The modern Institute of Physics and its predecessors have served the needs of physics and physicists for 125 years. In celebration of this anniversary, 125 Years: The Physical Society and The Institute of Physics charts the history of the Institute from its origins to the present day. It provides a fascinating account of the people and events that shaped the Institute's development and includes the:

Emergence of physics as a separate scientific discipline

Formation of the Physical Society of London

Establishment of the Institute of Physics

Granting of a Royal Charter to the Institute of Physics

Final decades of the millennium

Separate chapters are devoted to the educational, professional, and publishing activities of the Institute.

Pioneers such as Guthrie, Glazebrook, and Phillips could not have envisaged the ways in which the modern Institute has developed, but would surely approve of the way it is moving forward to the next millennium.