Founding and early years
The Royal Society started from groups of physicians and
natural philosophers, meeting at variety of locations, including
Gresham College in London. They were influenced by the "
new science", as promoted by
Francis Bacon in his
New Atlantis, from approximately 1645 onwards.
[3] A group known as "The Philosophical Society of Oxford" was run under a set of rules still retained by the
Bodleian Library.
[4] After the
English Restoration, there were regular meetings at Gresham College.
[5] It is widely held that these groups were the inspiration for the foundation of the Royal Society.
[4]
Another view of the founding, held at the time, was that it was due to the influence of French scientists and the
Montmor Academy in 1657, reports of which were sent back to England by English scientists attending. This view was held by
Jean-Baptiste du Hamel,
Giovanni Domenico Cassini,
Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle and
Melchisédech Thévenot at the time and has some grounding in that
Henry Oldenburg, the society's first secretary, had attended the Montmor Academy meeting.
[6] Robert Hooke, however, disputed this, writing that:
[Cassini] makes, then, Mr Oldenburg to have been the instrument, who
inspired the English with a desire to imitate the French, in having
Philosophical Clubs, or Meetings; and that this was the occasion of
founding the Royal Society, and making the French the first. I will not
say, that Mr Oldenburg did rather inspire the French to follow the
English, or, at least, did help them, and hinder us. But 'tis well known
who were the principal men that began and promoted that design, both in
this city and in Oxford; and that a long while before Mr Oldenburg came
into England. And not only these Philosophic Meetings were before Mr
Oldenburg came from Paris; but the Society itself was begun before he
came hither; and those who then knew Mr Oldenburg, understood well
enough how little he himself knew of philosophic matter.[7]
Mace granted by Charles II
On 28 November 1660, the
1660 committee of 12
announced the formation of a "College for the Promoting of
Physico-Mathematical Experimental Learning", which would meet weekly to
discuss science and run experiments. At the second meeting,
Sir Robert Moray announced that the
King approved of the gatherings, and a
royal charter was signed on 15 July 1662 which created the "Royal Society of London", with
Lord Brouncker
serving as the first president. A second royal charter was signed on 23
April 1663, with the king noted as the founder and with the name of
"the Royal Society of London for the Improvement of Natural Knowledge";
Robert Hooke was appointed as Curator of Experiments in November. This
initial royal favour has continued and, since then, every monarch has
been the patron of the society.
[8]
The society's early meetings included experiments performed first by Hooke and then by
Denis Papin,
who was appointed in 1684. These experiments varied in their subject
area, and were both important in some cases and trivial in others.
[9] The society also published an English translation of
Essays
of Natural Experiments Made in the Accademia del Cimento, under the
Protection of the Most Serene Prince Leopold of Tuscany in 1684, an Italian book documenting experiments at the
Accademia del Cimento.
[10] Although meeting at Gresham College, the Society temporarily moved to
Arundel House in 1666 after the
Great Fire of London, which did not harm Gresham but did lead to its appropriation by the Lord Mayor. The Society returned to Gresham in 1673.
[11]
There had been an attempt in 1667 to establish a permanent "college"
for the society. Michael Hunter argues that this was influenced by "
Solomon's House" in Bacon's
New Atlantis and, to a lesser extent, by
J. V. Andreae's
Christianopolis, dedicated research institutes, rather than the colleges at
Oxford and
Cambridge,
since the founders only intended for the society to act as a location
for research and discussion. The first proposal was given by
John Evelyn to
Robert Boyle
in a letter dated 3 September 1659; he suggested a grander scheme, with
apartments for members and a central research institute. Similar
schemes were expounded by
Bengt Skytte and later
Abraham Cowley, who wrote in his
Proposition for the Advancement of Experimental Philosophy
in 1661 of a "'Philosophical College", with houses, a library and a
chapel. The society's ideas were simpler and only included residences
for a handful of staff, but Hunter maintains an influence from Cowley
and Skytte's ideas.
[12] Henry Oldenburg and
Thomas Sprat put forward plans in 1667 and Oldenburg's co-secretary,
John Wilkins,
moved in a council meeting on 30 September 1667 to appoint a committee
"for raising contributions among the members of the society, in order to
build a college".
[13]
These plans were progressing by November 1667, but never came to
anything, given the lack of contributions from members and the
"unrealised—perhaps unrealistic"—aspirations of the society.
[14]
18th century
Lord Hardwicke, leader of the "Hardwicke Circle" that dominated society politics during the 1750s and '60s
During the 18th century, the gusto that had characterised the early
years of the society faded; with a small number of scientific "greats"
compared to other periods, little of note was done. In the second half,
it became customary for
His Majesty's Government
to refer highly important scientific questions to the council of the
society for advice, something that, despite the non-partisan nature of
the society, spilled into politics in 1777 over
lightning conductors. The pointed lightning conductor had been invented by
Benjamin Franklin in 1749, while
Benjamin Wilson
invented blunted ones. During the argument that occurred when deciding
which to use, opponents of Franklin's invention accused supporters of
being American allies rather than being British, and the debate
eventually led to the resignation of the society's president,
Sir John Pringle.
During the same time period, it became customary to appoint society
fellows to serve on government committees where science was concerned,
something that still continues.
[15]
The 18th century featured remedies to many of the society's early
problems. The number of fellows had increased from 110 to approximately
300 by 1739, the reputation of the society had increased under the
presidency of
Sir Isaac Newton from 1703 until his death in 1727,
[16] and editions of the
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society were appearing regularly.
[17] During his time as president, Newton arguably abused his authority; in a dispute between himself and
Gottfried Leibniz over the invention of
infinitesimal calculus,
he used his position to appoint an "impartial" committee to decide it,
eventually publishing a report written by himself in the committee's
name.
[16]
In 1705, the society was informed that it could no longer rent Gresham
College and began a search for new premises. After unsuccessfully
applying to
Queen Anne
for new premises, and asking the trustees of Cotton House if they could
meet there, the council bought two houses in Crane Court,
Fleet Street, on 26 October 1710.
[18]
This included offices, accommodation and a collection of curiosities.
Although the overall fellowship contained few noted scientists, most of
the council were highly regarded, and included at various times
John Hadley,
William Jones and
Hans Sloane.
[19]
Because of the laxness of fellows in paying their subscriptions, the
society ran into financial difficulty during this time; by 1740, the
society had a deficit of £240. This continued into 1741, at which point
the treasurer began dealing harshly with fellows who had not paid.
[20]
The business of the society at this time continued to include the
demonstration of experiments and the reading of formal and important
scientific papers, along with the demonstration of new scientific
devices and queries about scientific matters from both Britain and
Europe.
[21]
Some modern research has asserted that the claims of the society's
degradation during the 18th century are false. Richard Sorrenson writes
that "far from having 'fared ingloriously', the society experienced a
period of significant productivity and growth throughout the eighteenth
century", pointing out that many of the sources critical accounts are
based on are in fact written by those with an agenda.
[22] While
Charles Babbage
wrote that the practice of pure mathematics in Britain was weak, laying
the blame at the doorstep of the society, the practice of mixed
mathematics was strong and although there were not many eminent members
of the society, some did contribute vast amounts –
James Bradley, for example, established the
nutation of the Earth's axis with 20 years of detailed, meticulous astronomy.
[23]
Politically within the society, the mid-18th century featured a "
Whig supremacy" as the so-called "Hardwicke Circle" of Whig-leaning scientists held the society's main Offices. Named after
Lord Hardwicke, the group's members included
Daniel Wray and
Thomas Birch and was most prominent in the 1750s and '60s. The circle had Birch elected secretary and, following the resignation of
Martin Folkes, the circle helped oversee a smooth transition to the presidency of
Earl Macclesfield, whom Hardwicke helped elect.
[24]
Under Macclesfield, the circle reached its "zenith", with members such
as Lord Willoughby and Birch serving as vice-president and secretary
respectively. The circle also influenced goings-on in other learned
societies, such as the
Society of Antiquaries of London. After Macclesfield's retirement, the circle had
Lord Morton elected in 1764 and
Sir John Pringle elected in 1772.
[25]
By this point, the previous Whig "majority" had been reduced to a
"faction", with Birch and Willoughby no longer involved, and the circle
declined in the same time frame as the political party did in British
politics under
George III, falling apart in the 1780s.
[26]
In 1780, the society moved again, this time to
Somerset House. The property was offered to the society by His Majesty's Government and, as soon as
Sir Joseph Banks
became president in November 1778, he began planning the move. Somerset
House, while larger than Crane Court, was not satisfying to the
fellows; the room to store the library was too small, the accommodation
was insufficient and there was not enough room to store the muse
