The (Royal) Anthropological Institute, established in 1871 by the amalgamation of the Ethnological Society and the Anthropological Society, issued its Regulations in the same year and was incorporated under the Companies Acts of 1862 to 1886 on 26 Mar. 1886. It operated under the subsequent Acts of 1908 and 1929 to which amendments were made until 1962 when the RAI considered the adoption of new Articles of Association under the Companies Act of 1948. These were adopted as a special resolution at the Annual General Meeting on 27 June 1963. The By-laws were amended in 1973. Under the Acts annual returns to the Board of Trade were required giving name, nationality, usual residential address, business, occupation, lectureships, and date of birth of Officers, life Vice-Presidents, and members of Council, balance sheet, and auditor’s report; specimen signatures were also required.
Abbreviations
AHC A.H. Christie (d. 1994), RAI Hon. Secretary, 1961-70
WBF W.B. Fagg, CMG (1914-92), RAI Hon. Secretary, 1939-56, Hon. Editor, Man, 1939-65
KB Messrs Kimber Bull & Co., RAI solicitors
KM Miss K.M. Martindell (d. Jan. 1942), Assistant Secretary, 1914-42
FS Miss Felicia Stallman, Assistant Secretary, 1942-52
1/ Companies Act
1 The Companies Act, 1929, form no. 7, c. 1943
2 Certificate of the Incorporation of a Company … (the word “Limited” being omitted …), dated 30 Oct. 1962; the RAI was incorporated under the Companies Acts, 1862 to 1883 on 26 Mar. 1886
3 Registrar, Companies Registration Office, Board of Trade to RAI – two letters dated 17 Feb. 1953 and 26 Nov. 1956 retained as specimens (mimeo., printed)
4 Completed forms for the annual return under the Companies Act, 1948 from:
E.A. Alport; T.W. Bagshawe; J.A. Barnes; N.A. Barnicot; J.H.M. Beattie; Sir G. Beresford-Stooke; Miss B.M. Blackwood; D.M. Boston; J.S.P. Bradford; H.J. Braunholtz; D.R. Brothwell, M.C. Burkitt; G.H.S. Bushnell; Miss G. Caton Thompson; A.J.E. Cave; Mrs N.K. Chadwick; V.G. Childe; Mrs E.L.M. Chilver; A.H. Christie; J.G.D. Clark; W.E. Le Gros Clark; L.C.G. Clarke; H.H. Coghlan; D.D.M. Cohen; Mrs S.M. Cole; B.A.L. Cranstone; A. Digby; E.E. Evans-Pritchard; B.E.B. Fagg; W.B. Fagg; R.W. Firth; H.J. Fleure; D. Forde; M. Fortes; F.R. Fortune; H. Frankfort; M. Freedman; A.W.F. Fuller; C. von Fürer-Haimendorf; Miss D.A.E. Garrod; M. Ginsberg; H.M. Gluckman; Miss M.M. Green; W.F. Grimes; G.A. Harrison; H.S. Harrison; C.F.C. Hawkes; W.L. Hildburgh; G.D. Hornblower; E.H. Hunt; G.W.B. Huntingford; J.H. Hutton; F.J.H. Huxley; Revd R. Hyde; G.I. Jones; P.M. Kaberry; A. Keith; E.R. Leach; L.S.B. Leakey; H. Lehmann; E.J. Lindgren-Utsi; K.L. Little; Mrs D.M. Mackay; L.P. Mair; J.N. Mavrogordato; A.C. Mayer; J.F.M. Middleton; J.P. Mills; A.E. Mourant; Miss M.A. Murray; Sir J.L. Myres; S.F. Nadel; K.P. Oakley; T.K. Penniman; J.G. Peristiani; R.O’R. Piddington; D.F. Pocock; A.R. Radcliffe-Brown; Lord Raglan; Miss M.H. Read; Miss A.I. Richards; Mrs K. Risbeth; D.F.B. Roberts; J.A.F. Roberts; R. Ruggles Gates; R.U. Sayce; I. Schapera; Mrs B.Z. Seligman; I.M. Sieff; E.W. Smith; Mrs M.W. Smith; A.C. Stevenson; H.N.C. Stevenson; J.E.S. Thompson; Miss M.L. Tildesley; J.C. Trevor; A.N. Tucker; K.P. Wachsmann; H.E. Wadsworth; B.E. Ward; J.S. Weiner; D.H.F. Wilson; F.E. Zeuner
2/ Regulations, Articles of Association, By-laws
1 1871. Regulations
2 1888. Memorandum and Articles of Association
3 1900, 13 Mar. By-laws. 8 pp. (printed)
4 1911, 21 Nov. By-laws as amended (autogr.) 11 Apr. 1929
.1 Ibid., ibid., ibid. 16 Dec. 1930
.2 Ibid., ibid., ibid. 28 Apr. 1931
5 1940. Articles of Association
.1 KB to KM, 11 Apr. 1940 – on new paragraph on the common seal (tp.)
.2 Companies Registration Office memorandum on Companies Act 1929 [Apr.](autogr.)
.3 Extract of minutes of Extraordinary General Meeting, 25 June 1940 on Article 24a
.4 KM to Companies Registration Office, 8 July – encloses copy of new Article 24a (/.5 below)(tp.)
.5 Article 24a, signed A.R. Radcliffe-Brown, President (printed)
.6 Temporary amendment of by-laws passed at a meeting of the Council, 10 Dec. 1940 (mimeo., printed)
6 1944, 10 Aug., FS to WBF – on the RAI’s incorporation under the Companies Act; inquires as to the whereabouts of the document; refers to Horniman Fund transfer (tp.)
7 1945. Extract of Council meeting, 20 Nov. on the election of Honorary Fellows, and the by-laws governing them
8 1946. Articles of Association. Notice of an Extraordinary General Meeting, 10 Dec. 1946 to amend certain articles
9 1947. Articles of Association
.1 Notice of an Extraordinary General Meeting, 10 June 1947 to amend certain articles
.2 Extraordinary General Meeting, 17 June to amend certain articles
.3 Memorandum and Articles of Association (autogr. by FS) as amended 12 Dec. 1946 and 17 June 1947
.4 Ibid.
.5 Ibid. (autogr.)
.6 Ibid., amended up to 17 June (tp.)
.7 Ibid., as amended, 12 Dec. 1946 and 17 June 1947
10 1949. Common Seal
.1 FS to KB, 13 Dec. 1949 – on transferring the use of Common Seal to acting Hon. Secretary, Bryan Cranstone
.2 KB to FS, 14 Dec. 1949 – confirms legality of transfer
11 1952, 24 June. Memorandum and Articles of Association
.1 Conditions of election of Hon. Fellows, Article 14 and By-law, VII, 1-3 (mimeo.)
.2 Memorandum and Articles of Association as further amended, 24 June 1952 (autogr. amendments)
.3 Ibid. (tp. amendments)
.4 Ibid. (tp. amendments)
.5 Extraordinary General Meeting, 24 June, Special Resolution to amend Article 1 (printed)
.6 WBF to KB, 2 May – requests the necessary resolution to allow the membership to increase to 2000 (tpc.); KB’s reply of 8 May not retained
.7 KB to WBF, 9 May – encloses draft; copy also sent to Board of Trade for approval; asks if he wishes to make any further alterations (tp.)
.8 Ibid., 19 May – Board of Trade has no objection to proposed alteration; asks if special resolution has been passed (tp., annotated by WBF); letters of 23 May from KB and 26 May from RAI on draft and special resolution not retained
.9 Ibid., 15 July – mentions (Prof.) N.A. Barnicot’s deed of covenant; sends resolution to be signed by the Chairman of the Extraordinary Meeting (tp.)
.10 Ibid., 30 July – sends 48 copies of the Special Resolution (tp.); RAI’s reply of 31 July acknowledging receipt of the copies not retained
12 1952, 13 Nov. By-laws
.1 Proposed amendments as reported to Council, 9 Oct. (tp., autogr. amendments by WBF); see Council minutes, 9 Oct. 1952, CM/82/1, Item 2
.2 By-laws as further amended, 13 Nov. 1952 (autogr. amendments)
.3 Ibid. (tp. amendments)
.4 Ibid. (mimeo.)
13 1955. By-laws
.1 2 Oct., motion to amend by-laws by Dr Lucy P. Mair and Dr J.A. Barnes (autogrs.)
.2 Proposed alterations for conducting elections to Council (tp.)
.3 Extract from by-laws (mimeo.)
14 1957. Articles of Association
.1 4 Apr. Changes allowing for increased membership to 3000
.2 11 Apr. Dr Marian W. Smith (Hon. Secretary) to KB – on other changes to Articles (tpc.)
.3 6 June. Proposed changes in articles; see Council minutes, CM/86/9
15 1961, Oct. By-laws
.1 Proposals to amend by-laws (mimeo.)
.2 By-laws incorporating all amendments up to 5 Oct. 1961. 7 leaves (mimeo.)
16 1962. Articles of Association
.1 30 Aug. KB to AHC (Hon. Secretary) – recommends the adoption of new articles based on 1948 Companies Act
.2 Solicitors’ Law Stationery Society Ltd to KB, 18 Sep. – estimate for printing new Articles (photocopy)
.3 27 Sep. KB to RAI – accepts AHC’s draft for revised Articles 23 and 24
.4 11 Oct. KB to AHC – with draft proposal new Articles of Association for Council consideration
.5 12 Oct. AHC to KB – acknowledges new draft; comments and amendments by 1 Nov.; further consultation to be arranged
.6 15 Oct. AHC to WBF – encloses draft Articles for comment
.7 27 Oct. Prof. J.H. Hutton to AHC – comments on certain paragraphs in draft of new Articles
.8 1 Nov. WBF to AHC – considers new draft articles ‘very much inferior, semantically and stylistically, to the existing ones’; comments on the necessity for a redraft, further comments made on ‘the assumption that the new draft will be the basis for the new Articles’ (autogr.)
.9 Ibid. Deviations from existing articles in the new draft articles by WBF (autogr.)
.10 Ibid. (tpc.)
.11 1 Nov. Dr K.P. Wachsmann to Dr G. Caton Thompson – asks her to second an amendment to the by-laws (tp.)
.12 – notes on draft new articles (autogr. by WBF)
17 1963. Articles of Association
.1 – Jan. Revised draft articles
.2 23 Jan. AHC to WBF – on Hon. Fellows (tp. autogr.)
.3 4 Feb. WBF to AHC – replies (tpc.)
.4 5 June. AHC to members – on the draft of the new Articles of Association (mimeo.)
.5 7 June. Prof. M.A. MacConaill to AHC – encloses letter to be read at AGM on proposed articles; regrets that Gayre of Gayre and Prof. Garrett have not been settled out of court; offers any assistance (tp.)
.6 Ibid., ibid. – unable to attend AGM; expresses concern about members in the Irish Republic; asks for position to be considered – (tp.)
.7 17 June. KB to AHC – clarifies some points of new Articles (tp.)
.8 25 June. AHC to Prof. MacConaill – replies to letter of 7 June (/2/17.5 above)(tpc.)
.9 27 June. AGM special resolution proposing adoption of the new Articles, signed by President, Prof. I. Schapera (tp.)
.10 Ibid. Articles of Association as adopted. 7 leaves (mimeo.)
.11 Ibid. Memorandum of Association. 13 pp. (wp.)
.12 Ibid. Memorandum and Articles of Association. 12 pp. (printed)
.13 27 Aug. KB to AHC – Resolution and new Articles signed by Prof. I. Schapera now lodged at the Companies Office (tp.)
.14 20 Aug. Board of Trade to KB – accept new Articles of Association despite reservations (copy)
18 1973. Articles of Association
.1 ‘The constitutional and establishment structure of the Royal Anthropological Institute’ – Council paper, No. 1/73 submitted by Director, G.M. Darling (wp.)
.2 Memorandum and Articles; revising some clauses (mimeo.)
19 1973. By-laws, corrected version. 5 leaves (mimeo.)
