It was founded in 1973 at the behest of Pope Paul VI,[1] and was initially hosted in environments under the Square Garden.

In 1987 it was moved to the main floor of the Apostolic Palace of the Lateran and opened in March 1991.

The Vatican Historical Museum has a unique collection of portraits of the Popes from the sixteenth century to date, obejcts from the 16–17th century Noble Guard, Palatine Guard and Papal Gendarmerie, and old religious paraphernalia related to rituals of the papacy.

Before the History Museum decided to relocate here to a more luxurious locale, none of the rooms had been allowed to be used for any general public purpose.

The principal wing is the museum of all artistic and historic importance starting with the paintings of the history of the Papal States, portraits of Popes until date, memorabilia of the Papal Military Corps including the navy, documents related to ceremonial orders of Popes, the Papal household items, and various ceremonial regalia and religious vessels and insignia not in use.