Celebrating our 180th anniversary

In 2021, we celebrated the 180th anniversary of the College and our predecessor organisations.

While the Royal College of Psychiatrists was founded in 1971, the first of our predecessor bodies, the Association of Medical Officers of Asylums and Hospitals for the Insane, was founded in 1841. 

In 1865, the association became the Medico-Psychological Association and in 1926, the association received its royal charter, becoming the Royal Medico-Psychological Association, before going on to become the RCPsych in 1971. 

To mark the occasion in 2021 we also arranged a number of special events, including:

• special webinars throughout the year
• a special collection of ‘Psychiatry in History’ articles published in the BJPsych
• a new page focusing on a key timeline from the College's history
• a special supplement of RCPsych Insight
• a booklet that celebrates our history

We also changed our College logo for the year to a special anniversary version (shown above) that was used on our website and across all of our social media channels.