A Royal Relationship

In 1888, Edward, Prince of Wales, became an honorary member of the Iron & Steel Institute and in 1899, Queen Victoria was awarded the Bessemer Gold Medal. Then, in 1901, as he came to the throne as King Edward VII, the former Prince of Wales also became the Iron & Steel Institute’s first Royal Patron. He was also awarded the Bessemer Gold Medal in 1906.

This tradition of patronage from the ruling monarch continued with King George V (1910-1936), King George VI (1936-1952), Queen Elizabeth II (1952-2022) and King Charles III (2024 onwards). George V (1934) and Elizabeth II (1969) were also awarded the Bessemer Gold Medal, and, whilst Prince of Wales, Charles III became an Honorary Fellow in 1986.

Other senior members of the Royal Family have also been involved. The late Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, became the first Honorary Fellow of the Plastics Institute in 1973 and to this day IOM3 offers the Prince Philip Gold Medal every other year for plastics in the service of humanity to commemorate this. Prince Philip also received the Bessemer Gold Medal in 2015, and opened the current headquarters building of IOM3, 297 Euston Road, in November that year. He also attended numerous IOM3 activities over the years.

Most recently, HRH The Duke of Kent graced the 2019 Awards Dinner on the occasion of the celebration of 150 years of IOM3 and presented several medals, including the Bessemer and Prince Philip Gold Medals.

In 2024, the Palace having conducted a review of all Royal Patronage activities, His Majesty King Charles III was gracious enough to agree to become the Patron of IOM3, continuing the relationship.