William Robert Grove

William Robert Grove QC
William Robert Grove
Born	11 July 1811 Swansea, Wales
Died	1 August 1896(1896-08-01) (aged 85) London
Nationality	Welsh
Fields	physics, chemistry, patent law, criminal law,
Institutions	Lincoln's Inn British judiciary Royal Institution Royal Society Privy Council
Alma mater	Brasenose College, Oxford
Known for	conservation of energy, invention of fuel cell, defending William Palmer
Notable awards	Royal Medal (1847)

Sir William Robert Grove, PC, QC, FRS FRSE (11 July 1811 – 1 August 1896) was a Welsh judge and physical scientist. He anticipated the general theory of the conservation of energy, and was a pioneer of fuel cell technology. He invented the Grove voltaic cell.

Born in Swansea, Wales, Grove was the only child of John, a magistrate and deputy lieutenant of Glamorgan, and his wife, Anne née Bevan.

His early education was in the hands of private tutors, before he attended Brasenose College, Oxford to study classics, though his scientific interests may have been cultivated by mathematician Baden Powell. Otherwise, his taste for science has no clear origin though his circle in Swansea was broadly educated. He graduated in 1832.

In 1835 he was called to the bar by Lincoln's Inn. In the same year, Grove joined the Royal Institution and was a founder of the Swansea Literary and Philosophical Society, an organisation with which he maintained close links.

In 1829 at the Royal Institution Grove met Emma Maria Powles, and he married her in 1837. The couple embarked on a tour of the continent for their honeymoon. This sabbatical offered Groves an opportunity to pursue his scientific interests and resulted in his first scientific paper suggesting some novel constructions for electric cells.