A public lecture (also known as an open lecture ) is one means employed for educating the public. Gresham College , in London, has been providing free public lectures since its founding in 1597 through the will of Sir Thomas Gresham . The Royal Society held its first ever meeting at Gresham College in November 1660, after one of Christopher Wren 's lectures, and continued to meet there for the next fifty years.
7-632: The Ford Lectures or the James Ford Lectures in British History , are an annual series of public lectures held at the University of Oxford on the subject of English or British history . They are usually devoted to a particular historical theme and usually span six lectures over Hilary term . They are often subsequently published as a book. The lectures are named in honour of their benefactor, James Ford (1779–1851). Ford
14-661: A long history of public lectures and demonstrations given by prominent experts in the field. In the 19th century, the popularity of the public lectures given by Sir Humphry Davy at the Royal Institution was so great that the volume of carriage traffic in Albemarle Street caused it to become the first one-way street in London . The Royal Institution's Christmas Lectures for young people are nowadays also shown on television . Alexander von Humboldt delivered
21-432: A series of public lectures at the University of Berlin in the winter of 1827–1828, that formed the basis for his later work Kosmos . Besides public lectures, public autopsies have been important in promoting knowledge of medicine. The autopsy of Dr. Johann Gaspar Spurzheim , advocate of phrenology , was conducted in public, and his brain, skull, and heart were removed, preserved in jars of alcohol, and put on display to
28-488: The Cambridge University Library . In his will, Ford left a number of bequests, some of which were held in trust for the support of his surviving siblings. After they had all died, Oxford University received his bequest of £2,000 to fund a professorship of English history, which was to be established when the principal had grown to support payment of £100 per year. When this goal was reached in 1894,
35-599: The official title of the series from "Ford's Lectures in English History" to "Ford's Lectures in British History". As the lectures may be given in either the Michaelmas or Hilary terms (or partly in both), confusion can arise on publication because either calendar year may be stated. The following list gives the academic year . The following have been Ford Lecturers. ×===From 2000=== Public lecture The Royal Institution of Great Britain has
42-546: The sum was not enough to support a professor at the current stipend. After considerable discussion within the University, the funds were assigned to fund an annual lectureship in English history by a lecturer who was to be chosen annually by a board of electors. The first Ford's Lecturer in English History was S. R. Gardiner , elected for the academic year beginning in 1896. In 1994, the University of Oxford formally changed
49-598: Was educated at King's School, Canterbury , and matriculated at Trinity College, Oxford , in 1797. After graduating in 1801, he went on to his Master of Arts and Bachelor of Divinity degrees. He was a Fellow of Trinity College from 1807 to 1830. His antiquarian collections have been dispersed, but survive in the holdings of the Bodleian Library , the Library of Trinity College, the British Library , and
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