1904 – Foundation of the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD)

The Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD) was formed in 1904 under the name of The Imperial Society of Dance Teachers, with Robert Crompton as the first President. Their main objective was, and still is, to provide training and examinations in a range of dance styles and to ensure teachers are qualified. The first few years of their existence saw several major developments that are still important today. Their yearly congresses, only briefly interrupted during the war years, have run from 1906 until the present day, and The ISTD Dance Journal, now titled Dance, has been running since 1907. In 1924 separate branches representing different aspects of dance, such as ballroom or theatrical dance, were formed. In the same year the Cecchetti Society, which had been formed in 1922, joined the Imperial Society.