| Description | Address presented by The Royal Society on the occasion of the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II
' To the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty
May it please your Majesty
We, your loyal subjects the President, Council and Fellows of the Royal Society, beg leave to offer to Your Majesty, Patron of our Society, our warmest congratulations on the Diamond Jubilee of Your reign.
Ever since our foundation in 1660, the Royal Society has enjoyed the patronage of the Head of State. We have been particularly privileged that Your Majesty should have been our Royal Patron during the past 60 years. You have supported us generously at key moments, participating in our anniversary celebrations in 1960 at the Albert Hall and in 2010 at the Royal Festival Hall, opening our new premises at Carlton House Terrace in 1967, launching our scheme of China Royal Fellowships in 1986 to promote scientific exchange, and visiting us on numerous occasions. Many members of your Family have also contributed actively to our work. We were especially pleased to admit Prince William as a Royal Fellow at a memorable ceremony in 2010.
The scientific endeavour is one of the crowning achievements of humankind. It contributes profoundly to human culture and civilisation and leads to wide economic and social benefits. Science, technology, and innovation are vital to improving health and the quality of life for all people. The Royal Society, a self-governing Fellowship of many of the world's most distinguished individuals from all areas of science, engineering, and medicine, has played a part in some of the most fundamental, significant, and life changing discoveries in scientific history. Royal Society scientists continue to make outstanding contributions to science in many research areas, and to promote the practical uses of science for the public good.
The Society's fundamental purpose, reflected in its founding charters in the 1660s, is to recognise, promote, and support excellence in science and to encourage the development and use of science for the benefit of humanity. As a Fellowship of outstanding scientists, the Society recognises scientirfic excellence and takes a lead in promoting science in the UK, Europe, the Commonwealth and the rest of the world. As a Funder, the Society supports the work of outstanding individual scientists at various stages of their careers, and encourages collaborations between UK scientists and scientists throughout the world. And as an Academy, the Society provides authoritative and independent advice on scientific matters, including policies that promote excellent science and scientific issues that inform public policy.
The United Kingdom, with its traditions of personal freedom, tolerance and respect for reason, provides an outstandingly fruitful invironment for the pursuit of science. In the past 60 years, the UK has nurtured many decisive advances in science, from the structure of DNA in 1953 to the recent discoveries about graphene that led to the award of the 2010 Nobel Prize for two researchers supported by the Royal Society. The Society is committed to helping the UK remain one of the world's top locations for research, attracting the most creative individuals from around the world.
The Royal Society elects Fellows from throughout the Commonwealth. We share with the Commonwealth a strong practical commitment to peaceful and open relations between nations, and see in science a medium for promoting this goal. Indeed, science is a global endeavour, and international cooperation is pre-requisite to its continued advance. The Society therefore invests considerable effort in its work on representing UK science internationally.
Your Majesty, we are honoured to present this Loyal Address to you in celebration of your Diamond Jubilee as our Queen and Patron. We look forward to your continued association with the Society, in warm appreciation of the outstanding support that you and members of your Family give to us and to the promotion of science and technology in the United Kingdom.
On behalf of the Council and Fellows of the Royal Society
Paul Nurse
Sir Paul Nurse
President
March 2012 |