Gresham-COLLEGE, or COLLEGE of Philosophy, a college founded by Sir Thomas Gresham, who built the Royal-exchange; a moiety of the revenue whereof he gave in trust to the mayor and commonalty of London and their successors for ever, and the other moiety to the company of mercers; the first to find four able persons to read in the college, divinity, astronomy, music, and geometry; and the last, three or more able men to read rhetoric, civil-law, and physic; a lecture upon each subject is to be read in term-time, every day, except Sundays, in Latin, in the forenoon, and the same in English in the afternoon; only the music-lecture is to be read alone in English. The lecturers have each 50l. per annum, and a lodging in the college.
In this college formerly met the royal society; that noble academy, celebrated throughout the world for their improvements in natural knowledge. See SOCIETY.