History

The RSE, cultivated during the Scottish Enlightenment, was founded in 1783 for “the advancement of learning and useful knowledge”.

Founding members  Presidents – past and present Royal Charter The first women Fellows   Gaelic within the Fellowship

The RSE was founded in 1783 to embody its ideals of inquiry without constraint and the free exchange of ideas and information across disciplines, and it has maintained its mission ever since.

In the 18th century, Edinburgh’s intellectual climate fostered many clubs and societies. The real framework of the Enlightenment was sociability, and its great but unseen driver was conversation. Various societies were created during the eighteenth century to formalise this in social discussion and debate. Among them were:

• The Rankenian Club, founded in 1716,
• In 1737, the most prestigious was the Society for the Improvement of Medical Knowledge, commonly referred to as the Royal Medical Society (RMS).
• The Select Society, founded in 1755 by the philosopher David Hume and the painter Allan Ramsay, was another important forum for discussion. Their joint initiative was indicative of how much Enlightenment thought was convergent, uniting the disciplines from common ground rather than pursuing them into divergent specialisations.

These societies brought together all the leading figures of the Enlightenment, like David Hume, Adam Smith, Adam Ferguson, Joseph Black, William Cullen, and James Hutton. The RSE was their collective heir, giving permanent embodiment to the ideals they represented.

In 1737, a new, broader society—the Edinburgh Society for Improving Arts and Sciences and particularly Natural Knowledge—split from the specialist medical organisation, which then went on to become the Royal Medical Society. The following year, it changed its name to the Edinburgh Philosophical Society and transformed itself into the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1783.

In 1788, it issued the first volume of its new journal, Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

However, members split over the Society’s practical and theoretical objectives. This resulted in the founding and issuing of articles from the Wernerian Society (1808–58), a parallel organisation that focused more on natural history and scientific research. This became the Edinburgh Philosophical Journal (1819 – 1839).

For the first four decades of the 19th century, the RSE’s members published articles in two different journals. By the 1850s, the RSE once again unified its membership under one journal.

In the 19th century, the Society contained many scientists whose ideas laid the foundation of the modern sciences. From the 20th century onward, the Society functioned not only as a focal point for Scotland’s eminent scientists but also the arts and humanities.

Today, the RSE uses the diverse knowledge and expertise of its 1,800-strong Fellowship — which is drawn from the worlds of science, the arts, business and public service — to inspire young talent, engage the public on key contemporary issues, provide expertise to policymakers and influencers and promote Scotland’s interest overseas.

Bibliography

Bibliography of recent books and articles dealing with the history of the Royal Society of Edinburgh:

N Campbell and R M S Smellie, The Royal Society of Edinburgh (1783-1983) The Frist Two Hundred Years, Edinburgh (1983)

D W Thompson, ‘Fifty Years Ago, in the Royal Society of Edinburgh’, Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Volume 54 (1935) pp 145-157 https://doi.org/10.1017/S0370164600016126

C D Waterston, ‘The Home of the Royal Society of Edinburgh’, Royal Society of Edinburgh Year Book 1996, Royal Society of Edinburgh (1995) pp 83-110

Lord Moncreiff of Tullibole, ‘The President delivered the following Address, giving a Review of the Hundred Years’ History of the Society’, Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Volume 12 (1884) pp 451-474 https://doi.org/10.1017/S0370164600000912

S Shapin, ‘Property, Patronage, and the Politics of Science: The Founding of the Royal Society of Edinburgh’ The British Journal for the History of Science, Volume 7, Issue 1 (1974) pp 1-41

R L Emerson, ‘The Philosophical Society of Edinburgh 1737-1747’, The British Journal for the History of Science, Volume 12, Issue 2 (1979) pp 154-191

R L Emerson, ‘The Philosophical Society of Edinburgh 1748-1768’, The British Journal for the History of Science, Volume 14, Issue 2 (1981) pp 133-176

R L Emerson, ‘The Philosophical Society of Edinburgh 1768-1783’ The British Journal for the History of Science, Volume 18, Issue 3 (1985) pp 255-303

R L Emerson, ‘The Scottish Enlightenment and the End of the Philosophical Society of Edinburgh’ The British Journal for the History of Science, Volume 21, Issue 1 (1988) pp 33-66