In medieval Europe, royal charters were used to create cities (ie, localities with recognised legal rights and privileges). The date that such a charter was granted is considered to be when a city was "founded", regardless of when the locality originally began to be settled.
At one time a
royal charter was the only way in which an incorporated body could be formed, but other means (such as the registration process for
limited companies) are generally now used instead.
Among the past and present bodies formed by royal charter are the
British East India Company, the
Hudson's Bay Company, the
Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company (P&O), the
British South Africa Company, and some of the
former British colonies on the North American mainland.
Australia
Universities and colleges
Professional organisations
Belgium
The royal decree is the equivalent in
Belgium of a Royal Charter. In the period before 1958, 32 higher education institutes had been by royal charter: these were typically engineering or technical institutions rather than universities.
However, several non-technical higher education institutions have been founded, or refounded, under royal decree:
Canada
A Royal Charter is granted by
Order-in-Council, either creating an incorporated body, or giving an existent one special status. This is an exercise of the
Royal Prerogative, and, in Canada, there are hundreds of organizations under Royal Charters. Such organizations include charities, businesses, colleges, universities, and cities. Today, it is mostly charities and professional institutions who receive Royal Charters.
Application for a charter is a petition to the
Queen-in-Council. To receive a Royal Charter, the organization must have corporate members who have at least first degree level in a relevant field, consist of 5,000 members or more, be financially sound, and it must be in the public interest to regulate the institution under a charter. However, meeting these benchmarks does not guarantee the issuance of a Royal Charter.
Companies and societies
Companies, corporations, and societies in Canada founded under or augmented by a Royal Charter include:
- The Royal Kennebecasis Yacht Club; founded by a Royal Charter issued in 1898 by Queen Victoria
- The Royal Academy of Dance; founded in 1920 as the Association of Teachers of Operatic Dancing; reconstituted by a Royal Charter issued in 1936 by King George V
- The Royal Hamilton College of Music; founded in 1897 as the Hamilton Conservatory of Music; reconstituted by a Royal Charter issued in 1965 by Queen Elizabeth II
- The Royal Western Nova Scotia Yacht Club; founded in 1898 as the Digby Yacht Club; reconstituted by a Royal Charter issued in 1969 by Queen Elizabeth II
Territories and communities
Cities under Royal Charter are not subject to municipal Acts of parliament applied generally to other municipalities, and instead are governed by legislation applicable to each city individually. The Royal Charter codifies the laws applied to the particular city, and lays out the powers and responsibilities not given to other municipalities in the province concerned.
Universities and colleges
A number of Canadian universities and colleges were founded under Royal Charter.
- McGill University; founded as the Royal Institution for the Advancement of Learning by a Royal Charter issued in 1821 by King George IV; reconstituted by a Royal Charter issued in 1852 by Queen Victoria
- The University of Toronto; founded as King's College by a Royal Proclamation issued in 1827 by King George IV
Hong Kong
thumb|The Emblem of Royal Observatory Hong KongBetween 1842-1997, a number of organizations had received Royal Charter:
- Royal Hong Kong Golf Club was granted Royal Charter in 1889 - now Hong Kong Golf Club (since 1996)
Ireland
A number of Irish institutions still have a "Royal" prefix, even though the country has been a republic since 1949.
A list of former Royal institutions with ties to Ireland, but they were mostly
British institutions created in Ireland during British rule:
South Africa
The
University of South Africa received a Royal Charter in 1877.
United Kingdom
Among the 750 or so organisations with Royal Charters are
cities; the Bank of England; the
BBC; theatres such as the
Royal Opera House and the
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane;
Livery Companies; universities (mostly those founded before 1993);
professional institutions and
charities.
A Royal Charter is the manner in which a British
town is raised to the rank of
city. Most recently
Inverness,
Brighton & Hove and
Wolverhampton were given their charters to celebrate the millennium, and
Preston,
Stirling,
Newport,
Lisburn and
Newry to celebrate the
Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II in 2002.
Most
British universities operate under Royal Charters, which give them the power to grant degrees. The most recent generation of
UK universities were granted the power to grant degrees by the
Further and Higher Education Act 1992 instead of by Royal Charter, while some other universities operate under
Acts of Parliament. The
University of Buckingham is the only private education institution that received its royal charter, granted in 1983.
The
BBC operates under a Royal Charter which lasts for a limited period of ten years, after which it is renewed.
Most Royal Charters are now granted to
professional institutions and to charities. For example, the six accountancy institutes which make up the
Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies each have a Royal Charter which allows their members to call themselves Chartered Accountants. A Charter is not necessary for them to operate, but one is often sought as a recognition of "pre-eminence, stability and permanence".
A Royal Charter changes a body from a collection of individuals into a single legal entity. Once incorporated by Royal Charter, amendments to the Charter and by-laws require government approval.
United States
Although several American
universities which predate the
American Revolution purport to hold royal charters, in a number of cases they were in fact created by a grant from a local authority such as a colonial legislature.
Colleges created by royal charter from
King William III and Queen Mary II of
England:
Colleges created by
King George II of
Great Britain:
American colleges popularly believed to have been established by Royal Charter, but actually by some other type of grant:
- Harvard College 1639 - By Act of the Great and General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony
- Yale University 1701 - as Collegiate School by Act of the General Assembly of Connecticut
- Princeton University 1746 - as College of New Jersey by the General Assembly of the Province of New Jersey
- Brown University 1764 - as College of Rhode Island by Letters Patent from The Governor and General Assembly of the English Colony of Rhode Island
