List of presidents of the Royal Society

The president of the Royal Society (PRS) also known as the Royal Society of London is the elected Head of the Royal Society of London who presides over meetings of the society's council.

The arms of the Royal Society

After an informal meeting (a lecture) by Christopher Wren at Gresham College, the Royal Society was officially founded on 28 November 1660 when a group of academics decided to found "a College for the Promoting of Mathematical Experimental Learning",[1] acquiring a Royal Charter on 15 July 1662.[2] King Charles II granted the society a royal charter in 1662, formally establishing it as the "Royal Society of London." The Royal Charter nominated William Brouncker as president and stipulated that future presidents should be elected by the Council and Fellows of the Society at anniversary meetings each year on St. Andrew's Day (30 November).

The details of the presidency were described by the second Royal Charter, which did not set any limit on how long a president could serve. There were considerable fluctuations in the president's term of office until well into the 19th century. By then, sentiment had turned against electing wealthy amateurs solely because they might become patrons of the society, and in 1847 the society decided that Fellows would be elected solely on scientific merit. Since the 1870s, it has been usual (with a few exceptions) for each President to serve for exactly five years. Under the current statutes, a president cannot serve for more than five years.[3] The current President is Sir Adrian Smith who began his 5-year tenure on 30th November 2020.[4]

Historically, the duties of the president have been both formal and social. Under the Cruelty to Animals Act 1876, the President was one of only a few people authorized to certify that a particular experiment on an animal was justified, and in addition he acted as the government's chief (albeit informal) advisor for scientific matters. At the same time, the President was tasked with entertaining distinguished foreign guests and scientists.[5]

The changeover of presidents occurs on the Royal Society Anniversary Day, the weekday on or nearest to 30 November, after the departing President's Anniversary Address.[6] Of the 26 presidents since 1901, 18 have been Nobel laureates (seven in Physiology or Medicine, four in Physics and seven in Chemistry). Many past presidents, including all those in the 20th century, have been appointed to the Order of Merit.

Sir Joseph Banks was the longest serving president of Royal Society.

Presidents of the Royal Society

YearsPresidentProfession
1662–1677William Brouncker, 2nd Viscount BrounckerMathematician
1677–1680Sir Joseph WilliamsonCivil servant and politician
1680–1682Sir Christopher WrenArchitect, astronomer and physicist
1682–1683Sir John Hoskyns, 2nd BaronetLawyer
1683–1684Cyril WycheLawyer, politician and administrator
1684–1686Samuel PepysCivil servant and politician
1686–1689John Vaughan, 3rd Earl of CarberyPolitician
1689–1690Thomas Herbert, 8th Earl of PembrokePolitician
1690–1695Sir Robert SouthwellDiplomat
1695–1698Charles Montagu, 1st Earl of HalifaxPoet and Statesman
1698–1703John Somers, 1st Baron SomersJurist and Statesman
1703–1727Sir Isaac NewtonPhysicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian
1727–1741Sir Hans Sloane, 1st BaronetPhysician and collector
1741–1752Martin FolkesAntiquarian
1752–1764George Parker, 2nd Earl of MacclesfieldAstronomer
1764–1768James Douglas, 14th Earl of MortonAstronomer
1768–1768Sir James BurrowLegal reporter
1768–1772James WestPolitician and antiquarian
1772–1772Sir James BurrowLegal reporter
1772–1778Sir John Pringle, 1st BaronetPhysician
1778–1820Sir Joseph BanksNaturalist and botanist
1820-1820William Hyde WollastonChemist
1820–1827Sir Humphry Davy, 1st BaronetChemist and inventor
1827–1830Davies GilbertEngineer, author and politician
1830–1838Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of SussexSixth son of George III of the United Kingdom
1838–1848Spencer Compton, 2nd Marquess of NorthamptonNobleman
1848–1854William Parsons, 3rd Earl of RosseAstronomer
1854–1858John Wrottesley, 2nd Baron WrottesleyAstronomer
1858–1861Sir Benjamin Collins Brodie, 1st BaronetPhysiologist and surgeon
1861–1871Sir Edward SabineAstronomer, geophysicist, ornithologist and explorer
1871–1873Sir George Biddell AiryMathematician and Astronomer
1873–1878Sir Joseph Dalton HookerBotanist and explorer
1878–1883William H. SpottiswoodeMathematician and physicist
1883–1885Thomas Henry HuxleyBiologist
1885–1890Sir George Stokes, 1st BaronetMathematician and physicist
1890–1895William Thomson, 1st Baron KelvinMathematical physicist
1895–1900Joseph Lister, 1st Baron ListerSurgeon
1900–1905Sir William HugginsAstronomer
1905–1908John William Strutt, 3rd Baron RayleighPhysicist
1908–1913Sir Archibald GeikieGeologist and writer
1913–1915Sir William CrookesChemist and physicist
1915–1920Sir Joseph John ThomsonPhysicist
1920–1925Sir Charles Scott SherringtonNeurophysiologist, histologist, bacteriologist, and pathologist
1925–1930Sir Ernest Rutherford (Later the Lord Rutherford of Nelson)Physicist and chemist
1930–1935Sir Frederick Gowland HopkinsBiochemist
1935–1940Sir William Henry BraggPhysicist, chemist and mathematician
1940–1945Sir Henry Hallett DalePharmacologist and physiologist
1945–1950Sir Robert RobinsonOrganic chemist
1950–1955Edgar Adrian, 1st Baron AdrianElectrophysiologist
1955–1960Sir Cyril Norman HinshelwoodPhysical chemist
1960–1965Howard Florey, Baron FloreyPharmacologist and pathologist
1965–1970Patrick Blackett (The Lord Blackett after 1969)Physicist
1970–1975Sir Alan Lloyd HodgkinPhysiologist and Biophysicist
1975–1980Alexander R. Todd, Baron ToddBiochemist
1980–1985Sir Andrew HuxleyPhysiologist and biophysicist
1985–1990Sir George Porter (The Lord Porter of Luddenham after 1990)Chemist
1990–1995Sir Michael AtiyahMathematician
1995–2000Sir Aaron KlugChemist and biophysicist
2000–2005Sir Robert May (The Lord May of Oxford after 2001)Mathematical Biologist
2005–2010Martin Rees, Baron Rees of LudlowCosmologist and astrophysicist
2010–2015Sir Paul NurseGeneticist and cell biologist
2015–2020Venki RamakrishnanBiophysicist
2020–present Sir Adrian Smith Statistician

References

Notes

  1. "History of the Royal Society".
  2. The Royal Society. "Royal Charters". Retrieved 14 March 2012.
  3. "The role of President of the Royal Society". The Royal Society. Archived from the original on 9 June 2008. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
  4. "Sir Adrian Smith becomes President of the Royal Society | Royal Society".
  5. "The Presidency of the Royal Society of London". Science. American Association for the Advancement of Science. 6 (146): 442–3. 1885. Bibcode:1885Sci.....6..442.. doi:10.1126/science.ns-6.146.442. PMID 17749567.
  6. "The Role of President of the Royal Society". The Royal Society. 2008. Retrieved 2 April 2008.

Sources

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.