St John's College, Cambridge
Encyclopedia
Colleges of the University of Cambridge
This is a list of the colleges within the University of Cambridge. These colleges are the primary source of accommodation for undergraduates and graduates at the University and at the undergraduate level have responsibility for admitting students and organising their tuition. They also provide...
of the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints.
The full formal name of the college is "The Master, Fellows and Scholars of the College of St John the Evangelist in the University of Cambridge". The college was founded by Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is an eleemosynary
Charity (practice)
The practice of charity means the voluntary giving of help to those in need who are not related to the giver.- Etymology :The word "charity" entered the English language through the Old French word "charité" which was derived from the Latin "caritas".Originally in Latin the word caritas meant...
corporation established by Charter dated 9 April 1511. The aims of the College, as specified by its Statutes, are the promotion of education, religion, learning and research. The college is a charity under English law, being an exempt charity under the terms of Schedule 2 of the Charities Act 1993.
St John's College is well-known for its choir
Choir of St John's College, Cambridge
The Choir of St John's College, Cambridge, is a collegiate choir of the English cathedral tradition. Though early records are obscure, it is known that its origins can be traced to the original foundation of the College in 1511. As well as daily singing of the liturgy in the college Chapel, it...
, for its members' participation in a wide variety of inter-collegiate sporting competitions, and for its yearly May Ball
May Ball
A May Ball is a ball at the end of the academic year that happens at any one of the colleges of the University of Cambridge. They are formal affairs, requiring evening dress, with ticket prices of around £65 to £200 , with some colleges selling tickets only in pairs...
.
In 2011 the College celebrated its quincentenary, an event marked by a visit of HM Queen Elizabeth II and HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Elizabeth II. He is the United Kingdom's longest-serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch....
.
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 RochesterBishop of Rochester
The Bishop of Rochester is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Rochester in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers the west of the county of Kent and is centred in the city of Rochester where the bishop's seat is located at the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin...
and chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
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
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
, the Pope
Pope Julius II
Pope Julius II , nicknamed "The Fearsome Pope" and "The Warrior Pope" , born Giuliano della Rovere, was Pope from 1503 to 1513...
through the intermediary Polydore Vergil
Polydore Vergil
Polydore Vergil was an Italian historian, otherwise known as PV Castellensis. He is better known as the contemporary historian during the early Tudor dynasty. He was hired by King Henry VIII of England, who wanted to distance himself from his father Henry VII as much as possible, to document...
, and the Bishop of Ely
Bishop of Ely
The Bishop of Ely is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Ely in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese roughly covers the county of Cambridgeshire , together with a section of north-west Norfolk and has its see in the City of Ely, Cambridgeshire, where the seat is located at the...
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
Codicil (will)
A codicil is a document that amends, rather than replaces, a previously executed will. Amendments made by a codicil may add or revoke small provisions , or may completely change the majority, or all, of the gifts under the will...
was obtained in the court of the Archbishop of Canterbury. In November 1512 the Court of Chancery
Court of Chancery
The Court of Chancery was a court of equity in England and Wales that followed a set of loose rules to avoid the slow pace of change and possible harshness of the common law. The Chancery had jurisdiction over all matters of equity, including trusts, land law, the administration of the estates of...
allowed Lady Margaret's executors to pay for the foundation of the college from her estates. When Lady Margaret's executors took over they found most of the old Hospital buildings beyond repair, but repaired and incorporated the Chapel into the new college. A kitchen and hall were added, and an imposing gate tower was constructed for the College Treasury. The doors were to be closed each day at dusk, sealing the monastic community from the outside world.
Over the course of the following five hundred years, the College expanded westwards towards the River Cam
River Cam
The River Cam is a tributary of the River Great Ouse in the east of England. The two rivers join to the south of Ely at Pope's Corner. The Great Ouse connects the Cam to England's canal system and to the North Sea at King's Lynn...
, and now has eleven courts, the most of any Oxford or Cambridge College. The first three courts are arranged in enfilade
Enfilade (architecture)
In architecture, an enfilade is a suite of rooms formally aligned with each other. This was a common feature in grand European architecture from the Baroque period onwards, although there are earlier examples, such as the Vatican stanze...
.
Buildings and grounds
Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.With a reputation for high academic standards, Christ's College averaged top place in the Tompkins Table from 1980-2000 . In 2011, Christ's was placed sixth.-College history:...
and Queens' College
Queens' College, Cambridge
Queens' College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The college was founded in 1448 by Margaret of Anjou , and refounded in 1465 by Elizabeth Woodville...
. The gatehouse is crenelated and adorned with the arms of the foundress Lady Margaret Beaufort. Above these are displayed her ensigns, the Red Rose of Lancaster and Portcullis. The College Arms are flanked by curious creatures known as yales
Yale (mythical creature)
The yale is a mythical beast found in European mythology. Most descriptions make it an antelope- or goat-like four-legged creature with large horns that it can swivel in any direction....
, mythical beasts with elephants' tails, antelopes' bodies, goats' heads, and swivelling horns. Above them is a tabernacle
Church tabernacle
A tabernacle is the fixed, locked box in which, in some Christian churches, the Eucharist is "reserved" . A less obvious container, set into the wall, is called an aumbry....
containing a socle
Socle (architecture)
In architecture, a socle is a short plinth used to support a pedestal, sculpture or column. In the field of archaeology, this term is used to refer to a wall base, frequently of stone, that supports the upper part of the wall, which is made of a different material, frequently mud brick...
figure of St John the Evangelist, an Eagle at his feet and symbolic, poisoned chalice in his hands. The doors date from 1665-6, and the fan vaulting above was constructed by William Swayne, the master mason of King's College Chapel.
First Court (1511–1520): First Court is entered via the Great Gate, and is highly architecturally varied. First Court was converted from the hospital on the foundation of the college, and constructed between 1511 and 1520. Though it has since been gradually changed, the front (east) range is still much as it appeared when first erected in the 16th-century. The south range was refaced between 1772-6 in the Georgian style by the local architect James Essex, as part of an abortive attempt to modernise the entire court in the same fashion. The most dramatic alteration to the original, Tudor court however remains the Victorian amendment of the north range, which involved the demolition of the original mediaeval chapel and the construction of a new, far larger set of buildings in the 1860s. These included the Chapel, designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott
George Gilbert Scott
Sir George Gilbert Scott was an English architect of the Victorian Age, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches, cathedrals and workhouses...
, which includes in its interior some pieces saved from the original chapel. It is the tallest building in Cambridge. The alteration of the north range necessitated the restructuring of the connective sections of First Court; another bay window was added in order to enlarge the College's hall, and a new building constructed to the north of Great Gate. Parts of First Court were used as a prison in 1643 during the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
. In April 2011, Queen Elizabeth II visited St John's College in order to inaugurate a new pathway in First Court, which passes close to the ruins of the Old Chapel.
Dining Hall (1511–1516, extended 1863):The College's Hall has a fine hammerbeam-roof, painted in black and gold and decorated with the armorial devices of its benefactors. The hall is lined to cill-level with linenfold panelling which dates from 1528-9, and has a five-bay screen, surmounted by the Royal Arms. Above is a hexagonal louvre, dating to 1703. The room was extended from five to eight bays according to designs by Sir George Gilbert Scott in 1863. It has two bay windows, containing heraldic glass dating from the fifteenth to nineteenth centuries. In 1564, Queen Elizabeth rode into the College's Hall on horseback, during a state visit to Cambridge.
Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth oldest college of the University. The main entrance is on the east side of Turl Street...
, and went about constructing the Chapel of St John's College along similar lines, drawing inspiration from the Church of Saint Chapelle in Paris.
- The benefactor Henry Hoare offered a downpayment of £3000 to finance the chapel's construction, in addition to which he promised to pay £1000 a year if a tower were added to Scott's original plans, which had included only a small flecheFlècheA flèche is used in French architecture to refer to a spire and in English to refer to a lead-covered timber spire, or spirelet. These are placed on the ridges of church or cathedral roofs and are usually relatively small...
. Work began, but Mr Hoare's death in a railway accident left the college £3000 short of his expected benefaction. The tower was completed, replete with louvresLouvresLouvres is a commune in the Val-d'Oise department in Île-de-France in northern France.-References:** -External links:* * *...
but left without bells. It is based on Pershore AbbeyPershore AbbeyPershore Abbey, at Pershore in Worcestershire, was an Anglo-Saxon abbey and is now an Anglican parish church.-Foundation:The foundation of the minster at Pershore is alluded to in a spurious charter of King Æthelred of Mercia...
. The tower is 50 metres high, and is the tallest structure in Cambridge (followed by the Cambridge University LibraryCambridge University LibraryThe Cambridge University Library is the centrally-administered library of Cambridge University in England. It comprises five separate libraries:* the University Library main building * the Medical Library...
and King's College Chapel). The Chapel's antechamber contains statues of Margaret Beaufort and John Fisher. Inside the building is a stone-vaulted antechapel, at the end of which hangs a 'Deposition of the Cross' by Anton Rafael Mengs, completed around 1777. The misericordes and panelling date from 1516, and were salvaged from the old chapel. The chapel contains some fifteenth-century glass, but most was cast by Clayton and Bell, Hardman, and Wailes, in around 1869. Freestanding statues and plaques commemorate College benefactors such as James Wood, Master 1815-39, as well as alumni including William WilberforceWilliam WilberforceWilliam Wilberforce was a British politician, a philanthropist and a leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade. A native of Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, he began his political career in 1780, eventually becoming the independent Member of Parliament for Yorkshire...
, Thomas ClarksonThomas ClarksonThomas Clarkson , was an English abolitionist, and a leading campaigner against the slave trade in the British Empire. He helped found The Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade and helped achieve passage of the Slave Trade Act of 1807, which ended British trade in slaves...
and William Gilbert. The College tower can be climbed, and is accessed via a small door on First Court.
- The Chapel is surrounded on three sides by large tabernaclesChurch tabernacleA tabernacle is the fixed, locked box in which, in some Christian churches, the Eucharist is "reserved" . A less obvious container, set into the wall, is called an aumbry....
which form part of the external butresses. Each contains a statue of a prominent College alumnus, alumna or benefactor. The persons commemorated are, beginning with the buttress next to the transept on the south side:
- Sir William Cecil, Lord Burleigh
- Lucius, Viscount FalklandViscount FalklandViscount of Falkland is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1620 for Sir Henry Cary, although he was actually English and had no connection to Scotland. He was made Lord Cary at the same time, also in the Peerage of Scotland. His son, the second Viscount, was a prominent statesman...
- John Williams, Archbishop of York
- Thomas WentworthThomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of StraffordThomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford was an English statesman and a major figure in the period leading up to the English Civil War. He served in Parliament and was a supporter of King Charles I. From 1632 to 1639 he instituted a harsh rule as Lord Deputy of Ireland...
, Earl of Strafford - William Gilbert, natural philosopher
- Roger AschamRoger AschamRoger Ascham was an English scholar and didactic writer, famous for his prose style, his promotion of the vernacular, and his theories of education...
, instructor to Elizabeth I - Mary CavendishMary Talbot, Countess of ShrewsburyMary Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury was the wife of Gilbert Talbot, 7th Earl of Shrewsbury.-Family:Born Mary Cavendish, she was the daughter of Sir William Cavendish, who died when she was about a year old, and his wife Bess of Hardwick. By all accounts, Mary inherited her mother's strong will and...
, Countess of Shrewsbury - Richard BentleyRichard BentleyRichard Bentley was an English classical scholar, critic, and theologian. He was Master of Trinity College, Cambridge....
, classicist - Edward StillingfleetEdward StillingfleetEdward Stillingfleet was a British theologian and scholar. Considered an outstanding preacher as well as a strong polemical writer defending Anglicanism, Stillingfleet was known as "the beauty of holiness" for his good looks in the pulpit, and was called by John Hough "the ablest man of his...
, bishop of Worcester
- John OverallJohn Overall (Bishop)John Overall was the 38th bishop of the see of Norwich from 1618 until his death one year later. He had previously served as Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield , as Dean of St Pauls Cathedral from 1601, as Master of Catharine Hall from 1598, and as Regius Professor of Divinity at Cambridge...
, Bishop of Coventry, Lichfield and Norwich - Peter GunningPeter GunningPeter Gunning was an English Royalist church leader, Bishop of Chichester and later of Ely.-Life:He was born at Hoo St Werburgh, in Kent, and educated at The King's School, Canterbury, and Clare College, Cambridge, where he became a fellow in 1633. Having taken orders, he advocated the Royalist...
, Bishop of Chichester and Ely - Sarah Alston, Duchess of Somerset
- Thomas ClarksonThomas ClarksonThomas Clarkson , was an English abolitionist, and a leading campaigner against the slave trade in the British Empire. He helped found The Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade and helped achieve passage of the Slave Trade Act of 1807, which ended British trade in slaves...
, abolitionist - Brook TaylorBrook TaylorBrook Taylor FRS was an English mathematician who is best known for Taylor's theorem and the Taylor series.- Life and work :...
, natural philosopher and mathematician - Thomas LinacreThomas LinacreThomas Linacre was a humanist scholar and physician, after whom Linacre College, Oxford and Linacre House The King's School, Canterbury are named....
, founder of the Royal College of Physicians - Two plinths left vacant
- Thomas Baker, historian
Tudor period
The Tudor period usually refers to the period between 1485 and 1603, specifically in relation to the history of England. This coincides with the rule of the Tudor dynasty in England whose first monarch was Henry VII...
court in England'. Built atop the demolished foundations of an earlier, far smaller court, Second Court was begun in 1598 to the plans of Ralph Symons of Westminster, and Gilbert Wigge of Cambridge. Their original architectural drawings are housed in the College's library, and are the oldest surviving plans for an Oxford or Cambridge college building. It was financed by the Countess of Shrewsbury
Mary Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury
Mary Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury was the wife of Gilbert Talbot, 7th Earl of Shrewsbury.-Family:Born Mary Cavendish, she was the daughter of Sir William Cavendish, who died when she was about a year old, and his wife Bess of Hardwick. By all accounts, Mary inherited her mother's strong will and...
, whose arms and statue stand above the court's western gatehouse. The court's Oriel windows are perhaps its most striking feature, though the dominating Shrewsbury Tower to the west is undoubtedly the most imposing. This gatehouse, built as a mirror image of the College's Great Gate, contains a statue of the benefactress Mary Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury
Mary Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury
Mary Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury was the wife of Gilbert Talbot, 7th Earl of Shrewsbury.-Family:Born Mary Cavendish, she was the daughter of Sir William Cavendish, who died when she was about a year old, and his wife Bess of Hardwick. By all accounts, Mary inherited her mother's strong will and...
, added in 1671. Behind the Oriel window
Oriel window
Oriel windows are a form of bay window commonly found in Gothic architecture, which project from the main wall of the building but do not reach to the ground. Corbels or brackets are often used to support this kind of window. They are seen in combination with the Tudor arch. This type of window was...
of the north range lies the Long Gallery, a promenading room that was, prior to its segmentation, 148 feet long. In this room, the treaty between England and France was signed that established the marriage of King Charles I of England
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
to Queen Henrietta Maria. In the 1940s, parts of the D-day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
landings were planned there. Second Court is also home to the college's famous 'triple set', K6.
Chapel Court: Located to the west of the Chapel tower.
North Court: Located to the north of Chapel Court.
Forecourt: Located to the east of Chapel court, facing St John's Street
St John's Street, Cambridge
St John's Street is a historical street in central Cambridge, England. The street links with Bridge Street, Round Church Street, and Sidney Street to the north. It continues to the south as Trinity Street, then King's Parade and Trumpington Street...
. It is used partly as a car park for fellows, and also as a night entrance to the College.
The College Library
St John's College Old Library, Cambridge
The Old Library of St John's College, Cambridge connects to Third Court, and was built between 1623 and 1628, largely through the donations and efforts of two members of the College, the Bishop of Exeter, Valentine Carey and John Williams, Lord-Keeper and Bishop of Lincoln.When the College first...
(1624):The Old Library was built in 1624, largely with funds donated by John Williams, Bishop of Lincoln. Hearing of the College's urgent need for greater library space, Williams donated £1,200 anonymously, later revealing his identity and donating a total of £2,011 towards the library's total cost of £3,000. The Library's fine bay window overlooks the River Cam, and bears the letters ILCS on it, standing for Iohannes Lincolniensis Custos Sigilli, or John of Lincoln, Keeper of the Seal. The original intention of the College had been to construct an elegant, classical building supported by pillared porticos, but Bishop William insisted on a more traditional design. Thus, though the College lays claim to few examples of neo-classical
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
design, the College Library stands as one of the earliest examples of English neo-Gothic architecture.
Third Court (1669–1672): Third Court is entered through Shrewsbury Tower, which from 1765 to 1859 housed an observatory. Each of its ranges was built in a different style. Following the completion of the College Library in 1624, the final sides of Third Court were added between 1669 and 1672, after the College had recovered from the trauma of the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
. The additions included a fine set of Dutch-gabled buildings backing onto the River Cam, and a 'window-with-nothing-behind-it' that was designed to solve the problem of connecting the windowed library with the remainder of the court.
Kitchen or Wren Bridge (1696–1712, Robert Grumbold): This was the first stone bridge erected at St John's college, continuing on from Kitchen lane. The crossing's chief distinction is the use of illusory intaglio; Wren's bridge is carved from a limestone monolith
Monolith
A monolith is a geological feature such as a mountain, consisting of a single massive stone or rock, or a single piece of rock placed as, or within, a monument...
incised to give the appearance of masonry. The crossing lies south of the Bridge of Sighs, and was a replacement for a wooden bridge that had stood on the site since the foundation's early days as a hospital. Though Sir Christopher Wren submitted designs for the bridge, it was eventually built on a different site by a local mason, Robert Grumbold, who also built Trinity College Library. As with the Library, Grumbold's work was based on Wren's designs, and the bridge has become known more famously as 'the Wren Bridge'.
Kitchen Court: This tiny court, formed within the walls of the old Kitchen Lane, is used as an outdoor dining area.
Bridge of Sighs (Cambridge)
The Bridge of Sighs in Cambridge is a covered bridge belonging to St John's College of Cambridge University. It was built in 1831 and crosses the River Cam between the college's Third Court and New Court. The architect was Henry Hutchinson....
(1831, Henry Hutchinson
Henry Hutchinson
Henry Hutchinson was an English architect who partnered with Thomas Rickman in December 1821 to form the Rickman and Hutchinson architecture practice, in which he stayed until his death in 1831. Hutchinson was born on October 16, 1800, in Ticknall, Derbyshire. He partnered with Rickman after he...
): Though it bears little resemblance to its namesake in Venice, the bridge connecting Third Court to New Court, originally known as New Bridge, is now commonly known as the Bridge of Sighs
Bridge of Sighs (Cambridge)
The Bridge of Sighs in Cambridge is a covered bridge belonging to St John's College of Cambridge University. It was built in 1831 and crosses the River Cam between the college's Third Court and New Court. The architect was Henry Hutchinson....
. It is one of the most photographed buildings in Cambridge, and was described by the visiting Queen Victoria as "so pretty and picturesque". It is a single-span bridge of stone with highly decorative Neo-Gothic covered footwalk over with traceried openings. There is a three bay arcade at the East end of the bridge.
New Court (1831–1987, Rickman and Hutchinson): The 19th century neo-Gothic New Court, probably one of the best known buildings in Cambridge, was the first major building built by any of the colleges on the west side of the river. Designed by Thomas Rickman
Thomas Rickman
Thomas Rickman , was an English architect who was a major figure in the Gothic Revival.He was born at Maidenhead, Berkshire, into a large Quaker family, and avoided the medical career envisaged for him by his father, a grocer and druggist; he went into business for himself and married his first...
and Henry Hutchinson
Henry Hutchinson
Henry Hutchinson was an English architect who partnered with Thomas Rickman in December 1821 to form the Rickman and Hutchinson architecture practice, in which he stayed until his death in 1831. Hutchinson was born on October 16, 1800, in Ticknall, Derbyshire. He partnered with Rickman after he...
, New Court was built between 1826 and 1831 to accommodate the College's rapidly increasing numbers of students. Despite the College's original intention to get the architects to build another copy of Second Court, plans were eventually accepted for a fashionably romantic building in the 'Gothic' style. It is a three-sided court of tall Gothic Revival buildings, closed on the fourth side by an open, seven-bayed cross-vaulted cloister and gateway. It is four storeys high, has battlements and is pinnacled. The main portal has a fan vault with a large octagonal pendant, and the interior of the main building retains many of its original features including ribbed plaster ceilings in the mock-Gothic style. Its prominent location (especially when seen from the river) and flamboyant design have led it to be nicknamed "The Wedding Cake". Hutchinson was suitably proud of his creation, and it is said that he once dashed up a staircase to reprimand an undergraduate for spoiling its symmetry by sitting too near one of its windows.
The Master's Lodge and Garden (Sir George Gilbert Scott): St John's Master's lodge is located in a grassy clearing to the north of Third Court. It was built at the same time as the new Chapel was being constructed, and has Tudor fittings, wainscot, portraits and other relics from the demolished north wing of First Court. It has a large garden, and in the winter its westmost rooms have excellent views of the College's old library, the River Cam, and the Bridge of Sighs.
Cripps Building (1966–67, Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya):This buildings, behind New Court, was built in 1966-67 to meet a post-1945 expansion in the numbers of students. It has two courts, and was designed by architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
s Philip Powell
Philip Powell (architect)
Sir Arnold Joseph Philip Powell , usually known as Philip Powell, was a ground-breaking English post-war architect.He was educated at Epsom College and then the Architectural Association....
and Hidalgo Moya
Hidalgo Moya
John Hidalgo Moya , sometimes known as Jacko Moya, was a famous American-born architect who worked largely in England. Moya was a native of California where he was born to an English mother and Mexican father but lived in England since he was an infant. He formed the architectural practice Powell &...
. The building was listed after receiving an award from the British Architectural Instituation, and is considered an exemplar of the later 20th-century architectural style. It is named after its benefactor, Sir Humphrey Cripps
Humphrey Cripps
Sir Cyril Humphrey Cripps was an English businessman and a philanthropist.Humphrey Cripps was educated at Northampton School For Boys and went up to St John's College, Cambridge to read Natural Sciences...
(see Sir Humphrey Cripps). The Cripps Building forms two courts, Upper River Court and Lower River Court.
The Fisher Building: The Fisher Building was named after John Fisher
John Fisher
Saint John Fisher was an English Roman Catholic scholastic, bishop, cardinal and martyr. He shares his feast day with Saint Thomas More on 22 June in the Roman Catholic calendar of saints and 6 July on the Church of England calendar of saints...
and was designed by Peter Boston
Peter Boston
Peter Shakerley Boston was a British architect and illustrator, best known for the illustrations he made to the books written by his mother, author Lucy M. Boston , who wrote under the name L.M. Boston. The best known of these books were the Green Knowe books...
and completed in 1987.
The School of Pythagoras: The School of Pythagoras
School of Pythagoras
The School of Pythagoras is the oldest building in St John's College, Cambridge, and the oldest secular building in Cambridge, England. To the north is Northampton Street....
was built around 1200, predating the foundation of the College (1511). It is the oldest secular building in Cambridge.
Merton Hall and Merton Court: Merton Hall is so called because from 1266 until 1959 both the School of Pythagoras and Merton Hall were property of Merton College, Oxford
Merton College, Oxford
Merton College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the 1260s when Walter de Merton, chancellor to Henry III and later to Edward I, first drew up statutes for an independent academic community and established endowments to...
. Merton Court is the College's eleventh and westernmost court.
All Saints' Yard: Currently under construction, All Saints' Yard is located directly opposite the College's Great Gate. The complex is formed from the buildings of the so-called 'Triangle Site', a collection of structures owned by the College. The project has a budget of approximately £9.75 million, and should be completed by October 2009. The centrepiece of the Yard is Corfield Court, named for the project's chief benefactor, Charles Corfield
Charles Corfield
Charles "Nick" Corfield is a mathematician, computer programmer, and founder of several startup companies in Silicon Valley, most notably Frame Technology Corp. in 1986, which was acquired by Adobe Systems in 1995. While at Columbia University, Charles wrote the original version of the desktop...
. The site can be entered through one of two card-activated gates, or through the School of Divinity. The School of Divinity is the largest building on the site, and was built between 1878-1879 by Basil Champneys
Basil Champneys
Basil Champneys was an architect and author whose more notable buildings include Newnham College, Cambridge, Manchester's John Rylands Library, Mansfield College, Oxford and Oriel College, Oxford's Rhodes Building.- Life :...
for the University of Cambridge's Divinity Faculty on land leased by St John's College. Control of the building reverted to St John's when the Faculty of Divinity moved to a new building on the Sidgewick site in 2000.
Panoramas
Choir
Eucharist
The Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...
on Sunday mornings. The Choir is currently directed by Mr Andrew Nethsingha, who has previously been Director of Music at Gloucester and Truro Cathedrals. 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 the Netherlands, the USA and France. The choir has made a large number of recordings.
The Choir has an extensive discography dating back to the 1950s, when it was signed to the Decca/Argo
Argo Records (UK)
Argo Records was a record label founded in 1951 by Harley Usill , and musicologist Cyril Clarke with £500 capital, initially as a company specialising in "British music played by British artists" , but it quickly became a company primarily specialising in spoken-word recordings and other esoteric ...
label under George Guest
George Guest
George Guest was a Welsh organist and choral conductor.- Birth and early life :George Guest was born in Bangor, Wales. His father was an organist, and George assisted him by acting as organ blower. He became a chorister at Bangor Cathedral, and subsequently at Chester Cathedral, where he...
. More recently, the Choir has completed a sequence of recordings of English 20th century choral for Naxos
Naxos Records
Naxos Records is a record label specializing in classical music. Through a number of imprints, Naxos also releases genres including Chinese music, jazz, world music, and early rock & roll. The company was founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a German-born resident of Hong Kong.Naxos is the largest...
, which sold over 200,000 copies. The Choir now records with Hyperion Records
Hyperion Records
Hyperion Records is an independent British classical record label.-History:The company was named after Hyperion, one of the Titans of Greek mythology. It was founded by George Edward Perry, widely known as "Ted", in 1980. Early LP releases included rarely recorded 20th century British music by...
, and has released four discs to date with the label: one of the music of Mendelssohn, a collection of music for Advent, Christmas and Epiphany, Christmas at St John's, a recording of the choral and vocal music of Jongen and Peeters and most recently, a collection of the music of Bairstow. The Choir has received invitations to perform throughout the world, recently touring in France, Austria, the Netherlands, Estonia, Hungary and America.
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.
Motto
The College motto is souvent me souvient, supplied by Lady Margaret Beaufort, and written in Mediaeval French. It is inscribed over gates, lintels and within tympanaTympanum (architecture)
In architecture, a tympanum is the semi-circular or triangular decorative wall surface over an entrance, bounded by a lintel and arch. It often contains sculpture or other imagery or ornaments. Most architectural styles include this element....
throughout the college, functioning as a triple pun. It means 'I often remember', 'think of me often' and, when spoken (exploiting the homonym souvent me sous vient), 'I often pass beneath it' (referring to the inscriptions). The college shares its motto with Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.With a reputation for high academic standards, Christ's College averaged top place in the Tompkins Table from 1980-2000 . In 2011, Christ's was placed sixth.-College history:...
and Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford
Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford
Lady Margaret Hall is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, located at the end of Norham Gardens in north Oxford. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £34m....
.
College Grace
The College Grace is customarily said before and after dinner in Hall. The reading of Grace before dinner (ante prandium) is usually the duty of a Scholar of the College; Grace after dinner (post prandium) is said by the President or the Senior Fellow dining. The Graces used in St John's have been in continuous use for some centuries and it is known that the Ante Prandium is based upon mediaeval monastic models. The Grace is said shortly after the fellows enter the Hall, signalled by the sounding of a Gong, and accompanied by the ringing of the College's Grace Bell. The Ante Prandium is read after the Fellows have entered, the Post Prandium after they have finished dining:| Latin | English | |
| Ante Prandium (Before Dinner) | Oculi omnium in te sperant, Domine, et tu das illis cibum in tempore, aperis manum tuam, et imples omne animal benedictione. Benedic, Domine, nos et dona tua, quae de tua largitate sumus sumpturi, et concede ut illis salubriter nutriti, tibi debitum obsequium praestare valeamus, per Jesum Christum Dominum nostrum. | 'The eyes of all wait upon thee, O Lord: and thou givest them their meat in due season. Thou openest thine hand: and fillest all things living with plenteousness. Bless us, O Lord, and these thy gifts which out of thine abundance we are about to receive, and grant that by their saving nourishment we may have power to fulfill the obedience due to thee, through Jesus Christ our Lord.' |
| Post Prandium (After Dinner) | Infunde, quaesumus, Domine Deus, gratiam tuam in mentes nostras, ut his donis datis a Margareta Fundatrice nostra aliisque Benefactoribus ad tuam gloriam utamur; et cum omnibus qui in fide Christi decesserunt ad caelestem vitam resurgamus, per Jesum Christum Dominum nostrum. Deus pro sua infinita clementia Ecclesiae suae pacem et unitatem concedat, augustissimam Reginam nostram Elizabetham conservet, et pacem universo Regno et omnibus Christianis largiatur. | Pour forth, we beseech thee, Lord God, thy grace into our minds, that we may use these gifts, given by Margaret our Foundress and other Benefactors, to thy glory, and together with all who have died in the faith of Christ rise again to life in heaven, through Jesus Christ our Lord. May God, of his infinite mercy, grant his Church unity and peace, preserve our most august queen, Queen Elizabeth, and grant peace to the whole Realm and to all Christians. |
Eating Swan
Fellows of St John’s College are the only people outside the Royal Family legally allowed to eat unmarked mute swanMute Swan
The Mute Swan is a species of swan, and thus a member of the duck, goose and swan family Anatidae. It is native to much of Europe and Asia, and the far north of Africa. It is also an introduced species in North America, Australasia and southern Africa. The name 'mute' derives from it being less...
s. Swan traps were originally built into the walls of the college alongside the river, but these are no longer used. The Crown (the British monarch) retains the right to ownership of all unmarked mute swans in open water, but the Queen only exercises her ownership on certain stretches of the Thames and its surrounding tributaries. This ownership is shared with the Vintners' and Dyers' Companies, who were granted rights of ownership by the Crown in the fifteenth century, and was extended to the College via ancient Royalist
Royalist
A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of government, but not necessarily a particular monarch...
ties.
College Ghosts
According to popular legend, St John's College is inhabited by a number of ghosts. In 1706, four fellows exorcised some ghosts from a house opposite the College by the simple method of threatening to fire their pistols at the positions the moans and groans were coming from. Second court is apparently still haunted by the ghost of the former undergraduate, James Wood. Wood was so poor that he could not afford to light his room, and would often do his work in the well-lit stairway.New Court's Clock Tower
New Court's central cupola
Cupola
In architecture, a cupola is a small, most-often dome-like, structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome....
has four blank clock-faces. These are subject to various apocryphal explanations. One legend maintains that a statute limiting the number of chiming clocks in Cambridge rendered the addition of a mechanism illegal. No such limitation is known to exist. More likely explanations include Hutchinson's fear that the installation of a clockface would spoil the building's symmetry, and that the college's financial situation in the early nineteenth century made completion impossible.
Other legends explaining the absence of clockfaces claim that St John's College and its neighbour, Trinity College, were engaged in a race to build the final (or tallest) clocktower in Cambridge. Supposedly, whichever was finished first (or was tallest) would be permitted to house the 'final' chiming clock in Cambridge. Trinity's Tower was finished first (or, in another version of the same story, was made taller overnight by the addition of a wooden cupola), and its clock was allowed to remain.
In truth, the completion of New Court and Trinity's Clock (which is in King Edward's Tower) was separated by nearly two centuries. Trinity's famous double-striking was installed in the seventeenth century by its then-Master, Richard Bentley
Richard Bentley
Richard Bentley was an English classical scholar, critic, and theologian. He was Master of Trinity College, Cambridge....
, a former student of St John's, who dictated that the clock chime once for Trinity, and once for his alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
, St John's.
The College Shield and Arms
Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.With a reputation for high academic standards, Christ's College averaged top place in the Tompkins Table from 1980-2000 . In 2011, Christ's was placed sixth.-College history:...
both bear the arms of the Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby, mother of Henry VII. These arms are recorded in the College of Arms as being borne by right, and are described as: Quarterly: 1 and 4 azure three fleurs-de-lis gold (France, Modern); 2 and 3 gules three lions passant gardant or (England); all within a border compony silver and azure. In addition, both foundations use the Beaufort crest, an eagle displayed arising out of a coronet of roses and fleurs-de-lis all gold, but their title to this is more doubtful. When displayed in their full achievement, the arms are flanked by mythical yales
Yale (mythical creature)
The yale is a mythical beast found in European mythology. Most descriptions make it an antelope- or goat-like four-legged creature with large horns that it can swivel in any direction....
.
College life
The College maintains an extensive library, which supplements the university libraries. Most undergraduate supervisions are carried out in the college, though for some specialist subjects undergraduates may be sent to tutors in other colleges. The college owns its own punts which may be borrowed by students, dons and staff.
The college has two official combination rooms for junior members, which represent the interests of students in college and are responsible for social aspects of college life. Undergraduates are members of the Junior Combination Room (JCR). Graduate students have membership to the JCR, but also belong to the Samuel Butler Room
Samuel Butler Room Society
The Samuel Butler Room Society is the Middle Combination Room of St John's College at the University of Cambridge. The objects of the Society are the representation of the interests of the Graduate Student Members of the College, the internal management of the Samuel Butler Room and the...
, which is the name of the Middle Combination Room (MCR) of St John's College.
The fleet of punts
Punt (boat)
A punt is a flat-bottomed boat with a square-cut bow, designed for use in small rivers or other shallow water. Punting refers to boating in a punt. The punter generally propels the punt by pushing against the river bed with a pole...
is kept in a purpose-built punt pool behind the Cripps Building. The School of Pythagoras is now used as a drama space. It predates the College proper, and is said to be the oldest building continuously in use by a university in Britain. It was originally the private house of the Merton Family. In addition to its Nobel prize winners, St John's traditionally ranked highly in the Tompkins Table
Tompkins Table
The Tompkins Table is an annual ranking that lists the Colleges of the University of Cambridge in order of their undergraduate students' performances in that year's examinations...
of undergraduate degree results, though its rating has fallen over the past four years.
Sports and activities
The college has a rich sporting history, enjoying much success in most of the major sports on offer in cambridge.The Red Boys, St John's College Rugby Club, have won the Division One League title for the last nine years in a row and the cuppersCuppers
Cuppers is a term for intercollegiate sporting competitions at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. The term comes from the word "cup" and is an example of the Oxford "-er". Each sport holds only one cuppers competition each year, which is open to all colleges. Most cuppers competitions use...
trophy for the last six making it one of the most successful collegiate sports teams in Cambridge's history. The rugby club has produced several notable alumni including current RFU executive Francis Baron, former Newcastle and England fly-half and current RFU Director of Elite Rugby Rob Andrew
Rob Andrew
Christopher Robert "Rob" Andrew MBE , nicknamed "Squeaky", is a former English rugby union footballer and currently Director of Operations at the RFU. He was formerly the Director of Rugby of Newcastle Falcons. As a player, Andrew was assured in his kicking and defensive skills off both feet...
, and Battlestar Galactica actor Jamie Bamber
Jamie Bamber
Jamie Bamber is the stage name of Jamie St. John Bamber Griffith , a British actor known most widely for his roles as Lee Adama on Battlestar Galactica and Detective Sergeant Matt Devlin on the ITV series Law & Order: UK...
. The women's team (Red Girls) has also experienced success last year, 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
Lady Margaret Boat Club
The Lady Margaret Boat Club , is the rowing club for members of St John's College, Cambridge, England. The club is named after Lady Margaret Beaufort, foundress of the College.- History :...
(LMBC), is the oldest in the University, and 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
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
, is known as 'First and Third' in a reference to its formation from two original clubs.
Scholarships and prizes
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. There is also the famous Adams PrizeAdams Prize
The Adams Prize is awarded each year by the Faculty of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge and St John's College to a young, UK based mathematician for first-class international research in the Mathematical Sciences....
in mathematics, named after the mathematican (and alumnus of St John's) John Couch Adams
John Couch Adams
John Couch Adams was a British mathematician and astronomer. Adams was born in Laneast, near Launceston, Cornwall, and died in Cambridge. The Cornish name Couch is pronounced "cooch"....
for his discovery of Neptune - it is an annual competition and can be awarded to any mathematician resident in the UK, with an age limit of under 40.
May Ball
St John's hosts a large and typically spectacular May BallMay Ball
A May Ball is a ball at the end of the academic year that happens at any one of the colleges of the University of Cambridge. They are formal affairs, requiring evening dress, with ticket prices of around £65 to £200 , with some colleges selling tickets only in pairs...
, which is traditionally held on the Tuesday of May Week
May Week
May Week is the name used within the University of Cambridge to refer to a period of time at the end of the academic year. Originally May Week took place in the week during May before year-end exams began. Today, May Week takes place in June. The end of exams is a cause for heavy celebration...
. In recent years, tickets have only been available to Johnians and their guests. Highlights include an extravagant fireworks display and a variety of musical acts - in 2008 including Dizzee Rascal
Dizzee Rascal
Dylan Kwabena Mills , better known by his stage name Dizzee Rascal, is a Ghanaian British rapper, songwriter and record producer. His music is a blend of garage, hip hop, grime, ragga, pop and electronic music, with eclectic samples and more exotic styles...
and Lesley Garrett
Lesley Garrett
Lesley Garrett CBE is an English musician, broadcaster and media personality.- Early life :Garrett was born in the town of Thorne near Doncaster in South Yorkshire, into a musical family. She attended Thorne Grammar School, where she performed in school plays and musicals. As she grew up she...
.
List of previous May Ball Acts
| 2011 | Big Boi Big Boi Antwan André Patton , better known by his stage name Big Boi, is an American rapper, song-writer, record producer and actor, best known for being a member of American hip hop duo OutKast alongside André 3000. His work in the duo has produced six studio albums. During the duo's hiatus, he and André... and Chipmunk Chipmunk (rapper) Jahmaal Noel Fyffe known by his stage name Chipmunk, is a British hip hop rapper and songwriter from Tottenham, London.... |
| 2010 | Ellie Goulding Ellie Goulding Elena Jane "Ellie" Goulding is an English singer-songwriter. In 2010 she became only the second artist to both top the BBC's annual Sound of... poll, and win the Critics' Choice Award at the BRIT Awards in the same year, following Adele's win of both in 2008... , The Cheek The Cheek The Cheek are an indie pop band from Woodbridge, Suffolk. Having released several singles and an EP, they are now coming towards the end of recording their debut album which, as of April 2010, is currently untitled.-Band history:Since their formation, the band have released several singles... , Alex Metric Alex Metric Alex Metric is a British musician, DJ and producer. He has released numerous EPs, remixed artists such as Depeche Mode, La Roux, NERD, Phoenix, and Bloc Party as well as working as a producer for acts such as The Infadels, Charli Xcx and Adam Freeland.-Career:Alex Metric started out as a... , Jakwob Jakwob -Career:Jakwob began making music aged 10 as a multi-instrumentalist and has been involved in many groups from his teenage years onwards, beginning in jazz but moving on to death metal and folk. His style is notable for its transcending of genres and its relative 'accessibility' given the dubstep... and Ann Murray Ann Murray Ann Murray DBE is an Irish mezzo-soprano. She was born on 27 August 1949, in Dublin. She studied with Frederic Cox at the Royal Manchester College of Music and made her stage debut as Alcestis in Christoph Willibald Gluck's Alceste in 1974... |
| 2009 | Calvin Harris Calvin Harris Calvin Harris is a Scottish singer-songwriter, record producer and DJ. His gold-selling debut album, I Created Disco, was released in 2007 and contained the top ten singles "Acceptable in the 80s" and "The Girls"... , Fenech-Soler Fenech-Soler Fenech-Soler are a British electropop band from Kings Cliffe, Northamptonshire that formed in 2006. It consists of four members: Ross Duffy, Ben Duffy, Daniel Soler and Andrew Lindsay. The name Fenech-Soler is taken from Daniel Soler's full surname, which is Maltese... and The Puppini Sisters The Puppini Sisters The Puppini Sisters are a vocal trio. Arion Berger described them as part of "Retro's futuristic vanguard" and described their sound as "swing-punk". The group has sought to be associated with a burlesque revival.... |
| 2008 | Dizzee Rascal Dizzee Rascal Dylan Kwabena Mills , better known by his stage name Dizzee Rascal, is a Ghanaian British rapper, songwriter and record producer. His music is a blend of garage, hip hop, grime, ragga, pop and electronic music, with eclectic samples and more exotic styles... , Lesley Garrett Lesley Garrett Lesley Garrett CBE is an English musician, broadcaster and media personality.- Early life :Garrett was born in the town of Thorne near Doncaster in South Yorkshire, into a musical family. She attended Thorne Grammar School, where she performed in school plays and musicals. As she grew up she... and I Was a Cub Scout I Was a Cub Scout I Was a Cub Scout was a two-man synth-pop/indie rock band from Long Bennington and Collingham, England, consisting of William Bowerman and Todd Marriott. They were formed in 2006, and split on 5 June 2008.-New Bands:... |
| 2007 | Just Jack Just Jack Jack Christopher Allsopp , known by the stage name Just Jack, is an English musician from Camden Town, London. He first came to prominence with the release of his 2007 single "Starz in Their Eyes", which reached number two on the UK Singles Chart... and Good Shoes Good Shoes Good Shoes are a four-piece English indie pop band, hailing from Morden, London.-Biography:Good Shoes was formed by lead singer Rhys Jones and guitarist Steve Leach who often wrote and played music together as a hobby. Rhys and Steve appeared as a two piece under the Good Shoes name for a friend's... |
| 2006 | Hot Chip Hot Chip Hot Chip are an English electronic indie band. They have released four studio albums—Coming on Strong, The Warning, Made in the Dark and One Life Stand.-Formation:... and Mystery Jets Mystery Jets Mystery Jets are an English five-piece indie band, formerly based on Eel Pie Island in Twickenham, London. The band was formed by Henry Harrison , Blaine Harrison and William Rees when the boys were still at school and would send each other songs on cassettes... |
| 2005 | Röyksopp Röyksopp Röyksopp is a Norwegian electronic music duo from Tromsø, formed in 1998. Since their inception, the band's line-up has included Svein Berge and Torbjørn Brundtland.... and Do Me Bad Things Do Me Bad Things Do Me Bad Things were a nine-piece blues/rock/soul/metal band from Croydon, London, who formed in 2003 and split up in January 2006.-History:... |
| 2004 | Scissor Sisters Scissor Sisters Scissor Sisters are an American band "spawned by the scuzzy, gay nightlife scene of New York" who took their name from a sexual position between two women also known as tribadism... and Flight of the Conchords Flight of the Conchords Flight of the Conchords are a New Zealand-based comedy duo composed of Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement. The duo's comedy and music became the basis of a BBC radio series and then an American television series, which premiered in 2007 on HBO, also called Flight of the Conchords.They were named... |
| 2003 | The Thrills The Thrills The Thrills are an Irish rock band, formed in 2001 in Dublin, Ireland. The band was founded by lead vocalist Conor Deasy and guitarist Daniel Ryan, guitarist and bass player Padraic McMahon, pianist Kevin Horan and drummer Ben Carrigan. Their big break came with their debut album, So Much for the... and Mint Royale Mint Royale Mint Royale is a big beat electronic music act from Manchester, England. They were originally founded by the duo Neil Claxton and Chris Baker in 1997; the latter left the band in 2004, but Claxton continues to produce music using the Mint Royale name.-Career:... |
| 2002 | Kosheen Kosheen Kosheen are a British trip hop, breakbeat and rock group based in Bristol, England. The trio consists of producers Markee Substance and Darren Decoder , with singer and song writer Sian Evans... |
| 2001 | Artful Dodger |
| 2000 | Toploader Toploader Toploader are an English band from Eastbourne who formed in 1997, with over two million album sales to their name and a string of top 20 hits both home and abroad. Their debut album, Onka's Big Moka, sold over 1 million units and remained in the Top 5 of the UK album chart for over six months... and Cast Cast (band) Cast are an English rock band from Liverpool, formed in 1992 by John Power and Peter Wilkinson after Power left The La's and Wilkinson's former band Shack had split... |
| 1999 | Republica Republica Republica are an English alternative rock band formed in 1994. The height of their popularity spanned from 1996 to 1999. The Republica sound was described by the band as "techno-pop punk rock"... |
| 1998 | Space |
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 ClarksonThomas Clarkson
Thomas Clarkson , was an English abolitionist, and a leading campaigner against the slave trade in the British Empire. He helped found The Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade and helped achieve passage of the Slave Trade Act of 1807, which ended British trade in slaves...
, William Wilberforce
William Wilberforce
William Wilberforce was a British politician, a philanthropist and a leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade. A native of Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, he began his political career in 1780, eventually becoming the independent Member of Parliament for Yorkshire...
, Thomas Gisborne and Thomas Babington
Thomas Babington
Thomas Babington was an English philanthropist and politician. He was a member of the Clapham Sect, alongside more famous abolitionists such as William Wilberforce and Hannah More...
were active in the Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade and other abolitionist efforts.
As part of the commemoration of the bicentenary of the 1807 Act, and as a representative of one of the Ivy League
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an athletic conference comprising eight private institutions of higher education in the Northeastern United States. The conference name is also commonly used to refer to those eight schools as a group...
universities offering American historical perspective on the Triangular Trade
Triangular trade
Triangular trade, or triangle trade, is a historical term indicating among three ports or regions. Triangular trade usually evolves when a region has export commodities that are not required in the region from which its major imports come...
, President Ruth J. Simmons of Brown University
Brown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
(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" on February 16, 2007. St John's College hosted some of the key events relating to the commemoration, including an academic conference and a Gospel Mass in the College Chapel with the London Adventist Chorale.
Notable alumni
See also :Category:Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge.See also :Category:Fellows of St John's College, Cambridge.
A more extensive list is located on the St John's website
The following is a list of notable people educated at St John's College, Cambridge. When available, years of attendance are provided as indicated in the College Register or in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Over 1000 former members of St John's College appear in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Students of St John's were the most heavily featured in Varsity's 2008 and 2009 lists of the hundred most influential people in Cambridge.
Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom
- Frederick John Robinson, 1st Earl of RiponFrederick John Robinson, 1st Viscount GoderichFrederick John Robinson, 1st Earl of Ripon PC , styled The Honourable F. J. Robinson until 1827 and known as The Viscount Goderich between 1827 and 1833, the name by which he is best known to history, was a British statesman...
, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1827–1828 - George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of AberdeenGeorge Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of AberdeenGeorge Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen KG, KT, FRS, PC , styled Lord Haddo from 1791 to 1801, was a Scottish politician, successively a Tory, Conservative and Peelite, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1852 until 1855.-Early life:Born in Edinburgh on 28 January 1784, he...
, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1852–1855 - Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1855–1858, and 1859–1865
Politics
.jpg)
- Roger AschamRoger AschamRoger Ascham was an English scholar and didactic writer, famous for his prose style, his promotion of the vernacular, and his theories of education...
, tutor of Elizabeth I and advisor to Edward VI and Mary IMary I of EnglandMary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547... - Sir Francis Bell, Prime MinisterPrime ministerA prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
of New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga... - John ChekeJohn ChekeSir John Cheke was an English classical scholar and statesman, notable as the first Regius Professor of Greek at Cambridge University....
, scholar, statesman and tutor of Edward VI - William Cecil, 1st Baron BurghleyWilliam Cecil, 1st Baron BurghleyWilliam Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley , KG was an English statesman, the chief advisor of Queen Elizabeth I for most of her reign, twice Secretary of State and Lord High Treasurer from 1572...
, chief advisor to Queen Elizabeth I of England - Michael Clark, ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
Member of Parliament - Thomas ClarksonThomas ClarksonThomas Clarkson , was an English abolitionist, and a leading campaigner against the slave trade in the British Empire. He helped found The Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade and helped achieve passage of the Slave Trade Act of 1807, which ended British trade in slaves...
, abolitionist (1760–1846) - Nigel DoddsNigel DoddsNigel Alexander Dodds, OBE, MP, BL is a barrister and Northern Irish unionist politician. He is Member of Parliament for Belfast North, and deputy leader of the Democratic Unionist Party. He has been Lord Mayor of Belfast twice, and from 1993 has been General Secretary of the DUP...
, Democratic Unionist PartyDemocratic Unionist PartyThe Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...
MP, MLA - Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Baron Fairfax of Cameron, English Civil WarEnglish Civil WarThe English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
General and Commander-in-Chief - Richard Hill of HawkstoneRichard Hill of HawkstoneThe Rev. the Hon. Sir Richard Hill of Hawkstone Hall, Shropshire, was baptised at Hodnet, Shropshire, 23 March 1655 and died unmarried at Richmond, Surrey, 11 June 1727, aged 73...
, diplomatist, statesman and public servant (1655–1727) - Suematsu KenchoSuematsu KenchoViscount was a Japanese politician, intellectual and author, who lived in the Meiji and Taishō periods. Apart from his activity in the Japanese government, he also wrote several important works on Japan in English...
, Japanese Minister of Communication and the Interior, statesmanStatesmanA statesman is usually a politician or other notable public figure who has had a long and respected career in politics or government at the national and international level. As a term of respect, it is usually left to supporters or commentators to use the term...
, journalistJournalistA journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and historianHistorianA historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is... - Sir Thomas LeggThomas LeggSir Thomas Stuart Legg, KCB, QC , is a senior former British civil servant, who was Permanent Secretary of the Lord Chancellor's Department and Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, United Kingdom, 1989-1998.-Biography:...
, senior civil servant - Dudley Ryder, 1st Earl of HarrowbyDudley Ryder, 1st Earl of HarrowbyDudley Ryder, 1st Earl of Harrowby, PC, FSA was a prominent British politician of the Pittite faction and the Tory party.-Background and education:...
, politicianPoliticianA politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making... - Sir Michael ScholarMichael ScholarSir Michael Charles Scholar KCB is President of St John's College, Oxford. He was educated at St Olave's Grammar School, St John's College, Cambridge...
, former Permanent SecretaryPermanent SecretaryThe Permanent secretary, in most departments officially titled the permanent under-secretary of state , is the most senior civil servant of a British Government ministry, charged with running the department on a day-to-day basis...
at the Department of Trade and Industry, now President of St John's College, OxfordSt John's College, Oxford__FORCETOC__St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, one of the larger Oxford colleges with approximately 390 undergraduates, 200 postgraduates and over 100 academic staff. It was founded by Sir Thomas White, a merchant, in 1555, whose heart is buried in the chapel of... - Manmohan SinghManmohan SinghManmohan Singh is the 13th and current Prime Minister of India. He is the only Prime Minister since Jawaharlal Nehru to return to power after completing a full five-year term. A Sikh, he is the first non-Hindu to occupy the office. Singh is also the 7th Prime Minister belonging to the Indian...
, Current Prime Minister of IndiaPrime Minister of IndiaThe Prime Minister of India , as addressed to in the Constitution of India — Prime Minister for the Union, is the chief of government, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in parliament...
(2004–), Honorary Fellow. (See also: Dr Manmohan Singh ScholarshipDr Manmohan Singh ScholarshipThe Dr Manmohan Singh Scholarship is an international award for study at St John's College at the University of Cambridge. They are PhD standard scholarships for prospective Indian PhD students awarded by the College. The award was designed to benefit academically bright Indian students from...
) - Robert Stewart, 1st Viscount CastlereaghRobert Stewart, Viscount CastlereaghRobert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, KG, GCH, PC, PC , usually known as Lord CastlereaghThe name Castlereagh derives from the baronies of Castlereagh and Ards, in which the manors of Newtownards and Comber were located...
, politician - Malcolm MossMalcolm MossMalcolm Douglas Moss is a British Conservative Party politician. He was Member of Parliament for North East Cambridgeshire from 1987 until his retirement at the 2010 general election.-Early life:...
, Conservative Member of Parliament for North East Cambridgeshire (1987-) (Parliamentary Under-Secretary Northern Ireland Office 1994-1997) - Sarah TeatherSarah TeatherSarah Louise Teather is a British Liberal Democrat politician, Member of Parliament for Brent Central, Minister of State at the Department for Education, and Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Guantanamo Bay....
, MPMember of ParliamentA Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Brent East, Liberal Democrat Education Spokesman - George William Frederick Villiers, 4th Earl of Clarendon, English diplomat and statesman
- Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of StraffordThomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of StraffordThomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford was an English statesman and a major figure in the period leading up to the English Civil War. He served in Parliament and was a supporter of King Charles I. From 1632 to 1639 he instituted a harsh rule as Lord Deputy of Ireland...
, notable English statesman during the reign of Charles ICharles I of EnglandCharles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles... - William WilberforceWilliam WilberforceWilliam Wilberforce was a British politician, a philanthropist and a leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade. A native of Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, he began his political career in 1780, eventually becoming the independent Member of Parliament for Yorkshire...
, Member of ParliamentMember of ParliamentA Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
, abolitionist - Professor Walter Woon, former Nominated Member of ParliamentNominated Member of ParliamentA Nominated Member of Parliament is a Member of the Parliament of Singapore who is appointed instead of being elected into office by the people, and who does not belong to any political party or represent any constituency. There are currently nine NMPs in Parliament...
, Solicitor-General and Attorney-General of SingaporeAttorney-General of SingaporeThe Attorney-General of Singapore is the legal adviser to the government of the Republic of Singapore and its public prosecutor.The office was founded in 1867 as the chief legal officer of the British crown colony of the Straits Settlements. The current requirements for appointment as... - John WilliamsJohn Williams (archbishop)John Williams was a British clergyman and political advisor to King James I. He served as Bishop of Lincoln 1621–1641, Keeper of the Great Seal also known as Lord Keeper or Lord Chancellor 1621–1625, and Archbishop of York 1641–1650...
, Bishop of LincolnBishop of LincolnThe Bishop of Lincoln is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury.The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire. The Bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral...
(1621–41), Lord ChancellorLord ChancellorThe Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
(1621–25), Archbishop of YorkArchbishop of YorkThe Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...
(1641–50)
Nobel Prize Winners
- Sir Edward Appleton, winner of the Nobel prize for Physics, for discovering the Appleton layerF regionThe F region of the ionosphere is home to the F layer of ionization, also called the Appleton layer, after the English physicist Edward Appleton. As with other ionospheric sectors, 'layer' implies a concentration of plasma, while 'region' is the area that contains the said layer...
- Sir John CockcroftJohn CockcroftSir John Douglas Cockcroft OM KCB CBE FRS was a British physicist. He shared the Nobel Prize in Physics for splitting the atomic nucleus with Ernest Walton, and was instrumental in the development of nuclear power....
KCB, Nobel prize-winning physicist, who first split the atom - Allan Cormack, Nobel laureate in Medicine or Physiology for the invention of the CAT scan
- Paul DiracPaul DiracPaul Adrien Maurice Dirac, OM, FRS was an English theoretical physicist who made fundamental contributions to the early development of both quantum mechanics and quantum electrodynamics...
, Nobel laureate in Physics and one of the founders of Quantum MechanicsQuantum mechanicsQuantum mechanics, also known as quantum physics or quantum theory, is a branch of physics providing a mathematical description of much of the dual particle-like and wave-like behavior and interactions of energy and matter. It departs from classical mechanics primarily at the atomic and subatomic... - Sir Nevill Francis MottNevill Francis MottSir Nevill Francis Mott, CH, FRS was an English physicist. He won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1977 for his work on the electronic structure of magnetic and disordered systems, especially amorphous semiconductors. The award was shared with Philip W. Anderson and J. H...
, awarded Nobel prize for Physics for work on the behaviour of electrons in magnetic solids - Abdus SalamAbdus SalamMohammad Abdus Salam, NI, SPk Mohammad Abdus Salam, NI, SPk Mohammad Abdus Salam, NI, SPk (Urdu: محمد عبد السلام, pronounced , (January 29, 1926– November 21, 1996) was a Pakistani theoretical physicist and Nobel laureate in Physics for his work on the electroweak unification of the...
, Nobel laureate in Physics, for unifying the electromagnetic force and the weak force - Frederick SangerFrederick SangerFrederick Sanger, OM, CH, CBE, FRS is an English biochemist and a two-time Nobel laureate in chemistry, the only person to have been so. In 1958 he was awarded a Nobel prize in chemistry "for his work on the structure of proteins, especially that of insulin"...
, molecular biologist and one of only four double Nobel Prize winners - Maurice WilkinsMaurice WilkinsMaurice Hugh Frederick Wilkins CBE FRS was a New Zealand-born English physicist and molecular biologist, and Nobel Laureate whose research contributed to the scientific understanding of phosphorescence, isotope separation, optical microscopy and X-ray diffraction, and to the development of radar...
, awarded Nobel prize for Medicine or Physiology with Watson and Crick for discovering the structure of DNA
Science, mathematics, and technology
- John Couch AdamsJohn Couch AdamsJohn Couch Adams was a British mathematician and astronomer. Adams was born in Laneast, near Launceston, Cornwall, and died in Cambridge. The Cornish name Couch is pronounced "cooch"....
, mathematician and discoverer of Neptune - George BarnardGeorge Alfred BarnardGeorge Alfred Barnard was a British statistician known particularly for his work on the foundations of statistics and on quality control.-Biography:...
, statistician known for his work on the foundations of statistics - John Browne, Baron Browne of MadingleyJohn Browne, Baron Browne of MadingleyEdmund John Philip Browne, Baron Browne of Madingley, FRS FREng is President of the Royal Academy of Engineering and was group Chief Executive of BP until his resignation on 1 May 2007...
, FRS; former Chief Executive of BP - Sir David CoxDavid Cox (statistician)Sir David Roxbee Cox FRS is a prominent British statistician.-Early years:Cox studied mathematics at St. John's College, Cambridge and obtained his PhD from the University of Leeds in 1949, advised by Henry Daniels and Bernard Welch.-Career:He was employed from 1944 to 1946 at the Royal Aircraft...
, prominent statistician - Sir Samuel CurranSamuel CurranSir Samuel Crowe Curran , FRS, FRSE, was a physicist and the first Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Strathclyde - the first of the new technical universities in Britain....
, physicist, inventor of the scintillation counterScintillation counterA scintillation counter measures ionizing radiation. The sensor, called a scintillator, consists of a transparent crystal, usually phosphor, plastic , or organic liquid that fluoresces when struck by ionizing radiation. A sensitive photomultiplier tube measures the light from the crystal...
and proportional counterProportional counterA proportional counter is a measurement device to count particles of ionizing radiation and measure their energy.A proportional counter is a type of gaseous ionization detector. Its operation is similar to that of a Geiger-Müller counter, but uses a lower operating voltage. An inert gas is used to...
, and founder of Stratclyde University - John DeeJohn Dee (mathematician)John Dee was an English mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, occultist, navigator, imperialist and consultant to Queen Elizabeth I. He devoted much of his life to the study of alchemy, divination and Hermetic philosophy....
, mathematicianMathematicsMathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, astronomerAstronomyAstronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
, astrologerAstrologyAstrology consists of a number of belief systems which hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events in the human world...
, geographerGeographyGeography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...
, and consultant to Queen Elizabeth IElizabeth I of EnglandElizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty... - Fearon FallowsFearon FallowsFearon Fallows was an English astronomer.-Life:He was born in Cockermouth in Cumbria, the son of John Fallows, a weaver, and his wife Rebecca...
, astronomer - Thomas FinkThomas FinkThomas Fink is an Anglo-American physicist who has authored a number of journal articles on statistical and biological physics and two popular books. He is a Chargé de Recherche at CNRS/Institut Curie and when not in Paris lives in London....
, physicist and author - Johannes de Villiers Graaff, economist
- William Gilbert, physician and natural philosopher, discoverer of the Earth's magnetic field and inventor of the word 'electricity'
- William GregorWilliam GregorWilliam Gregor was the British clergyman and mineralogist who discovered the elemental metal titanium.-Early years:...
, discoverer of titanium - William D. Hamilton, evolutionary biologist who formalised the concept of Kin selectionKin selectionKin selection refers to apparent strategies in evolution that favor the reproductive success of an organism's relatives, even at a cost to the organism's own survival and reproduction. Charles Darwin was the first to discuss the concept of group/kin selection...
- David HarveyDavid Harvey (geographer)David Harvey is the Distinguished Professor of Anthropology at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York . A leading social theorist of international standing, he received his PhD in Geography from University of Cambridge in 1961. Widely influential, he is among the top 20 most cited...
, Marxist geographer, social scientist - William HeberdenWilliam HeberdenWilliam Heberden , English physician, was born in London, where he received the early part of his education.At the end of 1724 he was sent to St John's College, Cambridge, where he obtained a fellowship, around 1730, became master of arts in 1732, and took the degree of MD in 1739...
, British physician, who gave the first clinical description (1768) of angina pectoris and demonstrated that chicken pox was different from smallpox - John HerschelJohn HerschelSir John Frederick William Herschel, 1st Baronet KH, FRS ,was an English mathematician, astronomer, chemist, and experimental photographer/inventor, who in some years also did valuable botanical work...
, mathematician and astronomer - W. E. HickW. E. HickWilliam Edmund Hick was a British psychologist, who was a pioneer in the new sciences of experimental psychology and ergonomics in the mid-20th century....
, pioneer of cognitive science and discoverer of Hick's lawHick's lawHick's Law, named after British psychologist William Edmund Hick, or the Hick–Hyman Law , describes the time it takes for a person to make a decision as a result of the possible choices he or she has. The Hick-Hyman Law assesses cognitive information capacity in choice reaction experiments... - Robert HindeRobert HindeRobert Aubrey Hinde CBE FRS FBA is the Emeritus Royal Society Research Professor of Zoology at the University of Cambridge. He was formerly the master of St. John's College, Cambridge. He is the chair of British Pugwash...
, Professor of Zoology, and former Master of St. Johns - Sir Fred HoyleFred HoyleSir Fred Hoyle FRS was an English astronomer and mathematician noted primarily for his contribution to the theory of stellar nucleosynthesis and his often controversial stance on other cosmological and scientific matters—in particular his rejection of the "Big Bang" theory, a term originally...
, pioneering but controversial cosmologist who first used the term 'Big Bang' - Sir Harold JeffreysHarold JeffreysSir Harold Jeffreys, FRS was a mathematician, statistician, geophysicist, and astronomer. His seminal book Theory of Probability, which first appeared in 1939, played an important role in the revival of the Bayesian view of probability.-Biography:Jeffreys was born in Fatfield, Washington, County...
, applied mathematician and geophysicist - Joseph LarmorJoseph LarmorSir Joseph Larmor , a physicist and mathematician who made innovations in the understanding of electricity, dynamics, thermodynamics, and the electron theory of matter...
, mathematician and physicist - Louis LeakeyLouis LeakeyLouis Seymour Bazett Leakey was a British archaeologist and naturalist whose work was important in establishing human evolutionary development in Africa. He also played a major role in creating organizations for future research in Africa and for protecting wildlife there...
, archaeologist and naturalist credited with the discovery of Homo habilisHomo habilisHomo habilis is a species of the genus Homo, which lived from approximately at the beginning of the Pleistocene period. The discovery and description of this species is credited to both Mary and Louis Leakey, who found fossils in Tanzania, East Africa, between 1962 and 1964. Homo habilis Homo... - Professor John MarrackJohn MarrackProfessor John Richardson Marrack, DSO, MC was the Emeritus Professor of Chemical Pathology in the University of London, visiting professor to the University of Texas and known for his book Antigens and Antibodies ....
, immunologist - Alfred MarshallAlfred MarshallAlfred Marshall was an Englishman and one of the most influential economists of his time. His book, Principles of Economics , was the dominant economic textbook in England for many years...
, economist - Sir Charles Algernon ParsonsCharles Algernon ParsonsSir Charles Algernon Parsons OM KCB FRS was an Anglo-Irish engineer, best known for his invention of the steam turbine. He worked as an engineer on dynamo and turbine design, and power generation, with great influence on the naval and electrical engineering fields...
, inventor of the steam turbine - Sir Roger PenroseRoger PenroseSir Roger Penrose OM FRS is an English mathematical physicist and Emeritus Rouse Ball Professor of Mathematics at the Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford and Emeritus Fellow of Wadham College...
, mathematical physicist and philosopher - Cedric PriceCedric PriceCedric Price was an English architect and influential teacher and writer on architecture.The son of an architect, Price was born in Stone, Staffordshire and studied architecture at Cambridge University Cedric Price (11 September 1934 – 10 August 2003) was an English architect and influential...
, architect - Vikram SarabhaiVikram SarabhaiVikram Ambalal Sarabhai was an Indian physicist. He is considered to be the father of the Indian space program; legendary Homi Bhabha’s successor as chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission; and was as at home in the world of the arts as in his favourite laboratory. His interests were vast and...
, father of the Indian space programme - James Joseph SylvesterJames Joseph SylvesterJames Joseph Sylvester was an English mathematician. He made fundamental contributions to matrix theory, invariant theory, number theory, partition theory and combinatorics...
, mathematician - Brook TaylorBrook TaylorBrook Taylor FRS was an English mathematician who is best known for Taylor's theorem and the Taylor series.- Life and work :...
, mathematician - Sir Maurice Wilkes, one of the founding fathers of modern computer science, and inventor of the first stored program digital computer
Arts and Literature
- Sir Thomas WyattThomas Wyatt (poet)Sir Thomas Wyatt was a 16th-century English lyrical poet credited with introducing the sonnet into English. He was born at Allington Castle, near Maidstone in Kent – though his family was originally from Yorkshire...
1503-1542, courtier and poet - Samuel Butler, author
- William WordsworthWilliam WordsworthWilliam Wordsworth was a major English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with the 1798 joint publication Lyrical Ballads....
, poet - Patrick BrontëPatrick BrontëThe Reverend Patrick Brontë was an Irish Anglican curate and writer, who spent most of his adult life in England and was the father of the writers Charlotte, Emily and Anne Brontë, and of Branwell Brontë, his only son....
, curate, father of the Brontë sisters - Robert Greene, arguably the first professional English author of plays, poems and novels
- Thomas NasheThomas NasheThomas Nashe was an English Elizabethan pamphleteer, playwright, poet and satirist. He was the son of the minister William Nashe and his wife Margaret .-Early life:...
, pamphleteer, satirist & playwright - Robert HerrickRobert Herrick (poet)Robert Herrick was a 17th-century English poet.-Early life:Born in Cheapside, London, he was the seventh child and fourth son of Julia Stone and Nicholas Herrick, a prosperous goldsmith....
, poet - Louis ChaJinyongLouis Cha, GBM, OBE , better known by his pen name Jin Yong, is a modern Chinese-language novelist. Having co-founded the Hong Kong daily Ming Pao in 1959, he was the paper's first editor-in-chief....
, famous Chinese novelist and newspaper editor - Frederic RaphaelFrederic RaphaelFrederic Michael Raphael is an American-born, British-educated screenwriter, and also a prolific novelist and journalist.-Life and career:...
, screenwriter, novelist and journalist - Sir Cecil BeatonCecil BeatonSir Cecil Walter Hardy Beaton, CBE was an English fashion and portrait photographer, diarist, painter, interior designer and an Academy Award-winning stage and costume designer for films and the theatre...
, photographer - Herbert HowellsHerbert HowellsHerbert Norman Howells CH was an English composer, organist, and teacher, most famous for his large output of Anglican church music.-Life:...
, English composer (college organist) - Geoffrey PatersonGeoffrey Paterson-Career:Born in Kent, United Kingdom, Geoffrey Paterson was educated at The Judd School, St John's College, Cambridge, the RSAMD and the National Opera Studio...
, conductor (college organist). - Tom Rob SmithTom Rob SmithTom Rob Smith is an English writer. The son of a Swedish mother and an English father, Smith was born and raised in London.Smith studied at St. John's College, Cambridge, following his graduation in 2001 he received the Harper Wood Studentship for English Poetry and Literature and continued his...
, award nominee author of Soviet-era novels; erstwhile writer for Channel 5's defunct soap opera Family Affairs - Paul SussmanPaul SussmanPaul Sussman is a best-selling English author, archaeologist and journalist. His novels have been described as "the intelligent reader's answer to the Da Vinci Code" by The Independent.-Biography:...
, author, archaeologist and journalist - Douglas AdamsDouglas AdamsDouglas Noel Adams was an English writer and dramatist. He is best known as the author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which started life in 1978 as a BBC radio comedy before developing into a "trilogy" of five books that sold over 15 million copies in his lifetime, a television...
, author - Jennifer EganJennifer EganJennifer Egan is an American novelist and short story writer who lives in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. Egan's novel A Visit From the Goon Squad won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction....
, 2011 Pulitzer Prize2011 Pulitzer PrizeThe 2011 Pulitzer Prizes were announced on Monday, April 18, 2011. The Los Angeles Times won two prizes, including the highest honor for Public Service. The New York Times also won two awards. No prize was handed out in the Breaking News category. The Wall Street Journal won an award for the first...
Religion
- Peter CarnleyPeter CarnleyPeter Frederick Carnley AC is a retired Australian Anglican bishop. Carnley was the Archbishop of Perth from 1981 to 2005 and was Primate of the Anglican Church of Australia from 2000 until July 2005...
, Archbishop of Perth 1981-2005, Primate of Australia 2000-2005 - Frederick Donald Coggan, Baron Coggan, Archbishop of CanterburyArchbishop of CanterburyThe Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
1974-1980 - W. Owen Chadwick, church historian
- D'Ewes CokeD'Ewes CokeThe Reverend D'Ewes Coke was rector of Pinxton and South Normanton in Derbyshire, a colliery owner and philanthropist.He married Hannah, heiress of George Heywood of Brimington.-Background:...
, clergyman and colliery master - Saint John Fisher, martyr (Fellow and Founder)
- Saint Richard GwynSaint Richard GwynSaint Richard Gwyn , also known by his anglicised name, Richard White, was a Welsh school teacher. He was martyred by being hanged, drawn and quartered for high treason in 1584. He was canonised by Pope Paul VI in 1970 as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales...
, martyr - Edmund HickeringillEdmund HickeringillEdmund Hickeringill was an English churchman who lived during the period of the Commonwealth and the Restoration.- Education and career :...
, churchman - Saint Philip Howard, Earl of Arundel
- William JowettWilliam JowettWilliam Jowett was a missionary and author, in 1813 becoming the first Anglican clergyman to volunteer for the overseas service of the Church Missionary Society...
, missionary - Edward StillingfleetEdward StillingfleetEdward Stillingfleet was a British theologian and scholar. Considered an outstanding preacher as well as a strong polemical writer defending Anglicanism, Stillingfleet was known as "the beauty of holiness" for his good looks in the pulpit, and was called by John Hough "the ablest man of his...
, British theologian and scholar - Verne Timms, Reverend of Greendale Church 1963-98
Other
- Rob AndrewRob AndrewChristopher Robert "Rob" Andrew MBE , nicknamed "Squeaky", is a former English rugby union footballer and currently Director of Operations at the RFU. He was formerly the Director of Rugby of Newcastle Falcons. As a player, Andrew was assured in his kicking and defensive skills off both feet...
, England rugby footballer - Ab Banerjee, an entrepreneurEntrepreneurAn entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
who helped established the Dr Manmohan Singh ScholarshipDr Manmohan Singh ScholarshipThe Dr Manmohan Singh Scholarship is an international award for study at St John's College at the University of Cambridge. They are PhD standard scholarships for prospective Indian PhD students awarded by the College. The award was designed to benefit academically bright Indian students from... - Chris BrasherChris BrasherChristopher William "Chris" Brasher CBE was a British athlete, sports journalist and co-founder of the London Marathon.-History:...
, Olympic gold medallist runner, founder of the London Marathon - Mike BrearleyMike BrearleyJohn Michael Brearley OBE is a former cricketer who captained the England cricket team in 31 of his 39 Test matches, winning 17 and losing only 4. He was the President of the Marylebone Cricket Club in 2007–08.-Early life:...
, cricketer, England Captain - Logie Bruce LockhartLogie Bruce LockhartLogie Bruce Lockhart MA , is a British writer and journalist, formerly a Scottish international rugby union footballer and headmaster of Gresham's School.-Background:...
, Scotland rugby footballer - Damon BuffiniDamon BuffiniDamon Buffini is an English businessman, who used to head the private equity company Permira.-Biography:Born in Leicester in 1962, the son of an African American serviceman and a British woman, he was educated at the Gateway school in Leicester...
, head of private equity firm PermiraPermiraPermira is a United Kingdom-based private equity firm with global reach. The firm advises funds with a total committed capital of approximately €20 billion.... - Andrew CarwoodAndrew CarwoodAndrew Carwood is the Director of Music at St Paul's Cathedral in London and director of his own group, The Cardinall's Musick.-Biography:He was educated at The John Lyon School, Harrow and was a choral scholar in the Choir of St John's College, Cambridge under Dr George Guest, a lay clerk at...
, Director of Music St Paul's CathedralSt Paul's CathedralSt Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
(2007), tenor and conductor - William George ConstableWilliam George ConstableWilliam George Constable William George Constable William George Constable (born Derby, England, 27 October 1887, died Cambridge, Massachusetts, 3 February 1976, was an art historian and gallery director.-Education:...
, art historian - Kikuchi DairokuKikuchi DairokuBaron was a mathematician, educator, and educational administrator in Meiji period Japan.-Kikuchi's life and career:Kikuchi was born in Edo , as the second son of Mitsukuri Shuhei...
, first Japanese graduate of Cambridge University - Paul Dempsey (presenter)Paul Dempsey (presenter)Paul Andrew Francis Dempsey is a television and radio sports broadcaster and commentator. After 18 years working for Sky he left in 2006 and moved to the Dublin based television company Setanta Sports, where he presents most of the channel's football coverage, including Premier League Live.-Early...
, TV Presenter - Hugh DennisHugh DennisPeter Hugh Dennis is an English actor, comedian, writer, impressionist and voice-over artist, best known for his work with comedy partner Steve Punt. He is also known for his position as a permanent panelist on the TV comedy show Mock The Week...
, Actor/ Comedian - Fra' Matthew FestingMatthew Festing-Titles and style:The full title of Fra' Matthew is: His Most Eminent Highness Fra' Matthew Festing, Prince and Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St...
, Prince and Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta - Andrew GantAndrew Gant-Biography:Andrew attended Radley College before going on to read Music and English at St John's College, Cambridge. He was a choral scholar and sang in the College Choir under George Guest. He subsequently studied composition with Paul Patterson at the Royal Academy of Music and completed his PhD...
, chorister and composer - Charles Sydney GibbesCharles Sydney GibbesCharles Sydney Gibbes was the English tutor of Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich of Russia. Later in his life he became an Orthodox monk, adopting the name of Nicholas after Saint Nicholas The Passion Bearer. After his return to Britain he became a prominent figure in Orthodoxy in Britain...
, English tutor of Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich of RussiaTsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich of RussiaAlexei Nikolaevich of the House of Romanov, was the Tsesarevich and heir apparent to the throne of the Russian Empire. In English, his title is usually given as Tsarevich, a title that has a separate meaning in Russia. Alexei was the youngest child and only son of Emperor Nicholas II and Empress... - Andrew GilliganAndrew GilliganAndrew Paul Gilligan is a British journalist best known for a 2003 report on BBC Radio 4's The Today Programme in which he said a British government briefing paper on Iraq and weapons of mass destruction had been 'sexed up', a claim that ultimately led to a public inquiry that criticised Gilligan...
, controversial journalist - George GuestGeorge GuestGeorge Guest was a Welsh organist and choral conductor.- Birth and early life :George Guest was born in Bangor, Wales. His father was an organist, and George assisted him by acting as organ blower. He became a chorister at Bangor Cathedral, and subsequently at Chester Cathedral, where he...
, Welsh choral conductor, college organist 1951-1991 - William HawkinsWilliam Hawkins (serjeant-at-law)William Hawkins was a barrister and serjeant-at-law, best known for his work on the English criminal law, Treatise of Pleas of the Crown....
, jurist and serjeant-at-lawSerjeant-at-lawThe Serjeants-at-Law was an order of barristers at the English bar. The position of Serjeant-at-Law , or Sergeant-Counter, was centuries old; there are writs dating to 1300 which identify them as descended from figures in France prior to the Norman Conquest... - Peter HennessyPeter HennessyPeter John Hennessy, Baron Hennessy of Nympsfield, FBA is an English historian of government. Since 1992, he has been Attlee Professor of Contemporary British History at Queen Mary, University of London.-Early life:...
English historian of government - Sir Harry HinsleyHarry HinsleySir Francis Harry Hinsley OBE was an English historian and cryptanalyst. He worked at Bletchley Park during the Second World War and wrote widely on the history of international relations and British Intelligence during the Second World War...
, historian and World War II codebreaker - Sir Derek JacobiDerek JacobiSir Derek George Jacobi, CBE is an English actor and film director.A "forceful, commanding stage presence", Jacobi has enjoyed a highly successful stage career, appearing in such stage productions as Hamlet, Uncle Vanya, and Oedipus the King. He received a Tony Award for his performance in...
, actor - Edward LatymerEdward LatymerEdward Latymer was a wealthy merchant and official in London. His will established both Latymer Upper School and The Latymer School and is associated with Godolphin and Latymer School.-Life:...
, founder of both Latymer Upper SchoolLatymer Upper SchoolLatymer Upper School, founded by Edward Latymer in 1624, is a selective independent school in Hammersmith, West London, England, lying between King Street and the Thames. It is a day school for 1,130 pupils – boys and girls aged 11–18; there is also the Latymer Preparatory School for boys and girls...
and The Latymer SchoolThe Latymer SchoolThe Latymer School is a selective, mixed grammar school in Edmonton, north London, England.- Examination procedures :Approximately 180 pupils are admitted to Year 7 annually. Places are awarded on the basis of competitive examination, though 20 are reserved for students with exceptional musical... - Donald MacAlisterDonald MacAlisterSir Donald MacAlister, 1st Baronet KCB was a physician, and Principal and Vice-Chancellor and, later, Chancellor of the University of Glasgow.- Early life :...
, physician and academic - Tshilidzi MarwalaTshilidzi MarwalaTshilidzi Marwala born 28 July 1971 in Venda, Limpopo South Africa is a Dean of Engineering at the University of Johannesburg.-Academic career:...
, academic and businessman - G. R. S. MeadG. R. S. MeadGeorge Robert Stowe Mead was an author, editor, translator, and an influential member of the Theosophical Society as well as the founder of the Quest Society.-Birth and family:...
- Dr Jonathan MillerJonathan MillerSir Jonathan Wolfe Miller CBE is a British theatre and opera director, author, physician, television presenter, humorist and sculptor. Trained as a physician in the late 1950s, he first came to prominence in the 1960s with his role in the comedy revue Beyond the Fringe with fellow writers and...
, physician, theatre and opera director and television presenter - Sir Peter NoblePeter Noble (academic)Sir Peter Scott Noble was a British academic who served as Principal of King's College London from 1952 to 1968.He was educated at Fraserburgh Academy, St John's College, Cambridge where he graduated with a double first in Classics and Oriental Languages, and at the University of Aberdeen. He was...
, Principal of King's College LondonKing's College LondonKing's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
1952-1968 - John ScottJohn Scott (organist)John Gavin Scott LVO is an English-born organist and choirmaster. He directed the Choir of St. Paul's Cathedral in London from 1990 to 2004. He now directs the Choir of Men and Boys of Saint Thomas Church on 53rd Street and Fifth Avenue in New York City...
, LVO, English organist, organ scholar 1974-78, organist of St Paul'sSt Paul's CathedralSt Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
1990-2004 - Prof Stephen SykesStephen SykesStephen Whitefield Sykes retired as Principal of St John's College, Durham at the end of August 2006. He was formerly the Church of England Bishop of Ely and held professorial chairs in divinity at both Durham University and Cambridge University.Sykes studied at St John's College, Cambridge,...
, theologian, former Dean of St John's and Bishop of ElyBishop of ElyThe Bishop of Ely is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Ely in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese roughly covers the county of Cambridgeshire , together with a section of north-west Norfolk and has its see in the City of Ely, Cambridgeshire, where the seat is located at the...
, and principal of St John's College, DurhamSt John's College, DurhamSt John's College is a college of the University of Durham, United Kingdom. It is one of only two 'Recognised Colleges' of the University, the other being St Chad's. This means that it is financially and constitutionally independent of the University and has a greater degree of administrative... - Frank ThistlethwaiteFrank ThistlethwaiteFrank Thistlethwaite CBE was an English academic who served as the first Vice-Chancellor of the University of East Anglia.-Early life:...
, Vice-Chancellor of the University of East AngliaUniversity of East AngliaThe University of East Anglia is a public research university based in Norwich, United Kingdom. It was established in 1963, and is a founder-member of the 1994 Group of research-intensive universities.-History:...
(1961–1980) - Kenneth Thomson, of Canada's wealthiest family and Thomson Corp. (information services)
- His Honour Judge Peter ThorntonPeter Thornton (judge)Peter Thornton QC styled His Honour Judge Peter Thornton QC is a Senior Circuit Judge at the Central Criminal Court .Peter Thornton was appointed a a Circuit Judge on the South Eastern circuit on the 12th of November 2007...
, QC, Senior Circuit Judge at the Central Criminal Court - Henry WaceHenry Wace (footballer)Henry Wace was an English amateur footballer who made three appearances for England and played for Wanderers, with whom he won the FA Cup in 1877 and 1878. By profession he was a lawyer who specialised in bankruptcy law....
(1853–1947), England international footballer and expert on bankruptcy law. - Sid Waddell, darts commentator
- Professor Glanville Williams, Q.C. LL.D. F.B.A. described in 1997 by the New York Times, as the greatest lawyer of the 20th century
St John's College Royal Medal Winners
Three Royal MedalRoyal Medal
The Royal Medal, also known as The Queen's Medal, is a silver-gilt medal awarded each year by the Royal Society, two for "the most important contributions to the advancement of natural knowledge" and one for "distinguished contributions in the applied sciences" made within the Commonwealth of...
s, known also as the Queen’s Medals, are awarded annually by the Sovereign upon the recommendation of the Council of the Royal Society, “two for the most important contributions to the advancement of Natural Knowledge (one in the physical and one in the biological sciences) and the other for distinguished contributions in the applied sciences”. The first Royal Medal was awarded in 1826 and previous recipients include thirty-eight Johnians.
| Name | Year | Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| John Herschel John Herschel Sir John Frederick William Herschel, 1st Baronet KH, FRS ,was an English mathematician, astronomer, chemist, and experimental photographer/inventor, who in some years also did valuable botanical work... |
1836 | For his paper on nebulae and clusters of stars, published in the Philosophical Transactions for 1833 |
| James Sylvester | 1861 | For his various memoirs and researches in mathematical science |
| John Langley John Langley John Langley is an American television and film director, writer, and producer who is best known as the creator and executive producer of the long-running television show COPS, which premiered on FOX in March 1989.... |
1892 | For his work on secreting glands, and on the nervous system |
| Charles Pritchard Charles Pritchard Charles Pritchard was a British astronomer.He was born at Alberbury, Shropshire. At sixteen he was enrolled as a sizar at St John's College, Cambridge, graduating in 1830 as fourth wrangler. In 1832 he was elected a fellow of his college, and in the following year he was ordained, and became head... |
1892 | For his work on photometry and stellar parallax |
| Arthur Schuster Arthur Schuster Sir Franz Arthur Friedrich Schuster FRS was a German-born British physicist known for his work in spectroscopy, electrochemistry, optics, X-radiography and the application of harmonic analysis to physics... |
1893 | For his spectroscopic inquiries, and his researches on disruptive discharge through gases and on terrestrial magnetism |
| Percy MacMahon | 1900 | For the number and range of his contributions to mathematical science |
| William Burnside William Burnside William Burnside was an English mathematician. He is known mostly as an early contributor to the theory of finite groups.... |
1904 | For his researches in mathematics, particularly in the theory of groups |
| Augustus Love | 1909 | On the ground of his researches in the theory of elasticity and cognate subjects |
| William Hicks William Hicks Colonel William Hicks , British soldier, entered the Bombay army in 1849, and served through the Indian mutiny, being mentioned in despatches for good conduct at the action of Sitka Ghaut in 1859.... |
1912 | On the ground of his researches in mathematical physics |
| Grafton Smith | 1912 | No citation. |
| William Sollas | 1914 | For researches in palaeontology |
| Joseph Larmor Joseph Larmor Sir Joseph Larmor , a physicist and mathematician who made innovations in the understanding of electricity, dynamics, thermodynamics, and the electron theory of matter... |
1915 | On the ground of his numerous and important contributions to mathematical and physical science |
| William Rivers | 1915 | On the ground of his important contributions to ethnography and ethnology |
| William Bateson William Bateson William Bateson was an English geneticist and a Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge... |
1920 | On the ground of his contributions to biological science, and especially his studies in genetics |
| Frederick Blackman Frederick Blackman Frederick Frost Blackman was a British plant physiologist.Frederick Blackman was born in Lambeth, London to a doctor. He studied medicine at St. Bartholomew's Hospital, graduating MA... |
1921 | For his researches on the gaseous exchange in plants & on the operation of limiting factors |
| Albert Seward | 1925 | For his researches on the palaeobotany of Gondwanaland |
| John Marr | 1930 | For his pioneer work in the accurate zoning of the palaeozoic rocks |
| Patrick Laidlaw Patrick Laidlaw Patrick Playfair Laidlaw was a British virologist.He was one of the scientists working at the Medical Research Council at Mill Hill who first isolated influenza virus from humans. This happened when ferrets they were working on to develop a distemper vaccine caught influenza from one of the... |
1933 | For his work on diseases due to viruses, including that on the cause and prevention of distemper in dogs. |
| Alfred Harker | 1935 | In recognition of his distinguished work and influence as a petrologist |
| Paul Dirac Paul Dirac Paul Adrien Maurice Dirac, OM, FRS was an English theoretical physicist who made fundamental contributions to the early development of both quantum mechanics and quantum electrodynamics... |
1939 | For the leading part he had taken in the development of the new quantum mechanics |
| William Topley William Whiteman Carlton Topley William Whiteman Carlton Topley FRS was a British bacteriologist. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1930.- External links :*http://mansfield.osu.edu/~sabedon/bgnws026.pdf... |
1942 | For his outstanding work on experimental epidemiology and immunology |
| Harold Jeffreys Harold Jeffreys Sir Harold Jeffreys, FRS was a mathematician, statistician, geophysicist, and astronomer. His seminal book Theory of Probability, which first appeared in 1939, played an important role in the revival of the Bayesian view of probability.-Biography:Jeffreys was born in Fatfield, Washington, County... |
1948 | For his distinguished work in geophysics and his important contributions to the astronomy of the solar system |
| Edward Appleton | 1950 | For his work on the ele [sic] transmission of electromagnetic waves round the earth and for his investigations of the ionic state of the upper atmosphere |
| Frederic Bartlett Frederic Bartlett Sir Frederic Charles Bartlett FRS was a British psychologist and the first professor of experimental psychology at the University of Cambridge. He was one of the forerunners of cognitive psychology... |
1952 | In recognition of his creation of an experimental school of psychology which has established under his leadership an outstanding position recognized internationally as without superior |
| Nevill Mott | 1953 | In recognition of his eminent work in the field of quantum theory and particularly in the theory of metals |
| John Cockcroft John Cockcroft Sir John Douglas Cockcroft OM KCB CBE FRS was a British physicist. He shared the Nobel Prize in Physics for splitting the atomic nucleus with Ernest Walton, and was instrumental in the development of nuclear power.... |
1954 | In recognition of his distinguished work on nuclear and atomic physics |
| William Hodge | 1957 | In recognition of his distinguished work on algebraic geometry |
| Rudolf Peierls Rudolf Peierls Sir Rudolf Ernst Peierls, CBE was a German-born British physicist. Rudolf Peierls had a major role in Britain's nuclear program, but he also had a role in many modern sciences... |
1959 | In recognition of his distinguished work on the theoretical foundations of high energy and nuclear physics |
| Raymond Lyttleton Raymond Lyttleton Raymond Arthur Lyttleton FRS was a British mathematician and theoretical astronomer.He was born in the Oldbury, Worcestershire area and educated at King Edward VI Five Ways school in Birmingham, going from there to Clare College, Cambridge to read mathematics, graduating in 1933... |
1965 | In recognition of his distinguished contributions to astronomy, particularly for his work on the dynamical stability of galaxies |
| Frank Yates Frank Yates Frank Yates FRS was one of the pioneers of 20th century statistics.He was born in Manchester. Yates was the eldest of five children, and the only boy, born to Edith and Percy Yates. His father was a seed merchant. He attended Wadham House, a private school, before gaining a scholarship to Clifton... |
1966 | In recognition of his profound and far-reaching contributions to the statistical methods of experimental biology |
| Joseph Hutchinson Joseph Hutchinson Sir Joseph Burtt Hutchinson FRS was a British biologistHe was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in Mar 1951 and was awarded their Royal Medal in 1967 "In recognition of his distinguished work on the genetics and evolution of crop-plants with particular reference to cotton."His FRS... |
1967 | In recognition of his distinguished work on the genetics and evolution of crop-plants with particular reference to cotton |
| Charles Oatley Charles Oatley Sir Charles William Oatley OBE, FRS FREng was Professor of Electrical Engineering, University of Cambridge, 1960–1971, and developer of one of the first commercial scanning electron microscopes.... |
1969 | In recognition of his distinguished work in the wartime development of radar and latterly for the design and development of a highly successful scanning electron microscope |
| Frederick Sanger Frederick Sanger Frederick Sanger, OM, CH, CBE, FRS is an English biochemist and a two-time Nobel laureate in chemistry, the only person to have been so. In 1958 he was awarded a Nobel prize in chemistry "for his work on the structure of proteins, especially that of insulin"... |
1969 | In recognition of his pioneer work on the sequence of amino acids in proteins and of nucleotides of ribonucleic acids |
| Fred Hoyle Fred Hoyle Sir Fred Hoyle FRS was an English astronomer and mathematician noted primarily for his contribution to the theory of stellar nucleosynthesis and his often controversial stance on other cosmological and scientific matters—in particular his rejection of the "Big Bang" theory, a term originally... |
1974 | In recognition of his distinguished contributions to theoretical physics and cosmology |
| Abdus Salam Abdus Salam Mohammad Abdus Salam, NI, SPk Mohammad Abdus Salam, NI, SPk Mohammad Abdus Salam, NI, SPk (Urdu: محمد عبد السلام, pronounced , (January 29, 1926– November 21, 1996) was a Pakistani theoretical physicist and Nobel laureate in Physics for his work on the electroweak unification of the... |
1978 | In recognition of his outstanding contributions to the physics of elementary particles with special reference to the unification of the electromagnetic and weak interactions |
| Roger Penrose Roger Penrose Sir Roger Penrose OM FRS is an English mathematical physicist and Emeritus Rouse Ball Professor of Mathematics at the Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford and Emeritus Fellow of Wadham College... |
1985 | For his fundamental contributions to the theory of gravitational collapse and to other geometric aspects of theoretical physics |
| Eric Denton Eric James Denton Sir Eric James Denton CBE, FRS, was a British marine biologist who won the Royal Society's Royal Medal in 1987. He was the Director of the Marine Biological Association Laboratory in Plymouth between 1974 and 1987.-References:... |
1987 | In recognition of his outstanding contributions to the physiology of marine animals, to marine biology generally, and his leadership of UK marine science |
| Robert Hinde Robert Hinde Robert Aubrey Hinde CBE FRS FBA is the Emeritus Royal Society Research Professor of Zoology at the University of Cambridge. He was formerly the master of St. John's College, Cambridge. He is the chair of British Pugwash... |
1996 | In recognition of his contributions to the field of animal behaviour and the dominant influence it achieved on the emerging field of ethology |
| Christopher Dobson Chris Dobson Christopher Martin "Chris" Dobson, FRS, is a British chemist, John Humphrey Plummer Professor of Chemical and Structural Biology at the University of Cambridge, and Master of St John's College, Cambridge. Dobson's research is largely concerned with protein folding and misfolding.Having completed a... |
2009 | For his outstanding contributions to the understanding of the mechanisms of protein folding and mis-folding, and the implications for disease |
Masters of St John's College
| Name | Start of service | End of Service |
|---|---|---|
| Robert Shorton Robert Shorton Robert Shorton was an English churchman and academic, first Master of St John's College, Cambridge and archdeacon of Bath.-Life:He was one of the earliest scholars of Jesus College, Cambridge. He graduated B.A. in 1501 and M.A. in 1503, and was elected fellow of Pembroke Hall on 24 November 1505... |
9 Apr. 1511 | July 1516 |
| Alan Percy Alan Percy Alan Percy was an English churchman and academic, Master of St John's College, Cambridge, and later Master of Trinity College, Arundel which he surrendered to Henry VIII in 1545.-Life:... |
July 1516 | Nov. 1518 |
| Nicholas Metcalfe Nicholas Metcalfe -Life:He graduated B.A., possibly from Michaelhouse, Cambridge, in 1494/5, became M.A. in 1498, B.D. in 1503/4 and D.D. in 1506/7. He was Archdeacon of Rochester from 1512. He was also prebendary of Lincoln, and rector of Woodham Ferrers.... |
Dec. 1518 | 4 July 1537 |
| George Day George Day (bishop) George Day was Bishop of Chichester.-Life:He graduated at the University of Cambridge in 1520–21, and became a Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge on 19 September 1522... |
27 July 1537 | 6 June 1538 |
| John Taylor | 4 July 1538 | 10 Mar. (?) 1546 |
| William Bil | 10 Mar. 1546 | 10 Dec. 1551 |
| Thomas Lever Thomas Lever Thomas Lever was an English Protestant reformer and Marian exile, one of the founders of the Puritan tendency in the Church of England.-Life:... |
10 Dec. 1551 | 28 Sept. (?) 1553 |
| Thomas Watson Thomas Watson (bishop) Thomas Watson was a Catholic Bishop, notable among Catholics for his descriptions of the Protestant Reformation.-Early life:Watson was born near Durham in 1515 at a time when England was still a Catholic country .... |
28 Sept. 1553 | 12 May (?) 1554 |
| George Bullock | 12 May 1554 | 20 July 1559 |
| James Pilkington | 20 July 1559 | 19 Oct. (?) 1561 |
| Leonard Pilkington Leonard Pilkington Leonard Pilkington was an English academic and clergyman. A Marian exile, he became Regius Professor of Divinity at Cambridge and Master of St John's College, Cambridge at the start of the reign of Elizabeth I... |
19 Oct. 1561 | 11 May (?) 1564 |
| Richard Longworth Richard Longworth (Cambridge) Richard Longworth was an English churchman and academic, Master of St John's College, Cambridge and Dean of Chester.-Life:He was from Lancashire, and matriculated as a pensioner at St John's College in 1549. He graduated B.A. in 1553, M.A. in 1556, B.D. in 1563, and D.D. in 1567... |
11 May 1564 | 17 Dec. (?) 1569 |
| Nicholas Shepherd | 17 Dec. 1569 | 21 July (?) 1574 |
| John Still John Still John Still , bishop of Bath and Wells enjoyed considerable fame as a preacher and disputant. He was formerly reputed to be the author of the early English comedy drama Gammer Gurton's Needle .-Career:... |
21 July 1574 | 1577 |
| Richard Howland Richard Howland Richard Howland was an English churchman and academic, Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge and of St John's College, Cambridge and bishop of Peterborough.-Life:... |
21 July 1577 | 25 Feb. (?) 1587 |
| William Whitaker William Whitaker (theologian) William Whitaker was a prominent Anglican theologian. He was Master of St. John's College, Cambridge, and a leading divine in the university in the latter half of the sixteenth century.-Early life and education:... |
25 Feb. 1587 | 4 Dec. 1595 |
| Richard Clayton | 22 Dec. 1595 | 2 May 1612 |
| Owen Gwyn Owen Gwyn Owen Gwyn was a Welsh churchman and academic, Master of St John's College, Cambridge from 1612 and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge 1615-16.-Life:He was from Denbighshire, the third son of Griffith Wynn, of the Wynn family of Gwydir... |
16 May 1612 | 1634 |
| William Beale William Beale (college head) William Beale was an English royalist churchman, Master in turn of Jesus College, Cambridge and St John's College, Cambridge. He was subjected to intense attacks by John Pym from 1640, for an unpublished sermon he had given in 1635 supporting royal prerogative... |
20 Feb. 1634 | 1644 |
| John Arrowsmith John Arrowsmith (scholar) John Arrowsmith was an English theologian and academic.-Life:He was born near Gateshead and entered St John's College, Cambridge in 1616. In 1623 he entered the fellowship of St Catherine Hall, Cambridge.... |
11 Apr. 1644 | May 1653 |
| Anthony Tuckney Anthony Tuckney Anthony Tuckney was an English Puritan theologian and scholar.-Life:Anthony Tuckney was educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and a fellow there from 1619 to 1630... |
3 June 1653 | 25 June (?) 1661 |
| Peter Gunning Peter Gunning Peter Gunning was an English Royalist church leader, Bishop of Chichester and later of Ely.-Life:He was born at Hoo St Werburgh, in Kent, and educated at The King's School, Canterbury, and Clare College, Cambridge, where he became a fellow in 1633. Having taken orders, he advocated the Royalist... |
5 June 1661 | 6 Mar. 1670 |
| Francis Turner | 11 Apr. 1670 | 3 Dec. (?) 1679 |
| Humphrey Gower Humphrey Gower Humphrey Gower was an English clergyman and academic, Master of Jesus College, Cambridge and then St. John's College, Cambridge, and Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity.-Life:... |
3 Dec. 1679 | 27 Mar. 1711 |
| Robert Jenkin Robert Jenkin (theologian) Robert Jenkin was an English clergyman, a nonjuror of 1698, later Master of St. John's College, Cambridge, Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity, and opponent of John Locke.-Life:... |
13 Apr. 1711 | 7 Apr. 1727 |
| Robert Lambert | 21 Apr. 1727 | 24 Jan. 1735 |
| John Newcome | 6 Feb. 1735 | 10 Jan. 1765. |
| William Samuel Powell | 25 Jan. 1765 | 19 Jan. 1775. |
| John Chevallier | 1 Feb. 1775 | 14 Mar. 1789. |
| William Craven | 29 Mar. 1789 | 28 Jan. 1815. |
| James Wood James Wood (mathematician) James Wood was a mathematician, Dean of Ely and Master of St John's College, Cambridge.-Life:Wood was born in Holcombe where his father ran an evening school and taught his son the elements of arithmetic and algebra. From Bury Grammar School he proceeded to St John's College, Cambridge in 1778,... |
11 Feb. 1815 | 23 Apr. 1839. |
| Ralph Tatham Ralph Tatham -Life:He graduated at the University of Cambridge in 1803. He became Master of St John's College, Cambridge, Public Orator, and Vice-Chancellor. He was also Rector of Colkirk, Norfolk.-References:... |
7 May 1839 | 19 Jan. 1857 |
| William Henry Bateson William Henry Bateson William Henry Bateson was a British scholar and, from 1857 until 1881, Master of St John's College, Cambridge. In 1858 Bateson held the position of Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. He is the father of the geneticist William Bateson and the grandfather of cyberneticist Gregory... |
2 Feb. 1857 | Mar. 1881 |
| Charles Taylor Charles Taylor (scholar) Charles Taylor was an English Christian Hebraist.-Life:He was educated at King's College London, and St. John's College, Cambridge, where graduated BA as 9th wrangler in 1862 and became a fellow of his college in 1864. He became Master of St John's in 1881... |
12 Apr. 1881 | 12 Aug. 1908 |
| Sir Robert Forsyth Scott Robert Forsyth Scott Sir Robert Forsyth Scott was a mathematician, barrister and Master of St John's College, Cambridge-Life:... |
21 Aug. 1908 | 18 Nov. 1933 |
| Ernest Alfred Benians Ernest Alfred Benians Ernest Alfred Benians was a British academic and historian.He was born in Goudhurst, Kent, and was educated at Bethany School, where his father was headmaster. He went up to the University of Cambridge in 1899, where he was admitted to St John's College... |
7 Dec. 1933 | 13 Feb. 1952 |
| James Mann Wordie James Wordie Sir James Mann Wordie, CBE was a Scottish polar explorer and geologist.Wordie was born at Partick, Glasgow, in the former county of Lanarkshire in Scotland. He studied at The Glasgow Academy and obtained a BSc in geology from University of Glasgow. He graduated from St John's College, Cambridge... |
13 Dec. 1952 | 1959 |
| John Sandwith Boys Smith | 1959 | 1969 |
| Philip Nicholas Seton Mansergh | 1 Oct. 1969 | 12 July 1979 |
| Francis Harry Hinsley Harry Hinsley Sir Francis Harry Hinsley OBE was an English historian and cryptanalyst. He worked at Bletchley Park during the Second World War and wrote widely on the history of international relations and British Intelligence during the Second World War... |
1979 | 31 July 1989 |
| Robert Aubrey Hinde | 1989 | 1994 |
| Peter Goddard | 1994 | 5 Jan. 2004 |
| Richard Nelson Perham | 5 Jan. 2004 | 30 Sep. 2007 |
| Chris Dobson Chris Dobson Christopher Martin "Chris" Dobson, FRS, is a British chemist, John Humphrey Plummer Professor of Chemical and Structural Biology at the University of Cambridge, and Master of St John's College, Cambridge. Dobson's research is largely concerned with protein folding and misfolding.Having completed a... |
Oct. 2007 | 44th, and current, Master |
Dates for masters up to 13 Dec. 1952 are taken from
Many of the later dates are taken from the college magazine, The Eagle
The Eagle (magazine)
The Eagle, founded in 1859, is an annual magazine published with the assistance of St. John's College, Cambridge.The poet Thomas Ashe founded The Eagle in the year in which he graduated from St John's., with the help of a college fellow, Joseph Bickersteth Mayor...
In popular culture
The video of High HopesHigh Hopes (Pink Floyd song)
"High Hopes" is a song from the 1994 Pink Floyd album, The Division Bell, composed by David Gilmour with lyrics by Gilmour and Polly Samson...
, one of Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
last songs, contains numerous scenes set in the St Johns College.