The Spanish Royal Academy of Sciences (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: ''Real Academia de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales'') is an

academic institution An academic institution is an educational institution dedicated to education and research, which grants academic degrees. See also academy and university. Types * Primary schools – (from French ''école primaire'') institutions where childre ...

and

learned society A learned society ( ; also scholarly, intellectual, or academic society) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and sciences. Membership may be open to al ...

that was founded in Madrid in 1847. It is dedicated to the study and research of

mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

biology Biology is the scientific study of life and living organisms. It is a broad natural science that encompasses a wide range of fields and unifying principles that explain the structure, function, growth, History of life, origin, evolution, and ...

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

, and related sciences.

History

The forerunner of the modern Academy of Sciences, the Academy of Mathematics, was created in

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

in 1582, during the reign of Philip II. It evolved from the environment of cooperation among the

cosmographer The term cosmography has two distinct meanings: traditionally it has been the protoscience of mapping the general features of the cosmos, heaven and Earth; more recently, it has been used to describe the ongoing effort to determine the large-sca ...

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

s and

civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing i ...

s that served the monarch, and also involved prominent artillery experts and military engineers. The initiative was motivated by an interest that existed in the

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

of the late sixteenth century in promoting the teaching of

with an eye to its practical applications in areas as diverse as mercantile calculation,

cosmography The term cosmography has two distinct meanings: traditionally it has been the protoscience of mapping the general features of the cosmos, heaven and Earth; more recently, it has been used to describe the ongoing effort to determine the large-sca ...

astrology Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that propose that information about human affairs and terrestrial events may be discerned by studying the apparent positions ...

on one hand, and the art of

navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the motion, movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navig ...

and specific problems relating to military skills and

construction Construction are processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the a ...

techniques on the other. The idea of founding the Academy of Mathematics originated with

Juan de Herrera Juan de Herrera (1530 – 15 January 1597) was a Spanish architect, mathematician and geometrician. One of the most outstanding Spanish architects in the 16th century, Herrera represents the peak of the Renaissance in Spain. His sober style re ...

, who was also its first director (1583–1597). It was founded in

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

in accordance with documents issued on December 25, 1582, and began functioning in October of the following year in offices of the

Royal Alcazar of Madrid Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Roy ...

, and shortly afterwards in its own building nearby "at the entrance to Baldanú, in la calle del Tesoro". The same space is occupied today by the

opera house An opera house is a theater building used for performances of opera. Like many theaters, it usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, backstage facilities for costumes and building sets, as well as offices for the institut ...

, the

Teatro Real The Teatro Real () is an opera house in Madrid, Spain. Located at the Plaza de Oriente, opposite the Royal Palace, and known colloquially as "''El Real''" (The Royal One). it is considered the top institution of the performing and musical arts ...

. Due to extensive changes in the royal offices, in 1612 the institution moved to the home of the Marquis of Leganes, with its facade on the " wide calle of San Bernardo" where it carried out its activities until about 1630, when all the property, income and instruments of the Academy were transferred to the Imperial College. Later, with the flowering in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

during the seventeenth century of academies in the scientific sphere, the Royal Academy of Medicine and Natural Science was founded in 1734. Soon afterwards the Marquis of Ensenada ordered Jorge Juan to divide it into independent branches, and in 1752 the Ordinance Plan for the Royal Society of Sciences of Madrid was drawn up. This project and the Academy collapsed with the fall of Ensenada in 1754 and there was no attempt to revive it until February 7, 1834: a

decree A decree is a law, legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state, judge, monarch, royal figure, or other relevant Authority, authorities, according to certain procedures. These procedures are usually defined by the constitution, Legislativ ...

for the creation of the Royal Academy of Science in Madrid, subsequently replaced by the Royal Decree for the creation of the Academy of Mathematics, Physics and Natural Sciences, on 25 February 1847. It carried out its first activities in various locations (in the National Museum of Painting in the Tower of Lujanes) until 1897 when it arrived at its current

headquarters Headquarters (often referred to as HQ) notes the location where most or all of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. The term is used in a wide variety of situations, including private sector corporations, non-profits, mil ...

in the calle Valverde at numbers 22 and 24 (premises that were formerly occupied by the Royal Spanish Academy).

List of presidents

* 1848–1866:

Antonio Remón Zarco del Valle y Huet Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language–speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular m ...

* 1866–1882: José Solano de la Matalinares * 1882–1901: Cipriano Segundo Montesino y Estrada * 1901–1916: José Echegaray y Eizaguirre * 1916–1922: Amós Salvador Rodrigáñez * 1922–1928: José Rodríguez Carracido * 1928–1934:

Leonardo Torres Quevedo Leonardo Torres Quevedo (; 28 December 1852 – 18 December 1936) was a Spanish civil engineer, mathematician and inventor, known for his numerous engineering innovations, including Aerial tramway, aerial trams, airships, catamarans, and remote ...

* 1934–1938: Blas Cabrera y Felipe * 1940–1958: José Casares Gil * 1958–1966:

Alfonso Peña Boeuf Alfonso Peña Boeuf (23 January 1888 – 1 February 1966) was a Spanish civil engineer and administrator. He was Minister of Public Works from 1938 to 1945 in the government of General Francisco Franco. He did much to reconstruct the roads and rai ...

* 1966–1970: Julio Palacios Martínez * 1970–1985: Manuel Lora Tamayo * 1985–2002: Ángel Martín Municio * 2002–2005: Carlos Sánchez del Río y Sierra * 2005–2009: Alberto Galindo Tixaire * 2009–2012: Miguel Ángel Alario y Franco * 2012–2015: Alberto Galindo Tixaire * 2015–present:

José Elguero Bertolini José Elguero Bertolini (born 1934) is a Spanish chemist best known for his contributions to heterocyclic chemistry. He is Honorary Research Professor at the Medicinal Chemistry Institute of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), an instit ...

Structure

The Academy is composed of 54 full members, 90 national correspondents, honorary members, and foreign correspondents.

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spanish Royal Academy Of Sciences National academies of sciences Scientific organisations based in Spain Research institutes in the Community of Madrid Scientific organizations established in 1847 1847 establishments in Spain S