Regensburg Botanical Society
botanical society in Bavaria, voluntary association
The Regensburg Botanical Society (Regensburgische Botanische Gesellschaft), founded 1790 in the city of Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany, is the oldest extant scientific society focused on botany. It was initially supported by the Prince-Archbishop Karl Theodor von Dalberg of Regensburg. Over the centuries the society has held scientific meetings, published scientific journals and had a botanic garden (until 1855), herbarium and library. In the twentieth century the society extended its role into nature conservation. It currently collaborates closely with the University of Regensburg.
Foundation
The Regensburg Botanical Society was founded 14 May 1790 by the botanist David Heinrich Hoppe. It was previously known as the Royal Bavarian Botanical Society of Regensburg (Königlich Bayerische Botanische Gesellschaft zu Regensburg).
The first 'meeting' took place in the open air near Regensburg in what is now the Max-Schultze-Steig nature reserve. The location was adjacent to prominent cliffs with a cave above the river Danube that provides some shelter and was subsequently called the 'Hoppefelsen' in memory of Hoppe. He walked there accompanied by his friends Ernst Wilhelm Martius, Johann August Stallknecht and Heinrich Christian Funck, all pharmacists, and then read a statement of the aims and rules of the new Regensburg Botanical Society.
The public source identifies “Regensburg Botanical Society” as botanical society in Bavaria, voluntary association. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Regensburg, Botanical and Society.
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The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 22, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q543851. VIAF identifies the subject as 158648069. The Library of Congress control number is n83054450. 2 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1790 and 1855.
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This entry incorporates text from “Regensburg Botanical Society” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.