History of the House

Handel moved into what is now 25 Brook Street in the summer of 1723. As far as is known, this is the first London house he occupied in his own right. His career seemed secure and at the age of thirty-eight, perhaps he felt it was time to have his own space. He lived at the Brook Street house for 36 years and, in 1759, died there.

Handel was the first occupant of the house, part of a four-building development by speculative builder George Barnes. Brook Street was planned and built between 1717 and 1726 to connect Hanover Square and Grosvenor Square and was in a good upper-middle class area. Although away from the artistic centres of Soho and Covent Garden, it was within easy walking distance of St James's Palace, where Handel conducted his official duties, and the King's Theatre, Haymarket, the focus of his Italian opera career at the time.

The plan of the house was usual for a modest London townhouse of the period. There was a basement containing the kitchens; from ground to second floor, a front and back room with a small closet block at the rear; and the garrets at the top. The passage from the front door led to the dogleg staircase at the back. Aside from living, sleeping, entertaining, composing and rehearsing, Handel also conducted some business from his house. In the late 1730s, it is known that subscribers could collect scores from "the Author, in his House in Brook-Street, Hanover Square."

On Handel's death, the tenancy passed to his servant John Du Burk, who also purchased the remaining chattels for £48. Around 1790, the closets at the rear were replaced by a bow window block and in the 1830s the garrets were raised to the height of a full storey. In 1905, art dealer CJ Charles turned the house into a shop, removing the first two storeys of the original façade and internal partition walls. Since 1971, the freehold has been owned by the Co-operative Insurance Society and in 2000 the upper storeys were leased to the Handel House Trust. On 8 November 2001, Handel's spirit was brought back to 25 Brook Street when the Handel House Museum opened to the public.