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For the National Academy of Medicine, see Académie Nationale de Médecine.
Louis XIV visiting the Académie in 1671
The French Academy of Sciences (French: Académie des sciences) is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French scientific research. It was at the forefront of scientific developments in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries. It is one of the earliest academies of sciences.
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A heroic depiction of the activities of the Academy from 1698
The Academy of Sciences owes its origin to Colbert\'s plan to create a general academy. He chose a small group of scholars who met on December 22, 1666 in the King\'s library, and thereafter held twice-weekly working meetings there. The first 30 years of the Academy\'s existence were relatively informal, since no statutes had as yet been laid down for the institution.
On January 20, 1699, Louis XIV gave the Company its first rules. The Academy received the name of Royal Academy of Sciences and was installed in the Louvre in Paris. On August 8, 1793, the National Convention abolished all the academies. On August 22, 1795, a National Institute of Sciences and Arts was put in place, bringing together the old academies of the sciences, literature and arts, among them the Académie française and the Académie des sciences. Almost all the old members of the previously abolished Académie were formally re-elected and retook their ancient seats. Among the exceptions was Dominique, comte de Cassini who refused to take his seat. In 1816, the once again Royal Academy of Sciences became autonomous, while forming part of the Institute of France; the head of State became its patron. The Academy proceedings were published under the name Comptes rendus de l\'Académie des sciences (1835-1965). The publications can be found on the French National Library in pdf format.
Today the Academy is one of five academies comprising the French Institute. Its members are elected for life. Currently there are 150 full members, 300 corresponding members, and 120 foreign associates. They are divided into two scientific groups: the Mathematical and Physical sciences and their applications and the Chemical, Biological, Geological and Medical sciences and their applications.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia
