1 28 Royal Society. 



men, in the public declaration of my acknowledgements, from a fear 

 of being tedious by their too frequent repetition, I hope that you will 

 not upon that account consider them the less sincere, or that the 

 long experience which I have had of your support and co-operation 

 has made me less sensible of their value. 



When I last had the honour of addressing you, it was a source of 

 pride and happiness to me to be empowered to announce to you the 

 gracious intentions of His Majesty to continue to the Royal Society 

 the Annual Grant of two Gold Medals, which had been previously 

 conferred on the Royal Society by his Royal Predecessor. 



It must be well known to you, Gentlemen, that these Royal 

 Medals were not adjudged during the two first years that I presided 

 over the Royal Society ; and as there exist many circumstances con- 

 nected with the original grant and distribution of those Medals, as 

 well as causes leading to their temporary discontinuance, with which 

 the Fellows may not be generally acquainted, I trust that I may be 

 allowed to enter into some details respecting them. 



His late Majesty King George the Fourth announced, towards 

 the close of the year 1825, through the medium of the Secretary 

 of State for the Home Department (Sir Robert Peel), his gra- 

 cious intention of founding two Gold Medals, of the value of Fifty 

 Guineas each, to be annually awarded as honorary premiums, un- 

 der the direction of the President and Council of the Royal So- 

 ciety, in such a manner as should, by the excitement of com- 

 petition among men of science, seem best calculated to promote 

 the objects for which the Royal Society was originally instituted. 

 This munificent gift of the Patron of the Royal Society was of 

 course accepted by the President and Council with every expres- 

 sion of gratitude for so valuable an addition to their means of pro- 

 moting the interests of science ; and it was resolved that, in con- 

 formity with His Majesty's Commands, the Royal Medals should be 

 adjudged for the most important discoveries or series of investiga- 

 tions completed and made known to the Royal Society in the year 

 preceding the day of their award ; that their presentation should 

 not be limited to British subjects ; and that His Majesty's effigy, if 

 such should be the Sovereign's pleasure, should form the obverse of 

 the Medals ; and that two Medals from the same die should be struck 

 upon each foundation, one of gold and the other of silver. 



Upon proceeding to the distribution of the Medals, it was found 

 that the limitation of time which these Resolutions fixed was of such 

 a nature as to interfere most materially with the proper observance 

 of the object proposed to be secured by their foundation ; and the 

 period was therefore, with His Majesty's sanction, extended to five 

 years : in accordance with this arrangement the Medals continued 

 to be awarded until the year 1830, inclusive, when the demise of 

 His late Majesty took place, and in which year I had the honour of 

 being elected to fill the Chair of the Royal Society. 



Mr. Chantrey, to whom, in conjunction with Sir Thomas Law- 

 rence, was intrusted the selection of the subject for the Medal, fur- 

 nished the cast for the medallion of the head of His late Majesty, 



