University of London | Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine

Imperial College was established in 1907 by Royal Charter, by the merger of Royal School of Mines, the Royal College of Science and the City and Guilds College. All three institutions retained their separate identities after their incorporation. The Great Exhibition of 1851 was an important factor in the development of South Kensington as a centre for Science and the Arts, and consequently the establishment there of Imperial College. The Exhibitions' large profits funded the purchase of some of the land the College now stands on. Prince Albert was a keen supporter of the idea, as were Lyon Playfair and Henry Cole, Secretaries of the Department of Science and Art. The three worked closely to achieve the realisation of the scheme, and the opening of the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1857 and the Natural History Museum in 1881 partly realised their ambitions.

The Royal College of Chemistry was the first constituent college of Imperial College to be established, in 1845. It was the result of a private enterprise to found a college to aid industry, and opened with the first Professor, August von Hofmann, and 26 students. The College was incorporated with the Royal School of Mines in 1853, effectively becoming its department of Chemistry.

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