Cromwell Museum Huntingdon expansion plan ready for design ideas
"We began this process two years ago, so it feels both wonderfully and horrifyingly real now we've got building," he said. "The next step is to work out what's possible in terms of looking after this historic building and find funding - it's likely the eventual cost could be £5.5m."
Cromwell (1599 to 1658) grew up in Huntingdon and rose to national prominence when he displayed an unexpected brilliance as a Parliamentarian battle leader. He later became Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland. The museum's new building, which has been empty since 2019, is next to the pub where he raised his first troop of cavalry in 1642. It is currently housed in the town's former grammar school, a 12th Century building where Cromwell and 17th Century diarist Samuel Pepys were educated, which is tiny - about 70sqm (229 sq ft).
The purchase of 7 to 8 Market Hill was made possible by a Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority grant of a £346,000."It means we can display more of the museum's collection - we have nearly 1,000 items, including clothes, arms and documents - but it also means we can borrow items from national collections to be displayed here in Huntingdon," said Mr Orme. The newly-acquired property is just across the road from the current museum and is about five times larger.The expansion is necessary because of its "record-breaking success" in attracting visitors - 15,000 in 2024 to 2025 - while it saw a 20% increase in visitors in the previous financial year, he added. Mr Orme said the new museum might open as soon as 2030.
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