Walking Through the V&A Museum

https://youtu.be/YZtU7uguWxs

The V&A is the largest museum dedicated to fashion and the art of style in the world. It's got four floors, lots of clothes, royal jewelry and even a portrait of herself, Queen Victoria. The museum is named for her and her husband Prince Albert and from top to bottom, it's gorgeous. Best of all, it's free to visit. So, let's take a better look!

Queen Victoria's Museum, a Quick History

The V&A was created in 1852, a year after the Great Exhibition of 1851, which was hosted by London. The standout feature of the Exhibition was the Crystal Palace, a project that had been largely propelled by Prince Albert himself. Many decorative art items featured at the Crystal Palace were used to create the first exhibits at the V&A. 

The collection soon outgrew it's location, which was at the Marlboro House, and a new museum was built to hold the items. Queen Victoria laid the cornerstone herself in 1899, shortly before her own death. 

Today, there are more than 1 million objects at the museum, which includes everything from ceramics to glass items, metalwork, fabulous jewelry and fashion through history. The collection includes paintings, sculptures, woven rugs and items belonging to the famous royal couple. 

Can't Miss Items at the Victoria and Albert Museum

Some of the highlights of the museum include the Cast Court, which features an enormous collection of recreations of famous sculptures, the jewelry gallery that features pieces worn and owned by Victoria and other royals, paintings by the much-loved English Artist John Constable, a series of cartoons created by Renaissance Artist Raphael, furnishings that include Chippendale pieces and my personal favorite, the Fashion Gallery.

There's also a cafe that was pretty busy when I was here. 

The museum has four floors and, as I mentioned earlier, more than 1 million items on display. So, you're probably going to want to pick and choose which areas of the museum to see. I highly recommend the big area in the middle of the museum and the fashion gallery on the ground floor. The jewelry collection is also stunning.

Exploring the V&A Museum Inside and Out

Before or after you enter the building, walk around the outside to see the bullet holes. The building was damaged during the Blitzkrieg carried out by the Germans during WWII, where London was repeatedly bombed daily. 

Rather than repairing the damage, London decided to leave these reminders in place and now, the damage is part of the story of the museum.

Nearby Attraction: Cabmen Shelter

If you go about a block away from the museum, you'll see one of the green Cabmen Shelters. These are an interesting little piece of London history.

Cabmen shelters like this one used to be all over London. They're just small buildings where London cabbies could come to the window to get a cheap sandwich. If the weather was bad or they needed a rest, they could duck inside for a bit. There are now less than 15 of these Cabmen shelters in the city and sometimes, you can still find them offering up cheap sandwiches. 

The V&A is beautiful inside and out and there's tons of history in and around this famous London landmark to enjoy. It's all free, and I highly recommend it!