The election to the presidency of the Royal Society in 1820

The impression given by standard biographies of Sir Humphry Davy JL and by Weld’s History oj the Royal Society is that little difficulty attended the choice of a quasi-permanent successor to Sir Joseph Banks.1 In reality two notable storms arose. The first was due to Davy’s unsuitability in the eyes of certain Fellows who desired that Wollaston should succeed. He was so much stirred by their earnestness and by irritation at Davy’s proceedings that for a few hours in the early stages he was prevailed upon to stand for the Chair, greatly against his inclination. The second was around the candidature of Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, and had associated with it the public intervention of King George IV.