Royal Philatelic Society London

The Society logo.

The premises of the Royal Philatelic Society London at 41 Devonshire Place on the corner with Devonshire Street.

The front cover of the first number of The London Philatelist, Vol. 1, No. 1, January 1892.

The Royal Philatelic Society London is the oldest philatelic society in the world. It was founded on 10 April 1869 as The Philatelic Society, London.^[1]

Royal connections

Permission to use the prefix "Royal" was granted by King Edward VII in November 1906.^[2] The current patron is Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Every September, at a special meeting of the Society, part of the Royal Philatelic Collection is displayed by its Keeper. Queen Elizabeth is not known to be a philatelist herself, but the royal family has maintained and added to the collection passed down by Edward VII.

Membership

"The Royal," as it is known, has members in dozens of countries, with the highest numbers of members in the United Kingdom and the United States. Members are in two classes, Fellows and Members. Fellows are elected from among Members based on service to the Royal. The Society publishes a journal, The London Philatelist, which includes articles, book reviews, society news, advertisements, and other items.

Objects

The principal objects of the Society are:

1. To promote, encourage and contribute to the advancement of the science and practice of philately.

2. To inform members of the Society on all matters affecting any of its objects by meetings, discussions, displays, lectures, correspondence or otherwise; to assist and carry out philatelic research, and to print, publish and issue such papers, periodicals, books, circulars or other literary matters in support of these objects.

3. To hold, either alone or jointly with others, promote, or subscribe, or assist with international or other philatelic exhibitions in the UK or elsewhere, and to offer and award prizes, medals or other recognition in connection with such exhibitions or for any literary work connected with philately.

4. To establish and maintain a library and collections of stamps, designs, proofs, essays and other articles of interest relating to any of the objects of the Society.

Awards and medals

The society awards the Crawford Medal for the most valuable and original contribution to the study and knowledge of philately published in book form during the two years preceding the award.

The society also awards these silver medals:

• The Tilleard Medal for the best large display of any aspect of philately given by one, or not more than two, Fellows or Members during the relevant period.
• The Lee Medal for the best paper dealing with any aspect of philately given by one Fellow or Member during the relevant period.
• The Tapling Medal for the best paper written by a Fellow or Member and published in The London Philatelist during the relevant period.

See also

• List of presidents of the Royal Philatelic Society London
• Royal Philatelic Society London Meeting Handouts Collection

References

1. "The Royal Philatelic Society, London. 1869 - April 10th - 1929." by Percy de Worms in The London Philatelist, Vol. XXXVIII, No. 447, March 1929, pp. 52-56.
2. The Philately of the Edwardian Era as shown in its Literature by David Beech, Barnet & District Philatelic Society, 2013. Retrieved 7 May 2013. Archived here.

Further reading

• Butler, A. Ronald. The Expert Committee, 1894-1994. London: Royal Philatelic Society, 1994. 32p. (Supplement to London Philatelist Vol. 103 (April 1994)).
• Rogers-Tillstone, Benjamin. The Royal Philatelic Society, London, 1869-1969. London: Royal Philatelic Society, 1969. ISBN 0-900631-00-7, 192 pages
• Worms, Baron Percy de. The Royal Philatelic Society, London: 1869 - April 10, 1919. London: Royal Philatelic Society London, 1919, 128 pages

External links

• Official website.