About Us

Founded in 1868, the Royal Historical Society (RHS) is a successful learned society, membership organisation and charity with a 150 year history. Today, the RHS is the UK’s foremost society working for historians and history.

In 2023 over 6,000 historians belong and contribute to the Society — as fellows and members active in the UK and worldwide. This makes the RHS the UK’s largest membership organisation for historians of all kinds, and from all walks of life — held in high regard by historians internationally, and a partner to many similar organisations overseas.

These national and international connections are led by the historians who make up the RHS Council (Trustees), and the small central team based at University College London, which is the home of the Society. Each year, the Society supports four PhD Fellows and other recipients of its Research funding programme.

 

 

The Society’s remit covers the following principal areas:

In late 2021 the Society also revised and extended its membership categories to engage with a wider membership from sectors beyond beyond higher education. Researchers and those working in history are welcome to join the RHS as Fellows and Members, with applications welcome at anytime.


How the Royal Historical Society works

The Society is predominantly a voluntary organisation with a revolving Council whose members offer dedicated service ensuring the smooth-running and development of the organisation. Council comprises a body of  Fellows each of whom serves a four-year term working on our various committees and working parties. Each year, the Fellowship elects three new members of Council using a preferential voting system.

 

 

Council in turn elects our Officers — including the President, Secretary and Treasurer — who each serve a four-year term. In addition, we have four Vice Pre

sidents (all members of Council) who act as Chairs of our various committees and undertake other activities for the Society. The President, Officers and Councillors work closely with the RHS central office team, based at UCL, who are responsible for the running and management of the Society.

In areas such as policy formation, training and events, the RHS also works with other national bodies: the Historical Association, which leads on history in schools; the Institute of Historical Research, a national centre for research resources; and History UK (HE) a council of representatives of UK university history departments.


RHS By-Laws

The RHS is governed by its By-LawsRevisions to the By-Laws are made, on approval, at the Society’s Annual General Meeting, held each November. The most recent update to the By-Laws was implemented in November 2021

 

If you have any queries about the Royal Historical Society, its work, or website, please contact the RHS Office: administration@royalhistsoc.org

 

RHS Library & Archive

The Royal Historical Society’s Library and Archive provide an important service to the historical community, and make available a wide range of primary and secondary resources for research.

The Society’s Library holds more than a thousand works of historical scholarship published from the sixteenth century to the present day. The RHS Archive contains important collections of papers relating to historians and the development of the historical profession, as well as to the work, and membership, of the Society itself.

 

The Royal Historical Society Library

The Society’s Library has two reading rooms and is located within the main library of University College London, next to the RHS Office and Council Chamber. RHS Fellows and Members are welcome to visit the Society’s Library, and also to use the main UCL History collection as a benefit of membership.

The Library holds more than 1000 secondary works of historical scholarship on open shelves. The collection comprises antiquarian titles, publications of UK record and local history societies, and reference works.

Also available are monographs published by the RHS (including the ‘Studies in History’ and ‘New Historical Perspectives’ series); and complete sets of the Society’s journal, Transactions (1872-2021) and the Camden Series of primary sources (1838-2021).

The Library also maintains an online listing of UK and Irish historical and record societies providing contacts for research.

More on the Royal Historical Society’s Library and collections.

 

The Royal Historical Society Archive

The Society’s Archive includes a range of named collections, principally of historians and the development of the historical profession in the nineteenth and twentieth century. The archive also contains extensive papers relating the governance and activities of the Society, from the 1860s to the 2010s.

The Society’s largest collection is that of the historian, editor and government adviser, George W. Prothero (1848-1922), who was Professor of History at Edinburgh, from 1894, and President of the Royal Historical Society between 1901 and 1905.

Other important collections include the papers of the Camden Society (1838-1897); of the Tudor historian Sir Geoffrey Elton (1922-1994), relating to his publications and literary estate; and of the governance, membership, events and activities of the Royal Historical Society, from 1868 to the 2010s.

In 2022 the Society published new catalogues for these major collection areas, with further details in the Archive section of the RHS website.

More on the Royal Historical Society Archive and its collections.

 

Access to the Library and Archive

Both the Library and Archives are housed at the Society’s offices in the main library of University College London, Gower Street.

RHS Fellows and Members are welcome to use the History collections, including those of wider UCL, as a benefit of membership.

If you wish to visit the RHS Library please make an appointment via administration@royalhistsoc.org.

 

Society responds to Ministry of Justice consultation on storage and retention of original will documents

The Council of the Royal Historical Society has submitted a response to the Ministry of Justice’s consultation paper on the ‘Storage and retention of original will documents’.

The Government’s proposal relates to the retention of wills as present-day and historical documents. HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) currently holds the original paper version of wills proved since 1858, following the Court of Probate Act (1857). The HMCTS has also created digital copies of wills granted probate in or after 2021.

The Government now proposes: i. a timescale of 25 years for the retention of the paper copies of wills digitised since 2021; and ii. digitisation of all wills dating from 1858, and the corresponding destruction of the original paper versions of these documents. Exceptions to the wholesale destruction of the post-1858 archive are proposed for wills of selected ‘famous people’, with Charles Darwin given as an example.

The Society’s response to the Ministry of Justice’s proposal is available here.

The RHS’s interest in this consultation relates to the importance of wills as historical documents and sources, both for professional historians and those undertaking personal research. The Society is extremely concerned by the proposal to destroy the paper archive of post-1858 wills, and by the Government’s claim that a digital copy is an equivalent document.

The deadline for responses to the consultation is Friday 23 February 2024. Responses and comments on the proposal are invited by the Ministry of Justice from individuals and organisations with experience of using wills as historical and legal documents.

A response to the consultation is expected from the Ministry by 31 May 2024.

 

 

 

 

 

Royal Historical Society Library

The Society’s Library comprises more than 1000 books of specialist historical interest, dating from the sixteenth century to the 2020s. With two reading rooms, the Library is located within the main library of University College London, next to the RHS Office and Council Chamber.

 

 

RHS Fellows and Members are welcome to visit the Society’s Library, and also the main UCL collection. Access and use of UCL’s wider History collections is one benefit of joining the Fellowship.

About the Library collection

The RHS Library holds more than 1000 secondary works of historical scholarship on open shelves. The collection comprises antiquarian titles (often gifted by prominent former members of the Society, such as the library of George W. Prothero), the publications of UK record and local history societies, and reference works.

Also available are monographs published by the RHS (including the ‘Studies in History’ and ‘New Historical Perspectives’ series); and complete sets of the Society’s journal, Transactions (1872-2021) and the Camden Series of primary sources (1838-2021).

Listings of these items is available here (open as pdfs):

  • For details of the complete series of the Society’s journal, see the Transactions page of the RHS website.
  • For details of the complete series of the Society’s Camden Series, see the Camden page of the RHS website.

 

RHS reading room and UCL History collections

 

Information services and contacts

The Library also maintains a listing of UK and Irish historical and record societies providing contacts for research; a number of publications for these societies are available in the RHS collection and the UCL History Library.

 

Cookie policy (EU)

 

Cookie policy (UK)

 

‘Working with History outside HE: a Guide to Professions beyond Academia’

An RHS Online Training Workshop for Early Career Historians

2pm BST, Thursday 14 July 2022

 

Watch the recording of this event

 

‘Working with History outside Higher Education: a Guide to Professions beyond Academia’ is the next in the Royal Historical Society’s series of online training events designed for early career historians.

In this session we’ll hear from trained historians who work in careers other than teaching and Higher Education. We’ll provide a practical, step-by-step guide to several alternative sectors — including heritage, museums, archives and journalism — along with advice on entering these fields after a History MA or PhD. The Workshop will provide advice on the best entry routes to these professions and the skills and experience sought and required.

The Workshop brings together History professionals with extensive experience, both as practitioners and as recruiters. Panellists will offer advice on career opportunities within their sectors; how to find vacancies; potential career paths; how historical training is applied in these careers; and ways to prepare for and gain experience of employment in heritage, museums, archives and journalism.

After contributions from the panel, the event will take the form of a discussion involving all attendees. The aim of each Workshop is to raise and discuss the questions that are most pressing to you as audience members.


About our panel

  • Dr Tracy Borman is a historian, writer and lecturer who has worked for Heritage Lottery Fund, The National Archives and English Heritage. She is now Chief Curator at Historic Royal Palaces and Chief Executive of the Heritage Education Trust, a charity that encourages children to visit and learn from historic properties. Tracy is also well-known as an author of histories of the Tudor period and of historical fiction. Her latest book is Crown & Sceptre: A New History of the British Monarchy, William the Conqueror to Elizabeth II (2021).
  • Emily Gee is the Regional Director, London and South East at Historic England — the UK’s public body for the historic environment — where she has worked since 2001, including as Head of Listing and London Planning Director. Among other roles, Emily is also on the Council of Camden History Society, and is writing a book on Victorian and Edwardian lodging houses for working women.
  • Dr Hannah Ishmael is the Collections and Research Manager at Black Cultural Archives, Brixton. Hannah has recently completed her PhD in the Department of Information Studies at UCL on the development of Black-led archives in London.
  • Dr Kate Wiles is Senior Editor at History Today, oldest history magazine in the world, and an Associate Fellow at the Institute for Historical Research, University of London. Her historical journalism includes articles for the GuardianBBC History Magazine, the New Statesman and Times Higher Education, as well as contributing regularly to History Today. A specialist in medieval language, Kate has also worked as a consultant for film and television,
  • Professor Emma Griffin (chair) is President of the Royal Historical Society and Professor of Modern British History at the University of East Anglia.

Watch the event video

 

 


About RHS Training Workshops

 

Started in 2021, the Society’s ‘Getting Started’ workshops are tailored for early career historians. Sessions provide practical guidance and insight into key areas of professional development.

 


 

HEADER IMAGE: Photo by Kevin Laminto on Unsplash

 

Privacy policy (US)

This privacy statement was last changed on 13 March 2023, last checked on 13 March 2023, and applies to citizens and legal permanent residents of the United States.

In this privacy statement, we explain what we do with the data we obtain about you via https://royalhistsoc.org. We recommend you carefully read this statement. In our processing we comply with the requirements of privacy legislation. That means, among other things, that:

  • we clearly state the purposes for which we process personal data. We do this by means of this privacy statement;
  • we aim to limit our collection of personal data to only the personal data required for legitimate purposes;
  • we first request your explicit consent to process your personal data in cases requiring your consent;
  • we take appropriate security measures to protect your personal data and also require this from parties that process personal data on our behalf;
  • we respect your right to access your personal data or have it corrected or deleted, at your request.

If you have any questions, or want to know exactly what data we keep of you, please contact us.

1. Purpose and categories of data

We may collect or receive personal information for a number of purposes connected with our business operations which may include the following: (click to expand)

2. Sharing with other parties

We only share or disclose this data to other recipients for the following purposes:

Purpose of the data transfer: Email newsletters
Country or state in which this service provider is located: USA
Purpose of the data transfer: Website statistical analysis
Country or state in which this service provider is located: USA
Purpose of the data transfer: Collecting membership data
Country or state in which this service provider is located: USA

3. Disclosure practices

We disclose personal information if we are required by law or by a court order, in response to a law enforcement agency, to the extent permitted under other provisions of law, to provide information, or for an investigation on a matter related to public safety.

If our website or organisation is taken over, sold, or involved in a merger or acquisition, your details may be disclosed to our advisers and any prospective purchasers and will be passed on to the new owners.

4. How we respond to Do Not Track signals & Global Privacy Control

Our website does not respond to and does not support the Do Not Track (DNT) header request field.

5. Cookies

Our website uses cookies. For more information about cookies, please refer to our Cookie Policy on our Opt-out preferences webpage. 

We have concluded a data processing agreement with Google.

6. Security

We are committed to the security of personal data. We take appropriate security measures to limit abuse of and unauthorized access to personal data. This ensures that only the necessary persons have access to your data, that access to the data is protected, and that our security measures are regularly reviewed.

7. Third-party websites

This privacy statement does not apply to third-party websites connected by links on our website. We cannot guarantee that these third parties handle your personal data in a reliable or secure manner. We recommend you read the privacy statements of these websites prior to making use of these websites.

8. Amendments to this privacy statement

We reserve the right to make amendments to this privacy statement. It is recommended that you consult this privacy statement regularly in order to be aware of any changes. In addition, we will actively inform you wherever possible.

9. Accessing and modifying your data

If you have any questions or want to know which personal data we have about you, please contact us. Please make sure to always clearly state who you are, so that we can be certain that we do not modify or delete any data of the wrong person. We shall provide the requested information only upon receipt of a verifiable consumer request. You can contact us by using the information below. You have the following rights:

9.1 You have the following rights with respect to your personal data

  1. You may submit a request for access to the data we process about you.
  2. You may object to the processing.
  3. You may request an overview, in a commonly used format, of the data we process about you.
  4. You may request correction or deletion of the data if it is incorrect or not or no longer relevant, or to ask to restrict the processing of the data.

10. Children

Our website is not designed to attract children and it is not our intent to collect personal data from children under the age of consent in their country of residence. We therefore request that children under the age of consent do not submit any personal data to us.

11. Contact details

Royal Historical Society
Royal Historical Society
University College London
Gower Street
London
WC1E 6BT
United Kingdom
Website: https://royalhistsoc.org
Email: administration@royalhistsoc.org

Phone number: +44 (0)20 3821 5311

 

Privacy policy (CA)

This privacy statement was last changed on 13 March 2023, last checked on 13 March 2023, and applies to citizens and legal permanent residents of Canada.

In this privacy statement, we explain what we do with the data we obtain about you via https://royalhistsoc.org. We recommend you carefully read this statement. In our processing we comply with the requirements of privacy legislation. That means, among other things, that:

  • we clearly state the purposes for which we process personal data. We do this by means of this privacy statement;
  • we aim to limit our collection of personal data to only the personal data required for legitimate purposes;
  • we first request your explicit consent to process your personal data in cases requiring your consent;
  • we take appropriate security measures to protect your personal data and also require this from parties that process personal data on our behalf;
  • we respect your right to access your personal data or have it corrected or deleted, at your request.

If you have any questions, or want to know exactly what data we keep of you, please contact us.

1. Purpose and categories of data

We may collect or receive personal information for a number of purposes connected with our business operations which may include the following: (click to expand)

2. Sharing with other parties

We only share or disclose this data to other recipients for the following purposes:

Purpose of the data transfer: Email newsletters
Country or state in which this service provider is located: USA
Purpose of the data transfer: Website statistical analysis
Country or state in which this service provider is located: USA
Purpose of the data transfer: Collecting membership data
Country or state in which this service provider is located: USA

3. Disclosure practices

We disclose personal information if we are required by law or by a court order, in response to a law enforcement agency, to the extent permitted under other provisions of law, to provide information, or for an investigation on a matter related to public safety.

If our website or organisation is taken over, sold, or involved in a merger or acquisition, your details may be disclosed to our advisers and any prospective purchasers and will be passed on to the new owners.

4. How we respond to Do Not Track signals & Global Privacy Control

Our website does not respond to and does not support the Do Not Track (DNT) header request field.

5. Cookies

Our website uses cookies. For more information about cookies, please refer to our Cookie Policy on our Cookie policy (CA) webpage. 

We have concluded a data Processing Agreement with Google.

6. Security

We are committed to the security of personal data. We take appropriate security measures to limit abuse of and unauthorised access to personal data. This ensures that only the necessary persons have access to your data, that access to the data is protected, and that our security measures are regularly reviewed.

7. Third party websites

This privacy statement does not apply to third party websites connected by links on our website. We cannot guarantee that these third parties handle your personal data in a reliable or secure manner. We recommend you read the privacy statements of these websites prior to making use of these websites.

8. Amendments to this privacy statement

We reserve the right to make amendments to this privacy statement. It is recommended that you consult this privacy statement regularly in order to be aware of any changes. In addition, we will actively inform you wherever possible.

9. Accessing and modifying your data

If you have any questions or want to know which personal data we have about you, please contact us. Please make sure to always clearly state who you are, so that we can be certain that we do not modify or delete any data of the wrong person. We shall provide the requested information only upon receipt of a verifiable consumer request. You can contact us by using the information below.

9.1 You have the following rights with respect to your personal data

  1. You may submit a request for access to the data we process about you.
  2. You may request an overview, in a commonly used format, of the data we process about you.
  3. You may request correction or deletion of the data if it is incorrect or not or no longer relevant. Where appropriate, the amended information shall be transmitted to third parties having access to the information in question.
  4. You have the right to withdraw consent at any time, subject to legal or contractual restrictions and reasonable notice. You will be informed of the implications of such withdrawal.
  5. You have the right to address a challenge concerning non-compliance with PIPEDA to our organisation and, if the issue is not resolved, to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.
  6. We shall give access to personal information in an alternative format to an individual with a sensory disability who has a right of access to personal information under PIPEDA and who requests that it be transmitted in the alternative format if (a) a version of the information already exists in that format; or (b) its conversion into that format is reasonable and necessary in order for the individual to be able to exercise rights.

10. Children

Our website is not designed to attract children and it is not our intent to collect personal data from children under the age of consent in their country of residence. We therefore request that children under the age of consent do not submit any personal data to us.

11. Contact details

Royal Historical Society
Royal Historical Society
University College London
Gower Street
London
WC1E 6BT
United Kingdom
Website: https://royalhistsoc.org
Email: administration@royalhistsoc.org

Phone number: +44 (0)20 3821 5311

We have appointed a contact person for the organisation's policies and practices and to whom complaints or inquiries can be forwarded:
Philip Carter
Academic Director, RHS
Royal Historical Society
University College London
Gower Street
London WC1E 6BT

 

Apply for Membership

Closing date for next application round:

Monday 25 March 2024

 

Membership of the RHS is open to all those who have an interest in the rich and varied world of the past. You may be involved in teaching, libraries, archives, museums, heritage, or the media in either a professional or volunteer capacity. You may be actively engaged in local or family history, or simply want to join our worldwide community of historians.

Membership is open to all applicants 18 years or older.

If you are a published or practising historian, our Fellowship or Associate Fellowship categories may be more appropriate for you. Please also consider these options before applying to join the Society. From August 2022 we are extending the benefits available to Members of the Society (please see below).

To apply for the RHS Membership please use the Society’s Applications Portal, and select your chosen membership category.


Benefits of Membership

  • Print and online copies of the latest volume of the RHS academic journal, Transactions.
  • Online access to the current issue and entire searchable back archive of Transactions of the Royal Historical Society: the collection comprises 144 volumes and more that 2200 articles, published between the journal’s foundation in 1872 and the early 2020s.
  • Online access to all 380 volumes of the Society’s Camden Series of primary source material, including the latest titles published in 2021 and 2022. Since 1838, the Camden Series has made primary records available in accessible scholarly editions, compiled and introduced by specialist historians. The Series is especially strong in material relating to British history, including the British Empire and Britons’ influence overseas.
  • All other RHS publications offered at a substantial discount: includes the Bibliography of British and Irish History and Camden Series volumes.
  • 30% discount on all academic books (print only) published by Cambridge University Press.
  • 30% discount on purchases of print copies of the Society’s New Historical Perspectives book series, offering monographs and essay collections, and produced in association with the Institute of Historical Research and University of London Press.
  • 30% discount on History titles published by Oxford University Press.
  • 20% discount on print subscription to History Today, Britain’s leading history magazine (£52 per annum, usually £65 full price). 20% discount on online subscription to the archive of History Today (£56 per annum, usually £70 full price).
  • Receipt of the weekly ‘RHS News Circular’ (this example, August 2023): regular update on RHS activities, plus listings of events / calls for papers from other UK historical societies and research networks.
  • Copies of RHS newsletters and the Society’s annual reports.
  • Eligible for RHS training and career development events / workshops reserved for Fellows and members.
  • Eligible to apply for the Society’s Research Funding programmes available to historians at all career stages.
  • Access to the RHS Archive and Library collections, and  RHS Library rooms, at University College London (UCL).
  • Become part of a thriving international community of historians, of all kinds and from many backgrounds.
  • Help us support and advocate for the study and practice of history in its many forms. Society income also supports our grants programme for historians at the start of their careers
  • Read more on the Society’s 6 priority areas: Policy & Advocacy, Events & Training, Innovative Publishing, Grants & Support, Awards & Recognition, and Library & Archive.

 

 

Annual subscription

From November 2021, annual subscription rates for Membership, payable on election, are: 

  • for Members, UK-based: £40 pa
  • Members, International: £50 pa
  • Members, Hardship Rate: £10.00 pa (online access to Transactions only)

The RHS subscription year runs July to June with renewals due on 1 July of each year. 

The Associate Fellow Hardship Rate is available to unemployed and low income/wage members (self-defined) and includes unfunded/self-funded students.


How to Apply

Prior to making your application, please consult the FAQs relating to Membership

To apply for the RHS Membership please use the Society’s Applications Portal, and select your chosen membership category.

Applications to join the RHS are welcome through the year. Dates for applications in 2024 are as follows: 25 March 2024, 27 May 2024, 12 August 2024 and 14 October 2024.

Rejoining the Society as a Member

If your Membership has lapsed / has been cancelled, and you would like to re-join the Society, please contact our Membership department at membership@royalhistsoc.org in the first instance. We will be glad to assist you.


All applications are considered by our Membership Committee who meet five times a year. You can expect to hear the outcome approximately eight weeks after the closing date for your application. Incomplete applications will be held on file until we have received all the necessary information.

All enquiries about applying for election to the Membership should be addressed to the RHS office: membership@royalhistsoc.org