Regius Professor

Royal warrant creating a Regius Chair in Mathematics at the University of Warwick.

A Regius professor is a university professor with royal patronage or appointment. They are a unique feature of academia in the British Isles. The first Regius professorship was in the field of medicine, and founded by the Scottish King James IV at Aberdeen University in 1497. Regius chairs have since been instituted in various universities, in disciplines judged to be fundamental and for which there is a continuing and significant need. Each was established by a British monarch, and following proper advertisement and interview through the offices of the university and the national government, the current monarch still appoints the professor (except for those at the University of Dublin in Ireland, which left the United Kingdom in 1922). This royal imprimatur, and the relative rarity of these professorships, means a Regius chair is prestigious and highly sought-after.

Regius professors are traditionally addressed as "Regius" and not "Professor".^[1] Glasgow University currently has the highest number of extant Regius chairs, at thirteen.^[2]

New Regius chairs

Traditionally, Regius chairs only existed in the ancient universities of the British Isles. In October 2012 it was announced that Queen Elizabeth II would create up to six new Regius professorships, to be announced in early 2013, to mark her Diamond Jubilee.^[3] In January 2013 the full list was announced, comprising twelve new chairs, probably the largest number ever created in one year, and more than created in most centuries.^[4][5]

In July 2015 it was announced that further Regius professorships would be created to mark the Queen's 90th birthday.^[6]

University of Aberdeen

• Regius Professor of Anatomy (1863)
• Regius Professor of Botany
• Regius Professor of English Literature
• Regius Professor of Greek
• Regius Professor of Humanity, formerly Regius Professor of Classics
• Regius Professor of Logic
• Regius Professor of Mathematics
• Regius Professor of Medicine, formerly Regius Professor of Materia Medica (1858)^[7]:159
• Regius Professor of Moral Philosophy
• Regius Professor of Natural History
• Regius Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, formerly Regius Professor of Midwifery (1858)^[7]:159
• Regius Professor of Physiology (1858)^[7]:159
• Regius Professor of Surgery (1839)^[8]:189

University of Cambridge

• Regius Professor of Botany (1724/2009)
• Regius Professor of Civil Law (1540)
• Regius Professor of Divinity (1540)
• Regius Professor of Engineering (1875/2011)
• Regius Professor of Greek (1540)
• Regius Professor of Hebrew (1540)
• Regius Professor of History (1724)
• Regius Professor of Physic (1540)

University of Dublin

• Regius Professor of Physic (1637?)
• Regius Professor of Laws (1668)
• Regius Professor of Greek (1761)
• Regius Professor of Surgery (1852/1868)

University of Dundee

• Regius Professor of Life Sciences (2013)

University of Edinburgh

• Regius Professor of Public Law and the Law of Nature and Nations (1707)
• Regius Professor of Rhetoric and English Literature (1762)
• Regius Professor of Astronomy (1785)
• Regius Professor of Clinical Surgery (1803)
• Regius Professor of Medical Science^[9]
• Regius Professor of Forensic Medicine (1807)
• Regius Professor of Sanskrit (1862) (now the Regius Professor of South Asian Language, Culture and Society)
• Regius Professor of Engineering (1868)
• Regius Professor of Geology (1871)

University of Essex

• Regius Professor of Political Science (2013)

University of Glasgow

• Regius Professor of Medicine and Therapeutics (1637/1713)
• Regius Professor of Materia Medica (1831) (merged in 1989 with the Regius chair in Medicine and Therapeutics)
• Regius Professor of Law (1713)
• Regius Professor of Anatomy (1718)
• Regius Professor of Astronomy (1760)
• Regius Professor of Zoology (1807)
• Regius Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (1815)
• Regius Professor of Surgery (1815)
• Regius Professor of Chemistry (1817)
• Regius Professor of Botany (1818)
• Regius Professor of Forensic Medicine (1839)
• Regius Professor of Physiology (1839)
• Regius Professor of Civil Engineering and Mechanics (1840)
• Regius Professor of English Language and Literature (1861)
• Regius Professor of Ecclesiastical History (1716–1935) (ceased being a Regius chair in 1935)

Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine

• Regius Professor of Engineering (2013)

King's College, University of London

• Regius Professor of Psychiatry (2013)

London School of Economics and Political Science

• Regius Professor of Economics (2013)

University of Manchester

• Regius Professor of Physics (2013)

Open University

• Regius Professor of Open Education (2013)

University of Oxford

• Regius Professor of Civil Law (c.1540)
• Regius Professor of Divinity (1535)
• Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology (1842)
• Regius Professor of Ecclesiastical History (1842)
• Regius Professor of Hebrew (1546)
• Regius Professor of Medicine (1546)
• Regius Professor of Greek (c.1541)
• Regius Professor of Modern History (1724)

University of Reading

• Regius Professor of Meteorology and Climate Science (2013)

Royal Holloway, University of London

• Regius Professor of Music (2013)

University of St Andrews

• Regius Professor of Mathematics (1668)

University of Southampton

• Regius Professor of Computer Science (2013)

University of Surrey

• Regius Professor of Electronic Engineering (2013)

University of Warwick

• Regius Professor of Mathematics (2013)

References

1. "Cushing, Harvey (1940). The Life of Sir William Osler (volume 1, chapter 23). Oxford: Oxford University Press". Retrieved 5 September 2015.
2. "Regius Professor of Law Appointed to the University of Glasgow". University of Glasgow. 1 October 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
3. "Queen to bestow new Regius Professorships on outstanding Universities" (Press release). Cabinet Office. 12 October 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
4. "New Regius Professorships announced for 12 universities". Times Higher Educational Supplement. 29 January 2013. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
5. "Cabinet Office: The Queen awards prestigious Regius professorships to twelve universities" (Press release). PoliticsHome. 29 January 2013. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
6. Garner, Richard (8 July 2015). "Budget 2015: Universities will be allowed to raise fees beyond £9,000, says George Osborne". The Independent. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
7. Comrie, John D (1927). "Chapter 9: The Medical School of Aberdeen". History of Scottish Medicine to 1860 (PDF). London: Wellcome Historical Medical Museum.
8. Bulloch, John (1895). A History of the University of Aberdeen 1495-1895. London: Hodder and Stoughton.
9. "Prof J Iredale". University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 26 November 2014.