The Wallace Collection

This world-renowned family collection, displayed at Hertford House on Manchester Square, took more than a century to assemble. It started with Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford, who began acquiring oil paintings in the mid-18th century. Seymour-Conway’s descendants followed in his footsteps, growing the collection with each generation. Sir Richard Wallace, the museum’s namesake, instructed his wife to leave the mansion and its treasures to the nation.

Lady Wallace stipulated that entrance be free and the collection—closed, meaning  nothing may be added or subtracted. The conditions were accepted, and the Wallace Collection opened its doors in 1900. Today, all are welcome to enjoy this outstanding selection of antique furniture, decorative items, weapons, glassware, porcelain, bronze, and paintings by Titian and Rembrandt, van Dyck and Murillo, Velàzquez and Gainsborough, Canaletto and Boucher—enough to fill 25 galleries.