Get Our Extension

Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland

From Wikipedia, in a visual modern way
Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland
Formation1784
Location
  • Ingliston House, Royal Highland Centre, Ingliston, Edinburgh, EH28 8NB
Membership
~16,000
Key people

The Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland (RHASS) was founded in Edinburgh in 1784 as the Highland Society of Edinburgh.[1] The Society is responsible for organising the annual Royal Highland Show.

History

The Society had its root in 1723 when the Society of Improvers of the Knowledge of Agriculture in Scotland was created in Edinburgh.[2] This society was abandoned in 1746. A similar society under the name Highland Society of Scotland was created in 1784 with 100 members[3] largely in reaction to the subsistence crises of 1782/3 when many of the estates in the highlands and islands of Scotland were not producing enough food to feed tenants.

It received a royal charter in 1787 becoming the "Royal Highland Society of Scotland" at which membership rose to 150. By the 1870s membership grew to 4650. The society granted bursaries for education and also ran the Argyll Fund, which educated "young highland gentleman" for the Navy, which was instigated by John Campbell, 5th Duke of Argyll.[4]

In 1828 they began the "Quarterly Journal of Agriculture". From the same time they were housed in a purpose built building on George IV Bridge at the head of Victoria Street in Edinburgh's Old Town. The building also held an agricultural museum. Now attached to Edinburgh Central Library in houses the music library.[5]

Famous members include Henry Mackenzie (a Director), Sir Walter Scott and James MacDonald, secretary from 1893 to 1912.

Discover more about History related topics

John Campbell, 5th Duke of Argyll

John Campbell, 5th Duke of Argyll

Field Marshal John Campbell, 5th Duke of Argyll, styled Marquess of Lorne from 1761 to 1770, was a Scottish soldier and nobleman. After serving as a junior officer in Flanders during the War of the Austrian Succession, he was given command of a regiment and was redeployed to Scotland where he opposed the Jacobites at Loch Fyne at an early stage of the Jacobite Rebellion and went on to fight against them at the Battle of Falkirk Muir and then at the Battle of Culloden. He later became adjutant-general in Ireland and spent some 20 years as a Member of Parliament before retiring to Inveraray Castle.

Agriculture

Agriculture

Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, fisheries and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to live in cities. While humans started gathering grains at least 105,000 years ago, nascent farmers only began planting them around 11,500 years ago. Sheep, goats, pigs and cattle were domesticated around 10,000 years ago. Plants were independently cultivated in at least 11 regions of the world. In the twentieth century, industrial agriculture based on large-scale monocultures came to dominate agricultural output.

George IV Bridge

George IV Bridge

George IV Bridge is an elevated street in Edinburgh, Scotland, and is home to a number of the city's important public buildings.

Old Town, Edinburgh

Old Town, Edinburgh

The Old Town is the name popularly given to the oldest part of Scotland's capital city of Edinburgh. The area has preserved much of its medieval street plan and many Reformation-era buildings. Together with the 18th/19th-century New Town, and West End, it forms part of a protected UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Henry Mackenzie

Henry Mackenzie

Henry Mackenzie FRSE was a Scottish lawyer, novelist and writer sometimes seen as the Addison of the North. While remembered mostly as an author, his main income came from legal roles, which led in 1804–1831 to a lucrative post as Comptroller of Taxes for Scotland, whose possession allowing him to follow his interest in writing.

Source: "Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2023, February 21st), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Highland_and_Agricultural_Society_of_Scotland.

Enjoying Wikiz?

Enjoying Wikiz?

Get our FREE extension now!

References
  1. ^ "The Society's Foundation". The Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland. Archived from the original on 18 October 2011. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
  2. ^ Scottish Garden Buildings by Tim Buxbaum p.15
  3. ^ Grant's Old and New Edinburgh vol.2 p.294
  4. ^ Grant's Old and New Edinburgh vol.2 p.294
  5. ^ Grant's Old and New Edinburgh vol.2 p.295
External links

The content of this page is based on the Wikipedia article written by contributors..
The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence & the media files are available under their respective licenses; additional terms may apply.
By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use & Privacy Policy.
Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization & is not affiliated to WikiZ.com.