Madame Tussauds London History
Madame Tussauds London immortalizes historic figures and celebrities in wax. The museum features lifelike statues of London royals Prince William, Prince Harry, Princess Diana and the Queen as well as literary figures and world leaders of the past and present. Guests get an up-close look at their favorite entertainers in music, sports, film and television. Visitors have been drawn to Madame Tussauds wax figures she first displayed them in the late 1700s.
Madame Tussaud
In 1761, Madame Tussaud was born Anna Maria Grosholtz in Strasbourg, France. At 17, she began serving as a tutor for King Louis XVI’s sister, working in that position from the 1780 until the French Revolution. Tussaud’s uncle, Dr. Philippe Curtius, taught the young Tussaud the art of wax modeling. Some of her first wax models included French writer and philosopher Voltaire, Benjamin Franklin and Marie-Jeanne du Barry, Louis XV’s mistress.
French Revolution
In 1787, Tussaud was imprisoned with her mother at Paris’s Laforce Prison. To avoid execution, she began making death mask from heads of those who had been guillotined as proof of her allegiance to the Revolution. Her masks included some of her friends as well as French royals, including Marie Antoinette. In 1794, the French Revolution ended, and Marie married Frances Tussaud. She also inherited Dr. Curtius’s wax collection.
French Revolution
In 1787, Tussaud was imprisoned with her mother at Paris’s Laforce Prison. To avoid execution, she began making death mask from heads of those who had been guillotined as proof of her allegiance to the Revolution. Her masks include some of her friends as well as French royals, including Marie Antoinette. In 1794, the French Revolution ended, and Marie married Frances Tussaud. She also inherited Dr. Curtius’s wax collection.
Great Britain
By 1802, Tussaud moved to Britain and took her collection of wax models on tour for 36 years. Her tour included death masks and artifacts from the French Revolution. About 1835, she and her sons set up the Baker Street Bazaar, where she displayed her wax figures of Marie Antoinette and French Revolution relics. The guillotine blade that reportedly chopped off Marie Antoinette’s head is still in the museum. Madame Tussaud died in 1850, but her descendants kept her vision alive.
Marylebone Road
In 1884, Madame Tussaud’s grandson moved the wax museum to its current location on Marylebone Road. It housed some of his grandmother’s works alongside current people of interest. In 1925, though, a fire destroyed the museum, and it wasn’t reopened until 1928. The restored museum contained a cinema and restaurant. During World War II, a German bomb destroyed 352 wax heads and the cinema. The site underwent several remodels after the war until the 1990s.
The 1990s
In the 1990s, Madame Tussauds London unveiled a series of special displays. In 1996, it opened a display of Time Magazine’s top 100 people of the 20th century. In 1997, the museum held a special exhibit of wedding dresses designed for Diana, Princess of Wales; Sarah, Duchess of York; and Sophie, Countess of Wessex.
Modern times
Madame Tussauds continues to keep in step with world events and popular culture in the 21st century, showcasing figures of Nicole Kidman, Justin Timberlake, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt and Britney Spears. In 2008, it unveiled its wax figure of Bollywood superstar Salman Khan. New Millennium political figures include British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and President of the United States Barack Obama.
