While France relied on direct involvement of the royal power, either through the King or his ministers, Britain had a more formal royal patronage, that encouraged the activity, but did not sponsor or finance it. This also meant that in the former case, the activity was directed towards studies that could directly help the state, while in the latter case, the activity was much less directed by royal interest.

Bibliography

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2. History of the Royal Society. On the Internet at http://royalsociety.org/History-of-the-Royal-Society/. Last retrieved on July 22, 2010

3. Findlen, Paula. Founding a Scientific Academy: Gender, Patronage and Knowledge in Early Eighteenth-Century Milan. Republics of Letters: A Journal for the Study of Knowledge, Politics, and the Arts 1,...
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