The Actonian Prize was established by the Royal Institution as a septennial award for the "person who in the judgement of the committee of managers for the time being of the Institution, should have been the author of the best essay illustrative of the wisdom and beneficence of the Almighty, in such department of science as the committee of managers should, in their discretion, have selected". Each year the prize was to be awarded, announcements were published, and competitors for the prize were requested to send their essays to the Secretary of Royal Institution, Albemarle Street, London, and adjudication was made by the managers and announced a few months later.