally been considered one of the " Big Four" clearing banks. Lloyds Bank is the largest retail bank in Britain, and has an exte ...

, Captain

Constantine Evelyn Benson Constantine most often refers to: * Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I * Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria Constantine may also refer to: People * Constantine (name), a masculine given na ...

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, DSO, bought the house for £4,750. He built the present music room on the site of Dr. Williamson's library. Between 1933–37,

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

's daughter,

Elsie Bambridge Elsie Bambridge (; 2 February 1896 – 24 May 1976) was the second daughter of British writer Rudyard Kipling. She was the only one of the Kipling's three children to survive beyond early adulthood. On 22 October 1924, Elsie Kipling married Geor ...

lived in Burgh House with her husband, Captain

George Bambridge George Louis St Clair Bambridge (27 September 1892 – 16 December 1943) was a British diplomat. His wife, Elsie (née Kipling), was the daughter of the author Rudyard Kipling. Life Early life and education George Louis St Clair Bambridge ...

. Rudyard Kipling's last outing in 1936 was to Burgh House, to visit his daughter. From 1937–46 Burgh House was unoccupied. It was bought and restored by

Hampstead Borough Council Hampstead was a civil parish and metropolitan borough in London, England. It was an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, governed by an administrative vestry. The parish was included in the area of responsibility of the Metropolitan Boa ...

in 1946. The barrack blocks in front of the building were pulled down and in 1947 it reopened as a community centre with a Citizen's Advice Bureau in its basement. The house was again closed indefinitely in 1977 when its new owners, Camden Council, discovered

dry rot Dry rot is wood decay caused by one of several species of fungi that digest parts of the wood which give the wood strength and stiffness. It was previously used to describe any decay of cured wood in ships and buildings by a fungus which resul ...

in the building. Threatened with proposals to turn the house over to a commercial use, local residents formed a charitable trust and launched a "Keep Burgh House" appeal, as a result of which Camden Council granted them a lease for the house. On 8 September 1979, the house, restored by the council and refurbished by the trust, opened to the public as the house and museum that it is today.

Hampstead Museum

In recent years it has been further restored with backing from The

Heritage Lottery Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...

Bridge House Trust City Bridge Foundation, is the working name of the historic Bridge House Estates, which originated in the late eleventh century and was formally established by royal charter in 1282 by the City of London Corporation in London, England. It is a re ...

and many local benefactors. The refurbished building opened to the public on 16 July 2006. Burgh House has the world's largest archive and collection of

Helen Allingham Helen Allingham (née Paterson; 26 September 1848 – 28 September 1926) was a British watercolourist and illustrator of the Victorian era. Biography Helen Mary Elizabeth Paterson was born on 26 September 1848, at Swadlincote in Derbyshire, ...

's work. The first floor houses the Hampstead Museum, with permanent exhibits on local history and culture. There are also first floor and ground galleries for temporary exhibits of art, local history and culture. A cafe occupies the basement, with outside seating in the gardens. Burgh House currently hosts exhibitions and concerts, and is hired for weddings, receptions and other private events.

References

External links

* {{London museums 1979 establishments in England Art museums and galleries in London Grade I listed buildings in the London Borough of Camden Grade I listed houses in London Houses completed in 1704 Houses in Hampstead Local museums in London Museums established in 1979 Museums in the London Borough of Camden