The campaign to save Keats’s house began in 1903 when the Keats-Shelley Memorial Association was formed. The house was bought in 1906, the collections were amassed, mostly through gift, between then and April 1909 when it was opened to the public. Given spontaneously in the spirit of good-will and enthusiasm that the project engendered, the collections would be impossible to bring together today. They include paintings, sculpture, relics, manuscripts and a substantial reference library, one of the finest
of Romantic literature in Europe.
Visitor numbers have grown steadily, from a few hundred each
year to more than 25,000. Our visitors are of all ages, all nationalities and all walks of life. They love this museum, which
is also a memorial to the other young Romantic poets who spent time in Italy, Shelley, Byron and Leigh Hunt. As our visitors’ books record, for many it is the fulfilment of a lifetime’s dream; for others
it is a serendipitous discovery. We also host hundreds of school groups each year, most of them Italian.
Historic houses need a lot of upkeep. Over the last few years we have carried through a programme of essential maintenance to the House, including structural work, a new roof and repainting of the façade. As a British museum overseas we are not eligible for UK public funding, and we are almost entirely dependent on our own entrance fees and on the generosity of individuals.
We celebrated our centenary year in 2009 and we now turn our thoughts to the future. Our plan is to safeguard the House and
its unique collections for a further hundred years, and to adapt
it sensitively to the needs of the twenty-first century. We aim to double the museum’s floor-space to create an exhibition area, shop, ticket office, bathroom and tea-room. We also plan to turn
our large and unused 18th century basement into archive storage.
The history of our House in Rome is extraordinary; the life of this place of pilgrimage and learning has always been in the hands of people like you and me. They came together at its inception, and
at times of difficulty, during its first one hundred years; they guaranteed its survival and made it what it is today. We now hope, with your help, to build on the successes of our first one hundred years and to secure John Keats’s last home for the next.

The estimated cost of our building projects is £237,000 (at current exchange rates €265,000/$384,000). If you would like to see the Keats-Shelley House safely into its next one hundred years please visit our donation page. All gifts, large or small, are greatly appreciated as we continue in our commitment to protect this beautiful and tranquil corner of Rome.