Introduction to the RSPCA

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was founded in 1824 by a London vicar, Arthur Broome at Old Slaughters Coffee House in London. William Wilberforce MP, who had been instrumental in the abolition of slavery, was also in attendance.

In its inaugural year, the society brought 63 offenders, mainly from Smithfield Market, before the courts on animal cruelty charges. At this time cruelty to animals was widespread and even accepted: bull-baiting and cockfighting were common and it was not unusual for cab horses to be driven to exhaustion and flogged to death on the street.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals did much to put animal welfare firmly on the political agenda, and in 1840 Queen Victoria, a keen supporter from her childhood, granted it permission to use the "Royal" title.

Today the RSPCA is the world's largest animal welfare charity with branches and inspectors throughout England and Wales, as well as working with many affiliated organisations around the globe. The aim of the Society is still to prevent cruelty and promote kindness to animals.

The RSPCA Photolibrary

The Photolibrary, formed in 1993, was originally intended to co-ordinate the commissioning and purchasing of pictures for the various departments within the RSPCA. Constant demand from external customers for these same images very quickly led to the launch of the commercial service via RSPCA Trading Ltd. Now, with over 150 contributing photographers and a core of 100,000 of the finest natural history and animal welfare images, the Photolibrary has quickly developed into a thriving business. In 1998 the Bristol based picture agency Wild Images was added to the collection, bringing with it a superb range of photographs of wild animals and places. In July 2006 the Photolibrary completed the transition to an entirely digital business; only accepting new images from professional digital cameras and supplying all images as high-quality digital files.

Our goal is to create the world’s finest specialist natural history collection. We hope that you will be a part of this exciting project.