Quakers in The Royal Society, 1660–1750

Abstract

It has often been claimed that Quakers have been vastly over–represented among Fellows of the Royal Society, when compared with their small proportion in the British population. This claim does not, however, stand up to historical analysis; indeed, the first handful of Quakers was only elected in the 1720s. In the present paper I analyse the activities within the Royal Society of those birthright Quakers elected prior to the middle of the eighteenth century. Through the Royal Society these Quakers were able to relate to the world of London science outside their small and rather insular religious community. Thus Thomas Birch, who was disowned by the Quakers, pursued a career closely connected with the Royal Society. Others, such as Peter Collinson, who was the key figure in importing exotics from America, remained in the Quaker fold. Those who remained Quakers were affluent and respectable London–based merchants involved in trading with America. They developed business connections through the Royal Society and found it congenial because it did not discriminate against dissenters. Moreover, they approved of science not only for its utility but because it enabled them to appreciate God's handiwork.