Historedia
EuropeEvent

Founding of the Royal Academy

When
1768–1769
Where
London, where the Royal Academy was founded; London, seat of the newly founded Royal Academy; London, home of the Royal Academy Schools; London, venue of the first Royal Academy Exhibition; London, seat of the Royal Academy
Episodes
5

The Royal Academy of Arts was founded in London through a personal act of King George III on 10 December 1768, with Joshua Reynolds as its first President and Francis Milner Newton as first secretary. The founding instrument named 34 founder members within a permitted total of 40, and the institution opened its Schools and first exhibition in 1769.

Episodes

  1. 10 December 1768 · London, where the Royal Academy was foundedRoyal instrument of foundation signed

    King George III founded the Royal Academy by personal act on 10 December 1768, naming 34 founder members with a permitted total of 40.

  2. 10 December 1768 · London, seat of the newly founded Royal AcademyReynolds made first President

    Joshua Reynolds became the Royal Academy's first president, with Francis Milner Newton elected first secretary, serving until his 1788 resignation.

  3. 1769 · London, home of the Royal Academy SchoolsRoyal Academy Schools begin operation

    The Royal Academy Schools, part of the institution since its foundation, enrolled 77 students in 1769, their first year of operation.

  4. 1769 · London, seat of the Royal AcademyFounder membership adjusted in 1769

    William Hoare and Johann Zoffany were added to the founder member list by the King in 1769, and Associate-Engraver was created after engravers' initial exclusion.

  5. 25 April – 27 May 1769 · London, venue of the first Royal Academy ExhibitionFirst Royal Academy Exhibition opens

    The first Royal Academy Exhibition of Contemporary Art opened on 25 April 1769 and ran until 27 May 1769, fulfilling the founding mission's exhibition requirement.

Background and detail

Background. The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly, London. It was founded in 1768 as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects, holding a unique position among British art bodies.

Royal Foundation. The Royal Academy of Arts was founded through a personal act of King George III on 10 December 1768, with a mission to establish a school or academy of design for the use of students in the arts, together with an annual exhibition. The instrument of foundation, signed by George III that day, named 34 founder members and allowed for a total membership of 40 artists.

First Officers. The painter Joshua Reynolds was made the Royal Academy's first president. Francis Milner Newton was elected the first secretary, a post he held for two decades until his resignation in 1788. Reynolds later began the Royal Academy collection by giving his noted self-portrait.

Early Operation. The Royal Academy Schools, an integral part of the institution since its foundation, enrolled 77 students in 1769, their first year of operation. Originally engravers were completely excluded, but at the beginning of 1769 the category of Associate-Engraver was created, and William Hoare and Johann Zoffany were added to the founder list by the King in 1769.

People involved

Sources

  1. Royal Academy of Arts Wikipedia, revision of 2026-08-18

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.