54-607: John Stanley Melville Keay FRGS (born 1941) is a British historian, journalist, radio presenter and lecturer specialising in popular histories of India , the Far East and China, often with a particular focus on their colonisation and exploration by Europeans . In particular, he is widely seen as a pre-eminent historian of British India . He is known both for stylistic flair and meticulous research into archival primary sources , including centuries-old unpublished sources. The author of some twenty-five books, he also writes regularly for
108-540: A body of relevant work; alternatively, a previous five-year commitment at the regular member level (less, at the council's discretion) is also considered for eligibility. Fellows may use the post-nominal designation FRGS after their names. Since 2002 the society has been granted the power to award the status of chartered geographer. The status can be obtained only by those who have a degree in geography or related subject and at least 6 years' geographical experience, or 15 years' geographical work experience for those without
162-783: A degree. Being awarded the status allows the use of the post-nominal letters "CGeog". Chartered geographer (teacher) is a professional accreditation available to teachers who can demonstrate competence, experience and professionalism in the use of geographical knowledge or skills in and out of the classroom, and who are committed to maintaining their professional standards through ongoing continuing professional development (CPD). The society's research and study groups bring together active researchers and professional geographers in particular areas of geography. There are 27 active research groups, with each group organising their own seminars, conferences, workshops and other activities. The society also presents awards to geographers that have contributed to
216-664: A lecture theatre in Burlington Gardens , London which was lent to it by the Civil Service Commission. Under the patronage of King William IV it later became known as the Royal Geographical Society (RGS) and was granted its royal charter under Queen Victoria in 1859. Another notable early member was Sir John Franklin . The Society has been a key associate and supporter of many famous explorers and expeditions , including those of: A new impetus
270-984: A number of prominent publications in Britain and Asia. He began his career with The Economist . He has received several major honours including the Sir Percy Sykes Memorial Medal . In 2019, he received an honorary doctorate, presented by Princess Anne , from the University of the Highlands and Islands in Scotland. The Economist has called him "a gifted non-academic historian", the Yorkshire Post has called him "one of our most outstanding historians", The Independent has called his writing "exquisite" and The Guardian has described his historical analysis as "forensic" and his writing as "restrained yet powerful". He
324-547: A rhinoceros. Atkins was educated at Wellington College , Berkshire , and served in the Royal Navy from 1940 to 1948. In 1944, Atkins married Margaret Spencer-Nairn. They had four children, three daughters and one son. He worked for Nairn's, his wife's family's linoleum business in Kirkcaldy , Scotland, then became a director of a financial advertising agency. Atkins contested the constituency of West Lothian in 1951, and
378-658: A single-volume paperback by John Murray . Alexander Gardner (1785–1877), the American adventurer and mercenary employed by the Sikh Empire , who is featured in Keay's 1977 and 1979 books, is the sole focus of his book, The Tartan Turban: In Search of Alexander Gardner , released in 2017. In the 1980s he worked for BBC Radio as a writer and presenter, and made several documentary series for BBC Radio 3 . He also made programmes for BBC Radio 4 . During this time he wrote India Discovered ,
432-514: A trial of an enhanced moving map that featured Hidden Journeys content. Developed in partnership between Hidden Journeys and the IFE software company Airborne Interactive, the enhanced map is available for the Singapore-London route on the airline's brand new Boeing 777-300ER (flight number SQ308 and SQ319), and features a range of geographical facts and highlights, photography and maps, all curated by
486-463: A wide variety of sporting, scientific and youth expeditions from 1965 to the present day. The society holds one of the largest private map collections in the world which is continuously increasing. It includes one million sheets of maps and charts, 3000 atlases, 40 globes and 1000 gazetteers. The earliest printed item in the Collection dates back to 1482. The RGS-IBG also holds manuscript materials from
540-853: Is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society . Keay lives in both Edinburgh and in Argyll in the West Highlands of Scotland and travels widely. John Keay was born on 18 September 1941 in Barnstaple , Devon, England, to parents of Scottish origin. His father Stanley Walter Keay (1902–72) was a master mariner and his mother Florence Jessie née Keeping (1905–92) was a housewife. He studied at Ampleforth College in Yorkshire before going on to read Modern History at Magdalen College , Oxford, where he earned high honours. Among his teachers at Oxford were
594-587: Is available by application from postgraduate students or those within five years of graduating from their first degree. Fellows of the RGS come from a wide range of professional backgrounds. They must either be proposed by an existing fellow or an individual may submit evidence of his or her own work and academic publications in the field of geography and closely related subjects such as international development , climate change and expedition medicine . Applicants must be of at least 21 years of age and provide evidence of
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#1733094552969648-492: Is chaired by the society's president, according to a set of statutes and standing orders. The members of council and the president are elected from and by its fellows, who are allowed to use the postnominal title FRGS. As a chartered body, the RGS holds the Register of Chartered Geographers in the public interest, a source of qualified, practising and experienced professional geographers. Fellows may apply for chartership if they fulfil
702-429: Is inter-linked with the history of British geography, exploration and discovery. Information, maps, charts and knowledge gathered on expeditions was sent to the RGS, making up its now unique geographical collections. The society published its first journal in 1831 and from 1855, accounts of meetings and other matters were published in the society proceedings. In 1893, this was replaced by The Geographical Journal which
756-597: Is still published today. The society was also pivotal in establishing geography as a teaching and research discipline in British universities, and funded the first geography positions in the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge . With the advent of a more systematic study of geography, the Institute of British Geographers (IBG) was formed in 1933, by thirteen geographers including Hilda Ormsby , Andrew Charles O'Dell , as
810-631: The Arctic and its people. In 1902 they awarded khan Bahadur Sher Jang a Sword of Honour (the Black Memorial) in recognition of his valuable services to geography In total the society awards 17 medals and awards including honorary membership and fellowship. Some of the other awards given by the RGS include: The society's collections consist of over two million documents, maps, photographs, paintings, periodicals, artefacts and books, and span 500 years of geography, travel and exploration. The society preserves
864-535: The 'advancement of geographical science'. It later absorbed the older African Association , which had been founded by Sir Joseph Banks in 1788, as well as the Raleigh Club and the Palestine Association . In 1995 it merged with the Institute of British Geographers , a body for academic geographers, to become officially the Royal Geographical Society with IBG . The society is governed by its council, which
918-557: The Antarctic adventures of Scott and Shackleton to the pioneering journeys of Livingstone, Baker, Speke and Burton. The RGS-IBG provides funding for geographical research and scientific expeditions. The society offers a number of grants to researchers, students, teachers and independent travellers. More than 70 projects are supported each year and in excess of £180,000 is awarded annually. Research has been conducted in more than 120 countries, from Namibia to Brazil to Greenland. Every year
972-553: The Institute of British Geographers) , often shortened to RGS , is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences, the society has 16,000 members, with its work reaching the public through publications, research groups and lectures. The RGS was founded in 1830 under the name Geographical Society of London as an institution to promote
1026-543: The Institute of British Geographers) was formed. The society also works together with other existing bodies serving the geographical community, in particular the Geographical Association and the Royal Scottish Geographical Society . In 2004, the RGS's historical collections relating to scientific exploration and research, which are of national and international importance, were opened to
1080-618: The Patron's. The award has been given to notable geographers including David Livingstone (1855), Nain Singh Rawat (1876), Baron Ferdinand von Richthofen (1878), Alfred Russel Wallace (1892), and Frederick Courtney Selous (1893) to more recent winners including Percy Harrison Fawcett (1916), Professor William Morris Davis (1919), Sir Halford John Mackinder (1945), Professor L. Dudley Stamp (1949), Professor Richard Chorley (1987) and Professor David Harvey (1995). In 2004 Harish Kapadia
1134-426: The RGS was seen as too focused on exploration. IBG activities included organising conferences, field trips, seminars, and specialist research groups and publishing a journal, Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers . The RGS and IBG co-existed for 60 years until 1992 when a merger was discussed. In 1994, members were balloted and the merger agreed. In January 1995, the new Royal Geographical Society (with
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#17330945529691188-667: The RGS-IBG helps teams of students and researchers to get into the field with Geographical Fieldwork Grants, the society's longest running grant scheme. The newest initiative is the RGS-IBG International Field Centre Grants, for work in international field centres in developing nations. Independent travel grants support geographical expeditions. Each year, the society supports more than 50 student fieldwork projects, from PhD students collecting data for their dissertation to groups of undergraduates looking to get out into
1242-489: The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG). Information is delivered in real time, with content changing as the flight progresses, so for example, while a passenger is passing over the United Kingdom, they'll be met with a pop-up that explains the origins and importance of the English Channel. The RGS-IBG education department offers courses, resources, accreditation, grants, awards, competitions and school membership, all for
1296-608: The Society was the former Prime Minister Viscount Goderich and the first Secretary Alexander Maconochie (who became the first professor of Geography at the University College London ), with another notable council member being Sir Francis Beaufort . Like many learned societies , it had started as a dining club in London, where select members held informal dinner debates on current scientific issues and ideas. It later absorbed
1350-427: The Society, consisting mainly of cultural objects from around the world, ranging from Inuit boots (from Canadian Arctic) to ceremonial leopard's claws (from the then Belgian Congo), paraphernalia of exploration, for example oxygen sets used in the various attempts on Everest, and personal items belonging to explorers, such as Shackleton's Burberry helmet. Artefacts from the collection have been loaned to exhibitions around
1404-544: The South Pole in 1912. The society is governed by its board of trustees called the council, which is chaired by its president. The members of council and the president are elected from its fellowship . The council consists of 36 members, 22 of which are elected by fellows and serve for a three-year term. In addition to the elected trustees, there are honorary members—who include the Duke of Kent as honorary president—who sit on
1458-658: The advancement of geography. The most prestigious of these awards are the Founder's Medal and the Patron's Medal . The award is given for "the encouragement and promotion of geographical science and discovery", and are approved by King Charles III . The awards originated as an annual gift of fifty guineas from King William IV , first made in 1831, "to constitute a premium for the encouragement and promotion of geographical science and discovery". The society decided in 1839 to change this monetary award into two gold medals: Founder's Medal and
1512-465: The air. Since launching, online guides have been published for more than 25 flight paths, including London to Johannesburg , New York City to Los Angeles, Sydney to Singapore, Madrid to Rio de Janeiro . The Hidden Journeys project is also integrating its content with the moving maps aboard airliners , as a new form of in-flight entertainment (IFE) that has been termed geo-entertainment or geotainment. In December 2013, Singapore Airlines began
1566-657: The benefit of teachers, students and parents. It also runs the Geography Ambassador scheme. The society produces cases studies, lesson plans and activity ideas for an all levels of learning, from KS1 up to post-GCSE. The Geography in the News website is available for student members and young geographers. It has more than 300 topical case studies. Many of the society's other resources are free to use. Humphrey Atkins Humphrey Edward Gregory Atkins, Baron Colnbrook , KCMG , PC (12 August 1922 – 4 October 1996)
1620-467: The big issues likely to affect our lives and society in the coming years. The talks are held at the society's headquarters with all talks available to watch online along with additional information. Discovering Britain is a website featuring a series of self-led geographical walks that help explain the stories behind the UK's built and natural landscapes. Each walk explores a particular landscape, finding out about
1674-469: The collections for the benefit of future generations, while providing public access and promoting collections-related educational programmes for schools and lifelong learners. The Foyle Reading Room acts as a consultation space for using the society's collections, and hosts showcases and workshops as well as the Be Inspired series of talks. The artefacts collection includes over a thousand items brought to
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1728-644: The council. The society has five specialist committees that it derives advice from: the Education Committee, Research Committee, Expedition and Fieldwork Committee, Information Resources Committee, and the Finance Committee. There are four categories of individual membership: Anyone with an interest in geography is eligible to apply to become a member of the RGS-IBG. Students who are studying geography (or an allied subject) at GCSE, A Level or as an undergraduate (or at equivalent levels). This status
1782-492: The criteria. The RGS was founded on 16 July 1830 under the name Geographical Society of London as an institution to promote the 'advancement of geographical science'. The seven founding members of the society were Sir John Barrow (geographer), Sir Roderick Murchison (geologist), Robert Brown (botanist), Lord Broughton (politician), Mountstuart Elphinstone (colonial administrator), Bartholomew Frere (diplomat) and William Henry Smyth (Admiral). The first President of
1836-421: The development of geographical knowledge and the historical development of geography. Since 1994, the society has recorded the majority of its Monday night lectures. Society members and fellows can watch selected lectures from 2006 onward online. The society's picture library holds over half a million photographs, artworks, negatives, lantern slides and albums dating from around 1830. Historic images range from
1890-439: The discipline. The society supports innovation in teaching geography at secondary and higher education level, offering several awards for school teachers to work alongside researchers in geographical research, so to develop educational resources for the classroom, and to create teaching materials. 21st Century Challenges is the society's discussion series that aims to improve public understanding of, and engagement with, some of
1944-507: The field for the first time. Grants are available for both human and physical geography projects, in any area of the world. The society supports a range of field and desk-based research by academic geographers, from established researchers undertaking fieldwork to early career academics working on smaller projects. The RGS-IBG also supports academics attending geographical conferences around the world. Some awards focus on particular geographical regions or topics, with others open to any aspect of
1998-498: The historian A. J. P. Taylor and the future playwright Alan Bennett . In 1965 he visited India for the first time. He went to Kashmir for a fortnight's trout -fishing and liked it so much that he returned the following year, this time for six months. It was during his second stay in Kashmir that Keay decided upon writing as a career. From India, he sent unsolicited articles to many British magazines and newspapers and eventually joined
2052-442: The landscape, and shaping, preserving and exploiting the landscape. Hidden Journeys is a public engagement project of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) that started in 2010. The Hidden Journeys website combines images, stories and maps (many from the Society's geographical collections) into a series of interactive guides of popular flight paths, enabling people to explore the incredible places they fly over and might see from
2106-421: The latest geographical academic literature in addition to the journals published by the RGS-IBG itself. The RGS-IBG houses a collection of 4,500 expedition reports. These documents contain details of the achievements and research results of expeditions to almost every country of the world. The catalogue of these reports, and over 8,500 planned and past expeditions, is held on a database which provides contact with
2160-499: The mid sixteenth century onwards, aerial photography from 1919 and contemporary satellite images. The manuscript archive collection consists of material arising out of the conduct of society business and manuscripts relating to persons or subjects of special interest. The document collection includes a few papers from before the society's founding in 1830, and is particularly useful to biographers of nineteenth and early twentieth century travellers and geographers, as well as research into
2214-535: The older African Association , which had been founded by Sir Joseph Banks in 1788, as well as the Raleigh Club and the Palestine Association . From 1830 to 1840 the RGS met in the rooms of the Horticultural Society in Regent Street , London and from 1854 -1870 at 15 Whitehall Place, London. In 1870, the society finally found a home when it moved to 1 Savile Row , London. The society also used briefly
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2268-484: The public for the first time. In the same year, a new category of membership was introduced to widen access for people with a general interest in geography. The new Foyle Reading Room and glass Pavilion exhibition space were also opened to the public in 2004. For example, in 2012 the RGS held an exhibition, in the glass Pavilion, of photographs taken by Herbert Ponting on Captain Robert Falcon Scott 's expedition to
2322-499: The society was closely allied for many of its earlier years with 'colonial' exploration in Africa, the Indian subcontinent, the polar regions, and central Asia especially. It has been a key associate and supporter of many notable explorers and expeditions , including those of Darwin , Livingstone , Stanley , Scott , Shackleton , Hunt and Hillary . The early history of the society
2376-596: The staff of The Economist (1965–71) and returned to India often as its political correspondent. He also started contributing stories to BBC Radio . In 1971 he gave up his correspondent's job to write his first book, Into India , which was published in 1973. Keay followed it with two volumes about the European exploration of the Western Himalayas in the 19th century: When Men and Mountains Meet (1977) and The Gilgit Game (1979). These two books were later combined into
2430-427: The story of how British colonialists came to find out about the great artefacts of Indian culture and architecture . John Keay's major books have all received strong positive reviews in leading publications in the UK, US, Asia and elsewhere. The professional recognition he has received has included the following: His late first wife Julia Keay, née Atkins (1946–2011), was also a successful writer and historian. She
2484-461: The way in which the forces of nature, people, events and the economy have created and shaped the area. There are now more than 120 walks on the Discovering Britain website, covering all regions of the United Kingdom. Walks are themed according to the landscape in which they are located, including built, prehistoric, historic, working, hidden and changing landscapes. Walks also look at people in
2538-574: The world and are in continual demand. The library collection holds more than 150,000 bound volumes that focus on the history and geography of places worldwide. Example volumes include information on European migration, a 19th-century guidebook to Berlin, and David Livingstone's account of his search for the source of the Nile . It currently receives around 800 journal titles, as well as many more journal titles that are either not currently subscribed to, or have ceased publication, allowing society members access to
2592-756: Was a British politician and a member of the Conservative Party . He served for 32 years as a Member of Parliament (MP), and served in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher from 1979 to 1982. Atkins was born on 12 August 1922, in Chalfont St Peter , Buckinghamshire, son of Captain Edward Davis Atkins and Violet Mary ( née Preston ). His family spent his first few years in Kenya, returning to England after his father died from being attacked by
2646-510: Was awarded the Patron's Medal for contributions to geographical discovery and mountaineering in the Himalayas, making him the second Indian to receive the award in its history. In 2005 the Founder's Medal was awarded to Professor Sir Nicholas Shackleton for his research in the field of Quaternary Palaeoclimatology and the Patron's Medal was awarded to Professor Jean Malaurie for a lifelong study of
2700-551: Was elected as a Member of Parliament (MP) for Merton and Morden in 1955. He became MP for Spelthorne in 1970. Atkins was the Conservative Chief Whip from 1973 to 1979, and served as a Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 1979 to 1981. In September 1981, he was appointed as Lord Privy Seal , which was a role as the chief government spokesman in the House of Commons for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. This role
2754-578: Was given to the society's affairs in 1911, with the election of Earl Curzon , the former Viceroy of India , as the society's President (1911–1914). The premises in Savile Row (once described by Curzon as "cramped and rather squalid") were sold and the present site, Lowther Lodge in Kensington Gore, was purchased for £100,000 and opened for use in April 1913. In the same year the society's ban on women fellows
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#17330945529692808-573: Was lifted. Lowther Lodge was built in 1874 for the William Lowther by Norman Shaw , one of the most outstanding domestic architects of his day. Extensions to the east wing were added in 1929, and included the New Map Room and the 750 seat Lecture Theatre. The extension was formally opened by the Duke of York (later King George VI) at the RGS centenary celebrations on 21 October 1930. The history of
2862-648: Was necessary because the Foreign Secretary , Lord Carrington , sat in the House of Lords . He resigned in April 1982, along with Lord Carrington, over the Falklands invasion . Atkins was appointed to the Order of St Michael and St George as a Knight Commander (KCMG) in the 1983 Dissolution Honours . He left the House of Commons in 1987 and was created a life peer on 16 October as Baron Colnbrook , of Waltham St Lawrence in
2916-559: Was the daughter of the politician Humphrey Atkins . The historian Anna Keay (born 1974) is the daughter and second child of John and Julia Keay. John Keay also has three other children with Julia Keay: Alexander (born 1973), Nell (born 1977) and Samuel (born 1979). The architectural historian Simon Thurley is his son-in-law. In 2014 Keay married Amanda Douglas. Keay had an uncle who was an Indian Civil Service officer in British India . FRGS The Royal Geographical Society (with
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