President's Address. 91 



shortly be in your hands there is no need to trouble you with 

 all the minute details there published, and it is principally to 

 the more ancient history of the Bird-Collections that I wish 

 to draw your attention this morning. 



The nucleus of the British Museum was formed in the 

 year 1753, when Sir Hans Sloane directed in his will that 

 the first offer of his collections, which, he stated, had cost 

 him £50,000, was to be made to the Nation for the sum of 

 £20,000. This money was voted by Parliament. Trustees 

 were appointed, and the Harleian MSS. (purchased for 

 £10,000), the Cottonian Library, and other collections having 

 been acquired, either by presentation or j3urchase, a home 

 was sought for the " British Museum," as it was then called. 

 Finally a large mansion, Montague House in Blooomsbury, 

 with seven acres of ground, was purchased from the Montague 

 family for the very moderate sum of £10,100. This fine 

 residence was built by Ralph Montague about the year 1674. 

 He employed foreign artists in the decorations, and the stair- 

 cases and ceilings were adorned with paintings by Verrio, 

 La Fosse, and other well known artists. Evelyn, in his ' Diary, ' 

 records the burning of the mansion in 1686, and says that for 

 paintings and furniture, " there was nothing more glorious in 

 England. " 



I have, in my ' History of the Collections in the British 

 Museum,' given a description of Montague House from the 

 early guide-books published by the Trustees, and a very good 

 account of the place is to be found in Mr. John Timbs' 

 ' Romance of London ' (p. 301). 



I am indebted to His Grace the Duke of Bedford, K.G., for 

 some further interesting notes kindly furnished to me for the 

 purposes of the present address : — 



The site of Montague House was formerly part of the 

 Bloomsbury Estate of the Earl of Southampton and passed 

 to Lady Rachel, his daughter, who married Lord William 

 Russell, son of William, fifth Earl and first Duke of* Bedford. 

 On the 19th June, 1675, Lord William and Lady Rachel 

 Russell granted to The Right Honourable Ralph Montague in 

 fee, the site of Montague House, subject to a Fee Farm Rent 

 of £5 per annum, and Mr. Montague built on the ground a 



