ARLA/CLUSTER: 100 anos da Radio Society of Great Britain

[João Costa > CT1FBF]

Radio Society of Great Britain Centenary Day

2013 marks the Centenary of the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB)
the 20,000 strong body that represents Britain’s radio amateurs.

The RSGB is pleased to announce that its Patron, HRH The Prince
Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, KG, KT will be joining the Society for
Centenary Day at the National Radio Centre at Bletchley Park on 5 July
2013.
He will meet with Members and invited guests before unveiling a plaque
to commemorate the Centenary.

A number of activities, talks and displays are planned in which RSGB
Members and members of the public can take part during the day.

Background
Starting life as the London Wireless Club in 1913, the RSGB has since
its inception brought together people with an interest in radio
communication. The Society provided the framework within which the
pioneers and experimenters of radio technology have thrived.

RSGB members have been at the forefront of many of the major
contributions made to radio technology. For example, the development
of Radio intelligence, television, radar development, re-designing the
Iron lung and the discovery of Pulsars all involved radio amateurs.
The influence of amateurs across science, technology, medicine and the
communications industry has been huge.

One hundred years later, the RSGB still provides a platform for the
exchange of ideas amongst experimenters and, although the technologies
may have changed, the amateur spirit has not. With this background the
many thousands of radio amateurs in the UK are proud to celebrate the
Centenary of their organisation, the Radio Society of Great Britain
(RSGB).

History
The London Wireless Club started after Rene Klein had a letter
published in English Mechanic on 6 June 1913. He expressed surprise
that there wasn’t a wireless group in London when other major cities
had such gatherings. A meeting of interested parties took place on 5
July and the London Wireless Club – with a membership of four – was
born. Just ten weeks later the membership had increased to 40 and by
the end of the first year there were 151 Members and 11 Associate
Members – 69 of whom held transmitting licences
.
Through two World Wars the Society was justly proud of its Members war
service. Its younger members, ready trained, flocked to the wireless
units of the Navy, Army and Air Force. Here they served with
distinction. Many of those who stayed at home during WWII were
recruited to become Voluntary interceptors used to monitor enemy radio
signals and pass them to Bletchley Park for decoding and analysis.

Since WWII and into a new Millennium, the RSGB’s membership have taken
part in propagation experiments, pushed the boundaries of radio and
electronic knowledge and shown what international amateur radio
relations is all about. Whether it’s proving that VHF communications
is more than line-of-sight, showing the world how far radio signals
can travel or putting satellites into space, radio amateurs have been
involved in it all.

Future
Whilst Centenary celebrations are a time to reflect on our past
achievements, there can be no question of “resting on our laurels”.
Amateur radio today is as relevant and vibrant as it has ever been and
the RSGB takes very seriously its responsibility to work with partners
around the world in providing leadership to safeguard and develop
amateur radio over the next 100 years.

Worldwide
There are around 4 million amateur radio callsigns worldwide, with
78,000 on issue in the UK. Radio amateurs around the world are
required to pass an examination before gaining their licence. There is
an international body governing amateur radio called the International
Amateur Radio Union. The RSGB is a founder member of the IARU, which
was formed in 1925.

RSGB Centenary 2013
http://rsgb.org/main/about-us/rsgb-centenary-2013/

RSGB website
http://rsgb.org/