Group    From 1754 

Royal Society of Arts

Categories: Art, Commerce

Founded by William Shipley as the "Society of Arts" in Rawthmell's Coffee House. They carried on meeting in coffee houses and taverns but as the society grew they needed more space. Shipley rented a house in Craig's Court, SW1 and In February 1755 he rented out two rooms to the society. June 1756 the society moved to a house in Castle Court, Strand. In 1759 they purchased the lease of a warehouse in Denmark Court, north of the Strand and Sir William Chambers altered it to meet their needs.

They then had the building in the Adelphi built by the Adam brothers for their use, 18 John Street, now 8 John Adam Street.

In 1908 the society was granted permission to add "Royal" to the name.

Initiated the blue plaque scheme in 1866, now run by English Heritage.

Information from Soane Museum and ODNB.

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This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Royal Society of Arts

Commemorated ati

William Shipley

This plaque commemorates the tercentenary of Shipley's birth and the site of ...

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This section lists the memorials created by the subject on this page:
Royal Society of Arts

Creations i

Dickens plaque - EC1

But he did not live in the building here today, he lived in Furnival's Inn.

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Fanny Burney

Erected in 1885 this is the oldest surviving "blue" plaque to a woman.

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Garrick plaque - gone

David Garrick, actor, lived here. B: 1716. D: 1779. {Almost hidden in the dec...

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George Cruikshank

George Cruikshank, artist, lived here, from 1850 to 1878. B: Sept.27th 1792....

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Harry Vane

Sir Harry Vane, statesman, lived here. Born 1612. Beheaded 1662. {Almost hid...

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Other Subjects

William Roberts

William Roberts

Artist. Founder member of the short-lived British Vorticist group and a WW1 war artist.The William Roberts Society's website (see Picture Source) has much information, especially on the house in...

Person, Art

1 memorial
Sir Richard Wallace

Sir Richard Wallace

An extremely rich art collector and Francophile. Sir Richard Wallace, 1st Baronet of Sudbourne Hall in Suffolk; of Hertford House in London; of Antrim Castle, County Antrim, Northern Ireland; of 2 ...

Person, Art, France

1 memorial
Benjamin Haydon

Benjamin Haydon

Historical painter and diarist. Born Plymouth. Not a successful man; Haydon's biographer, Paul O'Keefe, says that Haydon has been called "the William McGonagall of British painting". One morning af...

Person, Art, Tragedy

1 memorial
Bruce Williams

Bruce Williams

Artist. He describes himself as 'a figurative, expressionist painter who is constantly at odds with creating the pictorial image'.

Person, Art

1 memorial

Previously viewed

George Orwell

George Orwell

George Orwell was born in Bengal as Eric Arthur Blair, his father was a British colonial civil servant. Joined the Indian imperial police in Burma but left in 1927 and decided to become a writer. ...

Person, Journalism / Publishing, Literature, Seriously Famous, TV & Radio, Bengal, Burma, France, India, Spain

12 memorials
Queen Mary

Queen Mary

SW1, Marlborough Road

Queen Mary died in 1953 at her home, Marlborough House, which is the building behind this plaque.  The unveiling, by the Queen, took plac...

1 subject commemorated, 2 creators
William Shipley

William Shipley

Drawing master, social reformer and inventor. Wikipedia's page differs significantly from the Oxford Dictionary of National Bigraphy. They agree that he was born in Kent and trained as a painter. H...

Person, Art, Science

1 memorial
John Wyndham

John Wyndham

Author. Born John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris, in Dorridge near Knowle, Warwickshire. Most of his novels are about terrestrial apocalypses (he disliked the term science-fiction). The best kn...

Person, Literature

1 memorial
Mary Watts

Mary Watts

Born as Mary Seton Fraser Tytler in India but brought up in Scotland. 1886 married G. F. Watts. Co-founded the Compton Potters' Arts Guild and the Arts & Crafts Guild in Compton, Surrey. There ...

Person, Craft / Design, India, Scotland

37 memorials