A
public lecture (also known as an
open lecture) is one means employed for educating the public.
Gresham College, in London, has been providing free public lectures since its founding in 1597 through the will of
Sir Thomas Gresham. The
Royal Society held its first ever meeting at Gresham College in November 1660, after one of
Christopher Wren's lectures, and continued to meet there for the next fifty years.
