University College, Oxford

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University College, Oxford

College name

University College

Collegium Magnae Aulae Universitatis

Named after

Established

1249

Sister College

Trinity Hall

Master

Lord Butler of Brockwell

JCR President

Peter Surr

Undergraduates

420

MCR President

Monte MacDiarmid

Graduates

144

Homepage

Boatclub

Crest of University College, Oxford

University College (in full, the The Master and Fellows of the College of the Great Hall of the University commonly called University College in the University of Oxford, usually known by its abbreviation, Univ.), is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is a contender for being the oldest of the colleges of the university, and is amongst the largest in terms of population. It is one of the more wealthy colleges with an estimated financial endowment of £68m (2003).

Univ was founded by William of Durham in 1249 (not King Alfred as has been claimed in the past), and until the sixteenth century was only open to Fellows studying theology. As Univ grew in size and wealth, its medieval buildings were replaced with a new Front Quad in 1640, followed by the additional Radcliffe Quad by 1719, and the Library was built in 1861. Univ only began to accept female undergraduate students in 1979.

The Master, Lord Butler of Brockwell, was appointed head of an inquiry into the 2003 Iraq War in February 2004. Her Majesty The Queen is Visitor. Previous Masters include John Albery, Kingman Brewster, Lord Goodman, Lord Redcliffe-Maud, Arthur Lehman Goodhart, and William Beveridge.

A specially constructed building in the College, the Shelley Memorial, houses a statue by Edward Onslow Ford of the poet Shelley – a former member of the college, who was expelled for writing The Necessity of Atheism – depicted lying dead on the Italian sea-shore. Rumour has it that the sunken area around the statue was once filled with water and live goldfish as a student prank. Another apparently common student prank involving the statue has been to paint his genitalia bright colours; for this reason, the statue's appendage is somewhat smaller than it used to be.

[edit] Notable former students and fellows

Clement Attlee
Edwin Arnold
Sir Jeremy Beecham
William Beveridge
Robert Boyle
Jonathan Bowen
Robin Butler
Edmund Cartwright
Robert Cecil
Former President Bill Clinton, 42nd President of the United States of America
Chelsea Clinton
Kenneth Diplock
Paul Foot
Paul Gambaccini
Andrew George
Philip Hammond
Bob Hawke
Stephen Hawking
Michael Hoban
Gordon Honeycombe
Robert Hooke
Armando Iannucci
Richard Ingrams
Kenneth Hamilton Jenkin
William Jones
C. S. Lewis
Nick Mallett
Luke McShane
Cecil Mercer
Warren Mitchell
Monier Monier-Williams
Andrew Motion
V. S. Naipaul
Nigel Playfair
John Radcliffe
Robert Reich
John Scott, 1st Earl of Eldon
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Roger Short
Peter Sissons
Charles Sorley
Stephen Spender
Adrian Stoop
Sir Peter Strawson, FBA
Henry Thrale
Mark Vandevelde
William Weld
Michael York
Felix Yusupov

[edit] Partial list of fellows and lecturers

Biochemistry: Catherine Pears, Gavin Screaton
Chemistry: Mark Child, FRS; Tony Orchard, Robert K. Thomas, Paul Burn
Classics: Barbara Kowalzig, William Allan
Computer science: Bill Roscoe, Jotun Hein
Economics and Management: Kate Doornik
Engineering science: Steve Collins
English: Jon Mee, Tiffany Stern
Geology: Philip England, Gideon Henderson
Law: John Finnis, John Gardner
Mathematics: Michael Collins, Peter Howell
Medicine: Keith Dorrington, Catherine Stoodley
Modern history: Hartmut Pogge von Strandmann, Catherine Holmes, Kathryn Gleadle
Modern Languages: Michael Nicholson (Russian)
Oriental studies: Glen Dudbridge, Mark Smith
Philosophy, Politics, and Economics: William Child (philosophy); Ngaire Woods, Marc Stears (politics); Sujoy Mukerji, Katherine Doornik, Tarek Coury (economics)
Physics: Robin Nicholas, John Wheater, Patrick Baird
Psychology: Nicholas Rawlins

[edit] Grace

Univ. has the longest grace of any Oxford (and perhaps Cambridge) College. It is read before every Formal Hall, which takes place every night except Saturday at Univ.

The reading is performed by a Scholar of the College, the same person doing it for a whole week, and whoever is sitting at the head of High Table (typically the Master, but maybe just the most senior Fellow at the table if the Master is not dining). The Scholar says the lines beginning "SCHOL."; the Fellow says the lines beginning "RESP.".

The Scholar does not need to know it by heart, although it is not unusual for people to do so.

GRATIARIUM ACTIO IN COLLEGIO MAGNAE AULAE UNIVERSITATIS QUOTIDIE ANTE MENSAM DICENDA.

SCHOL. Benedictus sit Deus in donis suis.
RESP. Et sanctus in omnibus operibus suis.
SCHOL. Adiutorium nostrum in Nomine Domini.
RESP. Qui fecit coelum et terras.
SCHOL. Sit Nomen Domini benedictum.
RESP. Ab hoc tempore usque in saecula.
SCHOL. Domine Deus, Resurrectio et Vita credentium, Qui semper es laudandus tam in viventibus quam in defunctis, gratias Tibi agimus pro omnibus Fundatoribus caeterisque Benefactoribus nostris, quorum beneficiis hic ad pietatem et ad studia literarum alimur: Te rogantes ut nos, hisce Tuis donis ad Tuam gloriam recte utentes, una cum iis ad vitam immortalem perducamur. Per Jesum Christum Dominum nostrum.
RESP. Amen.
SCHOL. Deus det vivis gratiam, defunctis requiem: Ecclesiae, Reginae, Regnoque nostro, pacem et concordiam: et nobis peccatoribus vitam aeternam.
RESP. Amen.

[edit] Reference

University College Record, the official annual magazine of University College, Oxford. Issues 1996, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2004.

[edit] See also

University College Players (college dramatic society)
University Challenge television programme (winners in 1976)

[edit] External link

Unofficial information

Permanent Private Halls at the University of Oxford
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Blackfriars \| Campion Hall \| Greyfriars \| Regent's Park College \| St Benet's Hall \| St Stephen's House \| Wycliffe Hall