St John's College, Cambridge

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Colleges of the University of Cambridge

St John's College
St John's College heraldic shield
                             
College name The College of Saint John the Evangelist of the University of Cambridge
Motto Souvent me Souvient
(Old French: I often remember)
Named after The Hospital of Saint John the Evangelist
Established 1511
Location St. John's Street
Admittance Men and women
Master Prof. Chris Dobson
Undergraduates 550
Graduates 330
Sister colleges Balliol College, Oxford
Trinity College, Dublin
Official website
Boat Club website

St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by Lady Margaret Beaufort in 1511. It is geographically one of the largest colleges of the University of Cambridge, and the third largest in terms of its membership, after Trinity College and Homerton College. It is one of the richest colleges with fixed assets of £504,109,000 and an annual income from endowments estimated at £7,000,000. Ten Nobel Prizes have been awarded to members of John's. The college is also known for its famous choir.

Contents

[edit] History

The college was founded on the site of the 13th century Hospital of St John in Cambridge at the suggestion of Saint John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester and chaplain to Lady Margaret. However, Lady Margaret died without having mentioned the foundation of St John's in her will, and it was largely the work of Fisher that ensured that the college was founded. He had to obtain the approval of King Henry VIII of England, the Pope through the intermediary Polydore Vergil, and the Bishop of Ely to suppress the religious hospital and convert it to a college. The college received its charter on April 9, 1511. Further complications arose in obtaining money from the estate of Lady Margaret to pay for the foundation and it was not until October 22, 1512 that a codicil was obtained in the court of the Archbishop of Canterbury. In November 1512 the Court of Chancery allowed Lady Margaret's executors to pay for the foundation of the college from her estates.

The First Court was converted from the hospital on the foundation of the college. It has since been gradually changed, and the original 13th century hospital chapel and other buildings were demolished in the middle of the 19th century. The new chapel was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott and includes in its interior some pieces saved from the original chapel. The original chapel foundations can still be seen in the First Court. The First Court was used as a prison in 1643 during the English Civil War, when the college was on the Royalist side, while the city of Cambridge was largely on the Parliamentary side.

The Main Gate of St John's College, decorated with the arms of the foundress.
The Main Gate of St John's College, decorated with the arms of the foundress.

Second Court, built from 1589 to 1599, has been described as 'the finest Tudor court in England'. Reputedly under the Oriel window in the north range of the court the treaty between England and France was signed that established the marriage of King Charles I of England to Queen Henrietta Maria. Parts of the D-day landings are also said to have been planned here. Now the Senior Combination Room, but before the 19th century part of the Master's Lodge, the first-floor gallery along the north range has the largest unsupported ceiling in Cambridge. The college has blocked the installation of electrical power sockets and lighting (as well as smoke alarms) in the room, and all meals held after dark are lit by numerous candles.

The Old Library was built in 1624, largely with funds donated by John Williams, Bishop of Lincoln. It includes a very fine bay window overlooking the River Cam that has the letters ILCS on it, standing for Iohannes Lincolniensis Custos Sigilli, or John of Lincoln, Keeper of the Seal. The remaining parts of Third Court were added in 1669 - 1672.

St John's College Chapel was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott
St John's College Chapel was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott

Connecting Third Court to New Court is New Bridge, commonly known as the Bridge of Sighs. It is named after the Bridge of Sighs in Venice, which it resembles. The other bridge over the river, the Kitchen Bridge (named after the lane it followed the line of, Kitchen Lane), which is to the south of the Bridge of Sighs, was partly based on plans made by Sir Christopher Wren, and is therefore also known as the Wren Bridge.

The 19th century Gothic New Court, probably one of the most famous buildings in Cambridge, was the first College building on the west side of the river. It was built mainly as a result of the need to accommodate the increased numbers of students. Its prominent location (especially when seen from the river) and flamboyant design have led it to be nicknamed the "wedding cake."

New Court connects to the Fisher Building, named after John Fisher; the Cripps Building, named after its benefactor, the Cripps Foundation (see Sir Humphrey Cripps); the School of Pythagoras; and Merton Hall.

The Fisher Building was designed by Peter Boston and completed in 1987.

The Cripps Building was built in 1966-67 to meet a post-1945 expansion in the numbers of students. It has two courts, and was designed by architects Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya. The building received many awards, and has become a famous example of later 20th-century architectural style.

The School of Pythagoras was built around 1200, predating the foundation of the College (1511). Merton Hall is so called because from 1266[1] until 1959 both the School of Pythagoras and Merton Hall were property of Merton College, Oxford.

[edit] Choir

Main article: Choir of St John's College, Cambridge
The 16th century dining hall has a hammerbeam roof.
The 16th century dining hall has a hammerbeam roof.

The choir has a tradition of religious music and since the 1670s has sung the daily services in the College Chapel during the University Term. The services follow the cathedral tradition of the Church of England, Evensong being sung during Term six days a week and Sung Eucharist on Sunday mornings. The boys of the choir are all educated at the St John's College School. During university vacations the choir carries out engagements elsewhere. Recent tours have taken it to places including Holland, the USA and France. The choir has made a large number of recordings.

The men of the choir, or choral scholars, also form their own close harmony group, The Gentlemen of St John's. Their repertoire spans the 15th century through to the modern day, and concert tours have taken them to Europe, the USA and Japan. They provide a mixture of classical a capella music and folksongs, as well as covers of recently chart hits and light-hearted entertainment.

[edit] College life

St John's College New Court (19th-century)
St John's College New Court (19th-century)

The College is on the Backs, the area of college parkland on the banks of the river Cam, providing a particularly beautiful setting. This allows the college to maintain a significant fleet of punts in its purpose-built punt pool behind the Cripps Building.

The School of Pythagoras predates was originally a private house. It is said to be the oldest building continuously in use by a university in Britain. In addition to its Nobel prize winners, St John's is usually placed highly in the Tompkins Table of undergraduate degree results.

View over the rear buildings of St John's from the Chapel.
View over the rear buildings of St John's from the Chapel.

The 'Red Boys' is the nickname of the 1st XV Men's Rugby Team, and the Red Boy is the name of the red jumper they wear. The 'Red Girls' is the nickname of the 1st Women's Rugby Team. St John's College Men's Rugby Club has won the Division One League title for the last eight years in a row and the cuppers trophy for the last five making it one of the most successful collegiate rugby teams in Cambridge's history. The women's team has also experienced success this year with them securing the inter collegiate cup on the same day that the red boys won the double for the fifth year in a row.

The college rowing club, the Lady Margaret Boat Club (LMBC), was founded in 1825. Despite many gruesome rumours concerning the name of the club, it was merely the most successful of the many boat clubs established in the College in the 19th century. In a similar fashion the traditional rival of the LMBC, the Boat Club of Trinity College, is known as 'First and Third' in a reference to its formation from two original clubs.

Every year the college awards scholarships to a handful of graduate students under the Benefactors' Scholarships Scheme. The scholarships include the Craik Scholarship, the J.C. Hall Scholarship, the Luisa Aldobrandini Studentship Competition, the Paskin Scholarship and the Pelling Scholarship. Competition for these scholarships is very fierce as students from any country reading for any graduate degree—not only members of the college—can apply.

[edit] St John's and the abolition of the British slave trade

Several of St John's graduates were deeply involved in the efforts to abolish the British Slave Trade which culminated in the Act of 1807. In particular, Thomas Clarkson, William Wilberforce, Thomas Gisborne and Thomas Babington were active in the Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade and other abolitionist efforts[1].

As part of the commemoration of the bicentenary of the 1807 Act, and as a representative of one of the Ivy League universities offering American historical perspective on the Triangular Trade, President Ruth J. Simmons of Brown University (herself a direct descendant of American slaves) gave a public lecture at St John's College entitled "Hidden in Plain Sight: Slavery and Justice in Rhode Island"[2] on February 16, 2007. St John's College hosted some of the key events relating to the commemoration,[3]including an academic conference and a Gospel Mass in the College Chapel with the London Adventist Chorale.

[edit] Famous alumni

See also Category:Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge
See also Category:Fellows of St John's College, Cambridge

[edit] Politics

Famous former student of St John's College, the current Prime Minister of India Dr. Manmohan Singh (See also: Dr Manmohan Singh Scholarship)
Famous former student of St John's College, the current Prime Minister of India Dr. Manmohan Singh (See also: Dr Manmohan Singh Scholarship)
William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, Elizabeth I's chief advisor, attended St John's College from 1535.
William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, Elizabeth I's chief advisor, attended St John's College from 1535.

[edit] Science, mathematics, and technology

Paul Dirac, the discoverer of antimatter, attended St John's College from 1923, winning the Nobel prize for Physics in 1933.
Paul Dirac, the discoverer of antimatter, attended St John's College from 1923, winning the Nobel prize for Physics in 1933.
Sir John Douglas Cockcroft, who received the Nobel Prize in Physics for splitting the atom, attended St John's College from 1924, and was elected a Fellow in 1929.
Sir John Douglas Cockcroft, who received the Nobel Prize in Physics for splitting the atom, attended St John's College from 1924, and was elected a Fellow in 1929.

[edit] Literature

William Wordsworth attended St John's College from 1787
William Wordsworth attended St John's College from 1787

[edit] Other

[edit] References

  1. ^ Martin, G.H (1997). A History of Merton College. Oxford University Press, pp.17 and 342. ISBN 0-19-920183-8. 

[edit] External links

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Coordinates: 52°12′29″N 0°7′0″E / 52.20806, 0.11667 (St John's College)