The first recorded question of women being admitted to the Royal Society occurred in 1900, when Marian Farquharson, the first female Fellow of the Royal Microscopical Society, sent a letter to the Council of the Royal Society petitioning that "duly qualified women should have the advantage of full fellowship".
有记录的第一个质疑皇家学会不选女会士的事情发生在1900年，皇家显微学会（英语：Royal Microscopical Society）第一位女会士玛丽安·法夸尔森（英语：Marian Farquharson）给皇家学会理事会写了封请愿信，要求“完全合格的女性应该享有充分的会士权利” 。