The RSPCA was founded in a London coffee shop in 1824, the men present knew they were creating the world’s first animal welfare charity, but they couldn’t possibly have imagined the size and shape that the charity would become today.

Originally the SPCA - Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Royal patronage followed in 1837 and Queen Victoria gave permission to add the royal R in 1840, making it the RSPCA as it is known worldwide today.