Reginald Walter Macan D.Litt. (1848–1941) was a classical scholar. He was a Fellow (1884–1906) and then, from March 1906, Master

Master (college)

A Master is the title of the head of some colleges and other educational institutions. This applies especially at some colleges and institutions at the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge .- See also :* Master A Master (or in female form Mistress) is the title of the head of some...

 of University College

University College, Oxford

.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...

, Oxford

University of Oxford

The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...

. He was only the second layman

Layman

A layperson or layman is a person who is not an expert in a given field of knowledge. The term originally meant a member of the laity, i.e. a non-clergymen, but over the centuries shifted in definition....

 Master of the College after Anthony Gate

Anthony Gate

Anthony Gate was an Oxford academic and administrator. He was Fellow and Master of University College, Oxford.At Oxford University, Gate took his MA degree in 1572 and his B.Med. in 1580. He was the first layman to be elected Master of University College. He took office on 15 September 1584, after...

, Master from 1584–1597.

Reginald Macan was originally from Dublin, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

, and retained his Irish accent until the 1890s. He was a undergraduate at University College, Oxford, and then a "Student" (the equivalent of a Fellow) of Christ Church

Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...

 after obtaining his degree. He came back to University College as a Fellow and Tutor in 1884 until becoming Master of the College. He retired in 1923.

R, W, Macan had a reputation as a heretic early in his career, but delivered addresses in the chapel at University College at least annually.
Like his predecessor as Master, James Bright

James Franck Bright

Dr James Franck Bright MA DD was a British historian and Master of University College, Oxford.Franck Bright was the son of the physician Richard Bright. He was educated at Rugby and University College, Oxford, and was then master at Marlborough College, where he was Head of the Modern Department...

, he was nicknamed the "Mugger" by students.

Macan applied archaeological discoveries to the study of ancient history. He produced a major set of books on Herodotus

Herodotus

Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...

. He also wrote A History of Persia.

In 1913, he visited New York

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 and spoke at the Sphinx Club about Rhodes Scholars at Oxford University.

Macan was married and lived on Boars Hill

Boars Hill

Boars Hill is a hill hamlet southwest of Oxford, straddling the boundariy between the civil parishes of Sunningwell and Wootton. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire.-History:...

south of Oxford.