Chiswick is now one of London's western suburbs, but in the 18th century it was a large village or small town quite separate from the metropolis, but within easy reach of it.

Its first occupant was Rev George Andreas Ruperti, the pastor of St Mary's Lutheran church in the Savoy, London, who used it as his country home.

William Hogarth is buried in the graveyard of the nearby St. Nicholas Church, Chiswick; his fine tomb-monument carries an obituary by his great friend, the actor David Garrick.

From 1814 to 1833 the house belonged to Rev Henry Francis Cary, a poet and skilful translator of Dante's Divine Comedy.

He was part of a circle of writers and poets, including Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who promoted Cary's Dante translation and made it a best seller.

Alfred Dawson, whose family home at The Cedars adjoined Hogarth's and whose printing works was nearby, rescued the House in 1890 and restored it.

The house was damaged in September 1940 as a result of a parachute mine explosion nearby during World War II.

The entire structure was carefully restored and a major research project carried out on the history of the House and its occupants.

The furnishing includes Shipway's replica pieces and new displays presents the House as a home, as well as celebrating Hogarth's life and work.