Magnetic Laboratory was created in Moscow State University by professor Vladimir Arkad’ev. Vladimir Arkad’ev entered MSU in 1904. On the first year he began to work in professor Umov’s group. He studied the propagation of magnetic waves along iron rod. In 1906 Vladimir Arkad’ev received invitation from professor Lebedev to work in his group.

During First World War Arkad’ev took part in the chemical defense field. In 1918 Arkad’ev returned in MSU where he founded Moscow Magnetic Laboratory, which exists for a long time on the enthusiasm of their members. After 1923 it began to be funded from All-Russian Electro-technical Institute at All-Russian Soviet of People's Economy, and since 1926 glavnauka began to fund Magnetic Laboratory. The main fields of research were developing the theory of electromagnetic field, general and magnetic spectroscopy, magnitostatics, magnetic relaxation, magnistriction and electric oscillations.

In the July of 1930 there had been reorganization in the MSU and as a result in the December of 1931 appearred the first in the USSR Magnetism Department. As the head of new department professor Nikolay Akulov was assigned. And when the faculty structure restored in MSU Magnetism Department was member of Faculty of Physics. Only during first year of work Akulov and his pupils laid down the foundations of general theory of mono- and polycrystall magnetizing, foundations of theory of galvanomagnetic and galvanoelastic effects, and foundations of theory of magnitostriction.
At Second World War Magnetism Department as a part of MSU was evacuated in Sverdlovsk. After 1943 University returned to Moscow. The number of students achieved the before-war level only at 1947. But after death of Stalin in 1953 following with arrest and shooting of Beria, Akulov’s opponents tried to catch the opportunity and remove Akulov from his position. And as a result Akulov was dismissed from MSU in 1954.

During the period since 1954 till 1987 the head of magnetism division was Eugeny Kondorsky. He was a creator of the theory of micromagnetism, initiated the work on magnetism division in the field of biomagnetism. Professor Kondorsky participated in defense research. During the years when he was a head of magnetism division the great school of magniooptics was created by professor Georgy Krinchik.

Since 1987 till nowadays the head of magnetism division is Anatoly Vedyaev. Professor Vedyaev is a founder of scientific school in transport properties of magnetic and composites materials. At the moment magnetism division is a consolidated collective which moves towards the glorious future in the magnetism science.