Monday 24 November 2025

The British in Rome
by Stuart Harvey

Stuart Harvey will look at some of the famous British visitors to Rome between the 1500s and 1800s, and how these Grand Tourists changed the art world. These wealthy travellers not only visited the great works of art and architecture, but also wanted to purchase portraits, miniatures, mosaics and ancient sculptures for their family collections. We will meet renegade cardinals, exiled royals, wealthy aristocrats and of course the artists who came to study. Stuart will also introduce some of the fascinating characters that catered to them in Rome, as we look at how the art world in Rome adapted to this lucrative new market.

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Stuart Harvey

Stuart is a “History and Art Communicator” of 30 years experience. He is a London Blue Badge Tourist Guide and also a Guida Turistica Abilitata della Provincia di Roma. He has worked in educational tourism since 1992, leading study tours all over Europe. Stuart has lived in Rome since 2003, and has developed a great love for the Eternal City and its many treasures. Although his primary career is a Rome tourist guide, Stuart travels widely with his entertaining and lively lectures which bring the rich artistic and historical wealth of Rome’s 28 centuries to life for people all over the world.