ABSTRACT
The professional status of the SAE and other developing occupational aspirants of the nineteenth century have to be examined in the context of this period of changing evaluations. Only in this context and by examining the localized occupational and social milieu in which they existed, can an adequate explanation of the timing and nature of the SAE's claim to professional status be examined. Whereas later accountancy organizations, such as the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, found it necessary to incorporate in order to assert their occupational presence and professional status, the SAE charter of 1854 was a reflection of an occupational respectability already attained through association with the lawyers. The professional status of Edinburgh Chartered Accountants derived predominantly from the acquisition of characteristics of significance to occupational standing during the eighteenth century; primarily from connections with a traditional, established profession and its clientele.
