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List of presidents of the Royal Society

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The arms of the Royal Society

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

After informal meetings at Gresham College, the Royal Society was officially founded on 28 November 1660 when a group of academics decided to found "a Colledge for the Promoting of Physico-Mathematicall Experimentall Learning",[1] acquiring a Royal Charter on 15 July 1662.[2] 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 Venkatraman Ramakrishnan who began his 5-year tenure in 2015.[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 authorised 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]

Presidents of the Royal Society

Years President Profession
1662–1677 The Viscount Brouncker Mathematician
1677–1680 Sir Joseph Williamson Civil servant and politician
1680–1682 Sir Christopher Wren Architect, astronomer and physicist
1682–1683 Sir John Hoskyns, Bt Lawyer
1683–1684 Cyril Wyche Lawyer and politician
1684–1686 Samuel Pepys Naval administrator and Member of Parliament
1686–1689 The Earl of Carbery Politician
1689–1690 The Earl of Pembroke Politician
1690–1695 Sir Robert Southwell Diplomat
1695–1698 Charles Montagu Poet and statesman
1698–1703 The Lord Somers Jurist and statesman
1703–1727 Sir Isaac Newton Physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian
1727–1741 Sir Hans Sloane, Bt Physician and collector
1741–1752 Martin Folkes Antiquarian
1752–1764 The Earl of Macclesfield Astronomer
1764–1768 The Earl of Morton Astronomer and representative peer
1768-1768 James Burrow Legal reporter
1768–1772 James West Politician and antiquarian
1772-1772 James Burrow Legal reporter
1772–1778 Sir John Pringle Physician
1778–1820 Sir Joseph Banks Naturalist and botanist
1820-1820 William Hyde Wollaston Chemist
1820–1827 Sir Humphry Davy, Bt Chemist and inventor
1827–1830 Davies Gilbert Engineer, author and politician
1830–1838 HRH The Duke of Sussex Sixth son of George III of the United Kingdom
1838–1848 The Marquess of Northampton Nobleman
1848–1854 The Earl of Rosse Astronomer
1854–1858 The Lord Wrottesley Astronomer
1858–1861 Sir Benjamin Collins Brodie, Bt Physiologist and surgeon
1861–1871 Sir Edward Sabine Astronomer, geophysicist, ornithologist and explorer
1871–1873 Sir George Biddell Airy Mathematician and astronomer
1873–1878 Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker Botanist and explorer
1878–1883 William H. Spottiswoode Mathematician and physicist
1883–1885 Thomas Henry Huxley Biologist
1885–1890 Sir George Stokes Mathematician and physicist
1890–1895 Sir William Thomson Mathematical physicist
1895–1900 The Lord Lister Surgeon
1900–1905 Sir William Huggins Astronomer
1905–1908 The Lord Rayleigh Physicist
1908–1913 Sir Archibald Geikie Geologist and writer
1913–1915 Sir William Crookes Chemist and physicist
1915–1920 Sir Joseph John Thomson Physicist
1920–1925 Sir Charles Scott Sherrington Neurophysiologist, histologist, bacteriologist, and pathologist
1925–1930 The Lord Rutherford of Nelson Physicist and chemist
1930–1935 Sir Frederick Gowland Hopkins Biophysicist
1935–1940 Sir William Henry Bragg Physicist, chemist and mathematician
1940–1945 Sir Henry Hallett Dale Pharmacologist and physiologist
1945–1950 Sir Robert Robinson Organic chemist
1950–1955 The Lord Adrian Electrophysiologist
1955–1960 Sir Cyril Norman Hinshelwood Physical chemist
1960–1965 Sir Howard Florey Pharmacologist and pathologist
1965–1970 Patrick Blackett (The Lord Blackett after 1969) Physicist
1970–1975 Sir Alan Lloyd Hodgkin Physiologist and Biophysicist
1975–1980 The Lord Todd Biochemist
1980–1985 Sir Andrew Huxley Physiologist and biophysicist
1985–1990 Sir George Porter Chemist
1990–1995 Sir Michael Atiyah Mathematician
1995–2000 Sir Aaron Klug Chemist and biophysicist
2000–2005 Sir Robert May (The Lord May of Oxford after 2001) Mathematical Biologist
2005–2010 The Lord Rees of Ludlow Cosmologist and astrophysicist
2010–2015 Sir Paul Nurse Geneticist and cell biologist
2015–present Sir Venkatraman Ramakrishnan Biophysicist

References

General
  • "Presidents of the Royal Society (1662–2006)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. 2004.
Specific
  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. ^ https://www.facebook.com/theroyalsociety/posts/1061665430532658
  5. ^ "The Presidency of the Royal Society of London". Science. 6 (146). American Association for the Advancement of Science: 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.