The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland is a learned society and registered charity based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was founded by, Thomas Haining Gillespie, in 1909. In 1913, Edinburgh Town Council bought a large plot of land on Corstorphine Hill for the society - this later opened to the public as Edinburgh Zoo. The Society received its Royal Charter in 1913. The principal objective of the Society mentioned in the original charter is: