Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland

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Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland
(RHASS)
legal form Charity under Scottish law with Royal Charter
founding 1784 in Edinburgh
Seat Royal Highland Center, Ingliston, Edinburgh EH28 8NF
purpose Promotion of education, citizenship and development of society, promotion of heritage, culture and science, protection and improvement of the environment, improvement of animal welfare
main emphasis Agriculture, forestry and fishing in Scotland and the Scottish Isles
method Granting of loans, foundations, gifts for the benefit of individuals or organizations, own activities
Action space Scotland and other parts of the UK
Chair Jimmy Warnock (Chairman)
Managing directors Alan Laidlaw (Chief Executive)
sales GBP 9.6m
Employees 45 (2018)
Members 16000 (2018)
Website https://rhass.org.uk/

The Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland ( RHASS ) is a Scottish Society for the Improvement of the Highlands, founded in Edinburgh in 1784 as The Highland Society of Edinburgh . RHASS is organized as a non-profit organization (Scottish Charity Number SC 004561) with a Royal Charter .

aims

The Royal Charter and the bylaws of RHASS establish the name, objectives, authorizations, structure and electoral system for the directors and the duties of the employees. The objectives are listed in paragraph 2:

  1. Promoting education
  2. Promotion of the civic community
  3. Promotion of [Scottish] heritage, culture and science
  4. Promote the protection of the environment and its improvement
  5. Promotion of animal welfare

history

founding

Even before the founding of the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland, there was an interest in agriculture and, consequently, organizations that can be regarded as forerunners of RHASS. For example, in 1723 a group of landowners formed the Honorable Society of Improvers in the Knowledge of Agriculture in Scotland with the aim of receiving advice on improving the management of the land. The aids offered concerned animal husbandry, crops, horticulture and fishing.

On February 9, 1784, several invited guests from the Highlands met at Fortune's Tontine Tavern on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh. The immediate reason for the meeting was famine caused by poor harvests in Scotland in 1782. It was at this meeting that these guests founded the Highland Society of Edinburgh . It was agreed that a society dedicated to the welfare of the Highlands was required. A chair was elected and a circular was drawn up inviting additional members. On January 11, 1785, they met again to confirm a statute. The contents were:

  1. An investigation into the state of the highlands and islands and the living conditions of the people in this region.
  2. An examination of the means of improving the situation by founding towns and villages, improving traffic routes, promoting agriculture, expanding fishing grounds and introducing useful trades and businesses.
  3. In addition, the society should contribute to the proper maintenance of the language, poetry and music of the Highlands.

In 1787 an application was made for a royal charter, which was granted by the then king, George II, under the name The Highland Society of Scotland at Edinburgh .

effect

The implementation of the objectives has been attempted in various ways. In the first year of existence, a professorship for Goidelic languages ​​was established and the data collection for a Gaelic dictionary was started, which in 1828 led to the publication of an extensive work.

In 1786 an analysis of society was discussed in Parliament and resulted in the statutory formation of a society for the establishment of fishing villages and towns on the Scottish coast and islands. Starting in 1785, the Society offered medals for reports on agriculture, which was intended to stimulate interest and encourage research in the field. In 1790 a chair in agricultural sciences was established at the University of Edinburgh on the initiative of the society .

In December 1822, the Society held the first agricultural show in what is now the garden of Queensberry House in Canongate, Edinburgh, which was then only a few sheds. These and other initiatives led to the name change in 1834 when the company was renamed the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland . The change reflected what society was and continued to be for the first 50 years of its existence: an agricultural society.

In 1856 the company was authorized to conduct research in agriculture. She used this approval to establish competitions for animal breeding , amelioration , development of tools and machines for agriculture, plowing etc. From 1823 the society sponsored lectures by William Dick at the veterinary science faculty. In 1840, with the mentoring of the society, a separate chair for Dick was established, the Dick Vet School .

In 1948 the name changed again. This time it was the honorable attribute "Royal", which the society henceforth with the approval of King George VI. after visiting the show in Inverness with his family.

Throughout the society's history, universities and colleges have been sponsored and courses in agriculture, forestry, or veterinary science have been funded.

Events and activities

Royal Highland Show

Award-winning pony at the 2005 Royal Highland Show

RHASS annually organizes the Royal Highland Show (RHS), the most famous RHASS event. The first exhibition was held in 1822, long before one could use the attribute “Royal”. Competitions and prizes had been held beforehand, but they wanted to create a fixed date in the calendar. The first exhibitions took place in December, as it was assumed that most of the interested people would then be in Edinburgh. This regulation was then dropped in favor of the summer months. By 1950 the Highland Show had been held in different locations. The increasing importance of the exhibition made this regulation impractical and they looked for a permanent venue. Therefore, in 1958, a golf course was purchased near Ingliston, a suburb of Edinburgh. In there, located landmark buildings, the foundation resides since then. After several years of development, the first Royal Highland Show was held on the site in 1960, which was a resounding success with 98,000 visitors. In June 2018, the 178th RHS took place for four days and attracted around 190,000 visitors.

Others

The Royal Highland Education Trust (RHET), supported by RHASS, tries to make children aware of the importance of the land and sustainable management. In addition, the Society has one of the largest libraries on agriculture. Some of the resources can only be accessed in this library. The Society's archivist is working with his team to make this resource available online and to make the library more useful.

organization

The governing body of the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland is the Board of Directors. Directors, like Presidents and Vice-Presidents, are elected by the Annual General Meeting . The board consists of up to 59 directors. From this round, the Executive Board is elected, which consists of up to eight Directors, including the Chairman, Immediate Past Chairman / Chairman Designate, Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer and up to four Directors who are elected to the Board for a three-year period with a one-time extension option . The Chief Executive advises the Executive Board that min. meets eleven times a year.

Six permanent board committees prepare various tasks:

  • Development and General Committee
  • Finance Committee
  • Committee for Officials
  • Partnership Committee
  • Public Relations Committee
  • Committee for risk management and workplace safety
  • further board committees were in preparation at the time the report was prepared

The chairmen of the committees report to the Board of Directors and make recommendations for action.

Relationships

Highland Center Ltd. is a 100% owned subsidiary of RHASS. The Royal Highland Society Development Trust is also included in the reports of RHASS, as there is also a dependent relationship here. In contrast, the Royal Highland Education Trust (RHET) is an independent, non-profit foundation that is independent of RHASS. Although RHASS offers office space and some support services for RHET, the supervision lies with an independent Board of Trustees, two of a maximum of 12 are delegated by RHASS.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c d e Royal Highland & Agricultural Society of Scotland, SC004561. Registered Charity from April 05, 1898. In: OSCR Scottish Charity Register. August 1, 2019, accessed on March 27, 2020 .
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Annual Review 2018. (PDF) A Path of Major Investment. Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland, April 19, 2019, accessed March 27, 2020 .
  3. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t The Society's Foundation. In: RHASS website on the WaybackMachine. Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland, October 18, 2011, accessed March 27, 2020 .
  4. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Bethany Lawson: The Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland Archive: Past, Present and Future. (PDF) In: Scottish Archives Volume 22. The Scottish Archives Association, 2016, accessed on March 27, 2020 .
  5. ↑ a b unknown: Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland. About this organization. In: Scottish Local History Forum website. Accessed March 27, 2020 (English).