The RUSI Museum: Empire & Artefacts in the Long Nineteenth Century

Overview 

Founded in 1831, the RUSI Museum was a product of the scientific and collecting practices of the long eighteenth century. The museum’s collections showcased the end of the First British Empire with the American War of Independence, and the development of the Second British Empire that reached its peak with the establishment of the British Raj in India, and the ‘Scramble for Africa’, in the second half of the nineteenth century.  

Dr Grainger will explore how the RUSI Museum collected and exhibited objects, as well as examining its founders, Council members, donors and supporters. This presentation will also consider how the founding of the Imperial War Museum in 1917 had a profound impact on the status of the RUSI Museum, as there was little political support for its survival after the lease on its home, Banqueting House, came to an end.  

The event will be moderated by Amanda Sheppard, Librarian and Information Manager, RUSI. 

About the Speaker 

Dr Jacqui Grainger was the Librarian at RUSI from 2017 to 2023, and was awarded funding for her doctoral research on the history and purpose of the RUSI Museum through the Techne AHRC doctoral training programme. This research project developed from the enquiries Dr Grainger received about the RUSI Museum, building also on information from relationships with external researchers, who indicated the museum’s significance as the ‘national’ services museum in the nineteenth century. 

Joining Instructions  

This event is open to all members and will take place at RUSI, 61 Whitehall, London, SW1A 2ET. If you have any questions regarding this event, please email [email protected].