Trinity College, a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, is headed by a master who oversees the general operation of the college. The role is officially appointed by the monarch at the recommendation of the college, and involves presiding over meetings of the college council and its governing body, although the executive powers of the master are limited. [1] In addition, the master supports relations with students and alumni of the college, and serves as an ambassador for its global development activities. [2]
In 1546, Trinity College was founded by Henry VIII, merging the colleges of Michaelhouse and King's Hall. [3] John Redman, then Warden of King's Hall, was thus appointed first Master of Trinity College. For much of the past, the master was required to hold a degree from the University of Cambridge, and was usually a member of Trinity College. The office of the master could be held until the age of seventy, although this could be extended to seventy-five, by decree of the fellowship. [1] There have been 40 appointments to the position; William Bill was appointed master twice, in 1551 and 1558. [4] The longest serving master was Richard Bentley, from 1700 until his death in 1741. He held the post despite numerous criminal charges, even having his degree rescinded temporarily. Although sentenced twice, the first sentencer died before the process began, and the second sentence was refused to be carried out by the vice-master, Richard Walker, whom he was a friend of. [5]
Currently, the master holds office for a fixed term of up to eight years. There is no longer a requirement to have studied at Trinity College, or the University of Cambridge, but recent masters have usually been distinguished academics. The current master, Dame Sally Davies, was appointed on 8 February 2019. She assumed the role during a ceremony on 8 October of that year, becoming the 39th Master of Trinity College, and the first woman to hold the position. [6] [7] Regardless of whether the incumbent is male or female, the title is referred to as the master, for historical reasons. [2] The college council also includes a vice-master role, currently held by Louise Merrett. [8]
The Master of Trinity College resides in the Master's Lodge, located directly opposite the main gate in Great Court. It was originally built in 1554, and is a Grade I listed building. The entrance hall has 16th-century panelling, and the drawing room has a late 15th-century plaster ceiling. The façade of the building towards Great Court was renovated between 1841 and 1843 by Anthony Salvin. In 1892, the architect Arthur Blomfield constructed the west wing of the lodge with additional rooms for private accommodation of the master, which freed some of the historic rooms for public use. [9] The Master's Lodge is customarily the royal residence when visiting the university. [10] It includes a state bedroom that was refurbished for the 1843 visit of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. [11] [12]
Several masters of the college contributed to the development of its buildings throughout history. Thomas Nevile, master of the college from 1593, remodelled the majority of the college buildings. He demolished several buildings to clear space for the Great Court, which is now reputedly the largest enclosed courtyard in Europe. [13] Upon his death, he bequeathed a sum of money that entirely paid for the construction of Nevile's Court. [14] In the late 17th century, Nevile's Court was further developed by Christopher Wren under the instruction of the master of the college, Isaac Barrow, forming the Wren Library. [15] In the 1860s, William Whewell paid for the construction of Whewell's Court, two neo-Gothic courts located on the opposite side of Trinity Street. [16]
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any Oxbridge college. Trinity performs exceptionally as measured by the Tompkins Table, coming top from 2011 to 2017. Trinity was the top-performing college for the 2020–21 undergraduate exams, obtaining the highest percentage of good honours.
Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 250 graduate students. The college was founded by William Byngham in 1437 as God's House. In 1505, the college was granted a new royal charter, was given a substantial endowment by Lady Margaret Beaufort, and changed its name to Christ's College, becoming the twelfth of the Cambridge colleges to be founded in its current form. Alumni of the college include some of Cambridge University's most famous members, including Charles Darwin and John Milton.
Peterhouse is the oldest constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Peterhouse has around 300 undergraduate and 175 graduate students, and 54 fellows.
St John's College, formally the College of St John the Evangelist in the University of Cambridge, is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, founded by the Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corporation established by a charter dated 9 April 1511. The aims of the college, as specified by its statutes, are the promotion of education, religion, learning and research. It is one of the largest Oxbridge colleges in terms of student numbers. For 2022, St John's was ranked 6th of 29 colleges in the Tompkins Table with over 35 per cent of its students earning first-class honours. It is the second wealthiest college in Oxford and Cambridge, after its neighbour Trinity College, Cambridge.
The Cavendish Laboratory is the Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge, and is part of the School of Physical Sciences. The laboratory was opened in 1874 on the New Museums Site as a laboratory for experimental physics and is named after the British chemist and physicist Henry Cavendish. The laboratory has had a huge influence on research in the disciplines of physics and biology.
William Whewell was an English polymath, scientist, Anglican priest, philosopher, theologian, and historian of science. He was Master at Trinity College, Cambridge. In his time as a student there, he achieved distinction in both poetry and mathematics.
William Hepworth Thompson was an English classical scholar and Master of Trinity College, Cambridge.
Charles Glover Barkla FRS FRSE was a British physicist, and the winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1917 for his work in X-ray spectroscopy and related areas in the study of X-rays.
The Wren Library is the library of Trinity College in Cambridge. It was designed by Christopher Wren in 1676 and completed in 1695.
Great Court is the main court of Trinity College, Cambridge, and reputed to be the largest enclosed courtyard in Europe.
Nevile's Court is a court in Trinity College, Cambridge, England, created by a bequest by the college's master, Thomas Nevile.
Thomas Nevile was an English clergyman and academic who was Dean of Peterborough (1591–1597) and Dean of Canterbury (1597–1615), Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge (1582–1593), and Master of Trinity College, Cambridge (1593–1615).
Sir John Maxwell Stirling-Maxwell, 10th Baronet, KT, DL, FRSE was a Scottish landowner, Tory politician and philanthropist.
William Lort Mansel was an English churchman and Cambridge fellow. He was Master of Trinity College, Cambridge from 1798 to his death in 1820, and also Bishop of Bristol from 1808 to 1820.
John Montagu or Mountague was an English churchman and academic.
The Senior Wrangler is the top mathematics undergraduate at the University of Cambridge in England, a position which has been described as "the greatest intellectual achievement attainable in Britain".
Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius, is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348 by Edmund Gonville, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of the wealthiest. In 1557, it was refounded by alumnus John Caius. The college has been attended by many students who have gone on to significant accomplishment, including fifteen Nobel Prize winners, the second highest of any Oxbridge college.
Mill Road Cemetery is a cemetery off Mill Road in the Petersfield area of Cambridge, England. Since 2001 the cemetery has been protected as a Grade II Listed site, and several of the tombs are also listed as of special architectural and historical interest.
Trinity College Chapel is the chapel of Trinity College, Cambridge, a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Part of a complex of Grade I listed buildings at Trinity, it dates from the mid 16th century. It is an Anglican church in the Anglo-Catholic tradition.