Cromwell Museum

The Cromwell Museum is housed in the old grammar school building attended by Cromwell and the diarist Samuel Pepys. The building retains fragments of the medieval infirmary hall of the Hospital of St John the Baptist (circa 1170–90). Vested in the corporation of the town, the hospital building became Huntingdon Grammar School which remained in the building until moving to a new location in 1896, eventually moving to Hinchingbrooke House on the outskirts of the town. It was remodelled and partially rebuilt in 1863, and then heavily restored in 1878 under the direction of architect Robert Hutchinson at a cost of £900. The work was paid for by the dramatist Dion Boucicault in memory of his son, killed in the Abbots Ripton rail accident of 1876. The building had been encased in brick and when this was removed a blocked Romanesque doorway was discovered. Other features of the exterior include a bellcote, five decorative arches on its west front and two bays of the hall's nave and aisles. File:Cromwell Museum, Huntingdon from the High Street.jpg|12th century face of the Cromwell Museum from the High Street File:Model of Monastic Spital that preceded Huntingdon Grammar School and Cromwell Museum.jpg|Model of spital that preceded the Grammar School. Arches support the nave, giving access to the now-demolished side buildings. Only the left-hand end of the nave (with two arched bays) survives. File:Cromwell Museum with infilled arches and doorway.jpg|Corner view, showing infilled arches and doorway of the former monastic spital for reuse as Grammar School ==Collections==

The Museum collection is the best collection of "Cromwelliana" in the UK, comprising approximately 610 individual items as of 2009. The museum owns approximately 70% of the items in its collection, with loan collections from the Bush family (descendants of Henry Cromwell, the fourth son of Oliver Cromwell), the Royal Armouries (who have loaned items of 17th-century military equipment) and objects from the Museum of London including the Tangye Collection. The museum has a number of coins from the era plus several portrait medals, including a copy of the Lord Protector medal also by Thomas Simon. ==Closure proposal==

The museum was proposed for closure in the County Council's budget planning proposals for 2015–2016, with cited savings of £20,000 a year. On 1 April 2016 management of the museum passed from Cambridgeshire County Council to a charitable trust. ==References==