The Royal Institution: Its Founder and First ProfessorsJones, Bence
History
The Royal Institution: Its Founder and First Professors
Jones, Bence
Davy, Humphry, Sir, 1778-1829; Royal Institution of Great Britain; Rumford, Benjamin, Graf von, 1753-1814; Young, Thomas, 1773-1829
Believe me to be your affectionate brother,
H. DAVY.
In the minutes of the monthly meetings of members of the Royal
Institution, April 5, 1813, it is stated that Sir H. Davy rose and
begged leave to resign his situation of Professor of Chemistry;
‘but he by no means wished to give up his connection with the Royal
Institution, as he should ever be happy to communicate his researches
in the first instance to the Institution in the way he did in the
presence of the members last Wednesday (on hydrofluoric acid), and
to do all in his power to promote the interest and success of this
Institution.’
Earl Spencer moved ‘that the thanks of this meeting be returned to
Sir H. Davy for the inestimable services rendered by him to the Royal
Institution, and that, in order more strongly to mark the high sense
entertained by this meeting of the merits of Sir H. Davy, he be elected
Honorary Professor of Chemistry.’
Mr. Brande was then nominated Professor of Chemistry, with a salary of
200_l._ per annum.
In October Sir H. Davy went abroad with Mr. Faraday.
In May 1815 he came back, and Faraday was re-engaged as the assistant
in the laboratory of the Royal Institution. Whilst abroad he had
sent as many as seven papers to the Royal Society--on ‘Fluoric Acid
Compounds and Hydrogen Acids.’ Two papers on ‘Iodine,’ on ‘Combustion
of the Diamond,’ on ‘Ancient Colours,’ on a ‘Solid Compound of Iodine
and Oxygen,’ on ‘Hyperoxy-Muriates.’
When he returned he probably intended to make greater discoveries in
chemistry during the following ten years than he had made during the
fifteen years that he had been at the Institution. He was in the prime
of life. He had won the highest rank as an original inquirer. He had
a love of research which, in spite of his marriage, his wealth, and
ultimately his ill health, never ceased until his early death. He had
Faraday as his assistant, and he soon found a subject more fruitful
than the composition of nitrogen, which had so long baffled his genius.
Many of the details of his work in the laboratory until his last
experiment on the diffusion of gases, in February 1826, are to be
found in the ‘Life of Faraday.’ It will be sufficient to give here a
statement of the original researches which he communicated to the Royal
Society.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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