The Royal Philatelic Society London (RPSL) is the oldest

philatelic Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. Philately involves more than just stamp collecting or the study of postage; it is possi ...

society in the world. It was founded on 10 April 1869 as ''The Philatelic Society, London''. The society runs a

postal museum A postal museum is a museum dedicated to the display of objects relating to the postal service. A subcategory of postal museums are philatelic museums, which focus on philately and postage stamps. List of postal and philatelic museums Afric ...

, the Spear Museum of Philatelic History, at its headquarters in the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

History

Royal Philatelic Society London 12 Sept 2015 01

The society was founded on 10 April 1869 at a meeting at 93 Great Russell Street in the rooms of the stamp dealer J.C. Wilson. The first officers elected were the president,

Sir Daniel Cooper ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as p ...

, the vice-president, Frederick A. Philbrick, and the secretary, W. Dudley Atlee. The committee comprised Edward Loines Pemberton, Charles W. Viner, Thomas F. Erskine, Joseph Speranza, and W. E. Hayns. Permission to use the prefix "Royal" was granted by King

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria an ...

in November 1906. Prince George, the Duke of York (future

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. Born duri ...

), was an enthusiastic stamp collector. He served as honorary vice-president of the society from 1893 to 1910. His father, King

, had a large stamp collection that he gave to Prince George, which became known as the

Royal Philatelic Collection The Royal Philatelic Collection is the postage stamp collection of the British royal family. It is the most comprehensive collection of items related to the philately of the United Kingdom and the British Commonwealth, with many unique pieces. ...

. When he was crowned King, George V stayed with the Society as its royal patron. His second son,

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952. ...

, continued to expand the royal collection. The current patron is Her Majesty Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

. 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. The organisation celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2019. The anniversary was marked by a visit from its patron, Queen Elizabeth II, on 26 November 2019 when she opened the Society's new Headquarters in Abchurch Lane, London EC4.

Membership

"The Royal," as it is known, has 2,200 members in dozens of countries, with the highest numbers of members in the United Kingdom and the United States. Members are of two classes, fellows and members. Fellows are entitled to use the post-nominals "FRPSL". Fellows are elected from members based on service to the society and to philately. The society publishes a journal, ''

The London Philatelist ''The London Philatelist'' was first published in January 1892
by

#To promote, encourage and contribute to the advancement of the science and practice of

philately Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. Philately involves more than just stamp collecting or the study of postage; it is poss ...

. #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. #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. #To establish and maintain a library and collections of

stamps Stamp or Stamps or Stamping may refer to: Official documents and related impressions * Postage stamp, used to indicate prepayment of fees for public mail * Ration stamp, indicating the right to rationed goods * Revenue stamp, used on documents to ...

, 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 :::''See also'' Crawford Award for fantasy novels. :::''See also'' Max Crawford Medal Australian academic award. The Crawford Medal is a vermeil medal awarded by the Royal Philatelic Society London for the most valuable and original contribution ...

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.

Officers and Council

All officers and members of Council are listed on the society's website.

References

External links

Official website.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Philatelic Society, Royal 1869 establishments in England Organisations based in the United Kingdom with royal patronage Learned societies of the United Kingdom Organizations established in 1869