Trinity College, Cambridge

Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Trinity has more students than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 660 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 160 Fellows^[1]. It is also the wealthiest Oxbridge college^[2] with an estimated financial endowment of approximately £700 million (as of 2005),^[3] in addition to which Trinity's land is insured for approx. £266.5 million (this does not include all fixed assets)^[4]. Trinity considers itself to be "a world-leading academic institution with an outstanding record of education, learning and research"^[5], and on a per-student basis, is one of the best-endowed educational institutions in the world^{citation needed} - amounting to approximately £640,000 per student^[6] in 2005, more than ten times the average of £63,000^[7] at all the other Cambridge University colleges.

Like its sister college, Christ Church, Oxford, it has traditionally been considered the most aristocratic of the Cambridge colleges - it has generally been the academic institution of choice of the Royal Family (King Edward VII, King George VI, Prince Henry of Gloucester, Prince William of Gloucester and Edinburgh and Prince Charles were all undergraduates). The Push Guide to Which University (2005) called it "arguably the grandest Cambridge college" and it has been called "the most magnificent collegiate institution in England."^[8]. However, the proportion of state school to public school pupils is now roughly equal, in line with most other Cambridge colleges. Nevertheless, in 2005 it had the lowest state school intake (42%) of any college, though this figure fluctuates from year to year.^[9] It first admitted women undergraduates in 1978; women had been admitted as graduate students from 1976, and the College appointed its first female fellow in 1977.^[10]

Trinity has many college societies, and its rowing club is the First and Third Trinity Boat Club. Trinity's May Ball, named after the Boat Club, is the largest and most traditional of Cambridge's May Balls.

The first formalised version of the rules of football, known as the Cambridge Rules, was drawn up by Cambridge student representatives of leading public schools at Trinity College in 1848 [1] [2].

History

At the time, Henry had been wiping out and seizing church lands from abbeys and monasteries. The universities of Oxford and Cambridge, being both religious institutions and quite rich, expected to be next in line. The king duly passed an Act of Parliament that allowed him to suppress (and confiscate the property of) any college he wished.

The universities used their contacts to plead with his sixth wife, Catherine Parr. The queen persuaded her husband not to close them down, but to create a new college. The king did not want to use royal funds, so he instead combined two colleges (King’s Hall and Michaelhouse) and seven hostels (Physwick (formerly part of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge), Gregory’s, Ovyng’s, Catherine’s, Garratt, Margaret’s, and Tyler’s) to form Trinity. This, combined with lands confiscated from the Church, caused Trinity to be the richest and biggest college.

Most of the college’s major buildings date from the 16th and 17th centuries. Thomas Nevile, who became Master of Trinity in 1593, rebuilt and re-designed much of the college. This work included the enlargement and completion of Great Court, and the construction of Nevile’s Court between Great Court and the river Cam. Nevile’s Court was completed in the late 17th century when the Wren Library, designed by Sir Christopher Wren, was built.

In the 20th century, Trinity College and King’s College were for decades the main recruiting grounds for the Cambridge Apostles, an elite, intellectual secret society.

The full name of the college is The Master, Fellows and Scholars of the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity in the Town and University of Cambridge.

Buildings and Grounds

There are also College rooms above shops in Bridge Street and Jesus Lane, behind Whewell’s Court and graduate accommodation in Portugal Street and other roads around Cambridge.

Traditions

The Great Court Run is an attempt to run round the perimeter of Great Court (approximately 367 m), in the 43 seconds during the clock striking twelve. Students traditionally attempt to complete the circuit on the day of the Matriculation Dinner. It is a rather difficult challenge: one needs to be a fine sprinter to achieve it, but it is by no means necessary to be of Olympic standard, despite assertions made in the press^[12].

It is widely believed that Sebastian Coe successfully completed the run when he beat Steve Cram in a charity race in October 1988. Sebastian Coe's time on 29 October 1988 was reported by Norris McWhirter to have been 45.52 seconds, but it was actually 46.0 seconds (confirmed by the video tape), while Cram's was 46.3 seconds. The clock on that day took 44.4 seconds (i.e. a "long" time, probably two days after the last winding) and the video film confirms that Coe was some 12 metres short of his finish line when the fateful final stroke occurred. The television commentators were more than a little disingenuous in suggesting that the dying sounds of the bell could be included in the striking time, thereby allowing Coe's run to be claimed as successful.

One reason Olympic runners Cram and Coe found the challenge so tough is that they started at the middle of one side of the Court, thereby having to negotiate four right-angle turns. In the days when students started at the corner, only three turns were needed.

Until the mid 1990s, the run was traditionally attempted by first year students, at midnight following their Matriculation Dinner. Following a number of accidents to drunk undergraduates running on slippery cobbles, the college now organises a more formal Great Court Run, at 12 noon: the challenge is only open to freshers, many of whom compete in fancy dress.

One Sunday each June (the exact date depends on the university term), the College Choir perform a short concert immediately after the clock strikes noon. Known as Singing from the Towers, half of the choir sings from the top of Great Gate, while the other half sings from the top of the Clock Tower (approximately 60 metres away), giving a strong antiphonal effect. Midway through the concert, a brass band performs from the top of Queen’s Tower. Later that same day, the College Choir gives a second open-air concert, known as Singing on the River, where they perform madrigals (and arrangements of popular songs) from a raft of punts on the river. As a 'tradition', however, this latter event dates back only to the mid-1980s, when the College Choir first acquired female members. In the years immediately before this an annual concert on the river was given by the University Chamber Choir.

Another tradition relates to a duck (known as the Mallard), which resides in the rafters of the Great Hall. Students occasionally move the duck from one rafter to another (without permission from the college), having been photographed with the mallard as proof. This is considered difficult and access to the Hall outside meal-times is prohibited. In addition, the rafters are high so it has not been attempted for several years. During the Easter term of 2005, several pigeons entered the Hall through the windows in the pinnacle, and one knocked the Mallard off its rafter. It was found intact on the floor, and revealed to not be made out of wood as previously believed. It is currently held by the College catering staff. It is unknown whether it will be reinstated.

For many years it was the custom for students to place a bicycle high in branches of the tree in the centre of New Court. Usually invisible except in winter, when the leaves had fallen, such bicycles tended to remain for several years before being removed by the authorities. The students then inserted another bicycle. Similarly, the sceptre held by the statue of Henry VIII mounted above the medieval Great Gate was replaced with a chair leg as a prank many years ago. It has remained there to this day: when in the 1980s students exchanged the chair leg for a bicycle pump, the College replaced the chair leg.

The college remains a great rival of St John’s who are their main competitor in sports and academia (John’s is situated next to Trinity). This has given rise to a number of anecdotes and myths. It is often cited as the reason why the courts of Trinity generally have no J staircases, despite including other letters in alphabetical order. Burrell’s Field and Whewell's Court have a J staircase but New, Great and Nevile’s Courts skip the letter. The reason is more one of tradition and the absence of the letter J in the Roman alphabet. There are also two small muzzle-loading cannons on the bowling green pointing in the direction of John’s, though this orientation may be coincidental.

Minor Traditions Trinity College undergraduate gowns are dark blue, as opposed to the black favoured by most other Cambridge colleges. Unlike any other Cambridge college the porters always wear black bowler hats. This tradition is shared with Trinity's sister college Christ Church, Oxford. As with many other Cambridge colleges, the grassed courtyards are generally out of bounds for everyone except the Fellows. Only one of two meadows on “the Backs” (riverside area behind the college) are accessible to students. Other lawns are accessible to graduates in formal gowns.

Scholarships and Prizes

The Scholars, together with the Master and Fellows, make up the Foundation of the College.

Research Scholars receive funding for graduate studies. Typically one must graduate in the top ten percent of one's class and continue for graduate study at Trinity. They are given first preference in the assignment of college rooms and number approximately 25.

The Senior Scholars consist of those who attain a degree with First Class honours or higher in any year after the first of an undergraduate tripos, but also, those who obtain an extremely good First in their first year. For example in the Mathematics tripos a result in the top three would be required to gain this position early. The college pays them a stipend of £250 a year and also allows them to choose rooms directly following the research scholars. There are around 40 senior scholars at any one time.

The Junior Scholars are precisely those who are not senior scholars but still obtained a First in their first year. Their stipend is £175 a year. They are given preference in the room ballot over 2nd years who are not scholars.

These scholarships are tenable for the academic year following that in which the result was achieved. If a scholarship is awarded but the student does not continue at Trinity then only a quarter of the stipend is given. However all students who achieve a First are awarded an additional £200 prize upon announcement of the results.

All final year undergraduates who achieve first-class honours in their final exams are offered full financial support for proceeding with a Master’s degree at Cambridge (this funding is also sometimes available for good students who achieved high second-class honours). Other support is available for PhD degrees. The College also offers a number of other bursaries and studentships open to external applicants. The highly-regarded right to walk on the grass in the college courts is exclusive to Fellows of the college and their guests. Scholars do however have the right to walk on Scholar’s Lawn, but only in full academic dress.

Trinity in Camberwell

Trinity College has a long-standing relationship with the Parish of St George’s, Camberwell, in South London. Students from the College have helped to run holiday schemes for children from the parish since 1966. The relationship was formalized in 1979 with the establishment of Trinity in Camberwell as a registered charity (Charity Commission no. 279447) which exists ‘to provide, promote, assist and encourage the advancement of education and relief of need and other charitable objects for the benefit of the community in the Parish of St George’s, Camberwell, and the neighbourhood thereof.’

Legends

Many apocryphal stories have been told about the college’s wealth. Trinity is sometimes suggested to be the second, third or fourth wealthiest landowner in the UK (or in England) - after the Crown Estate, the National Trust and the Church of England. (A variant of this legend is repeated in the Tom Sharpe novel Porterhouse Blue.) This story is frequently repeated by tour guides. In 2005, Trinity's annual rental income from its properties was reported to be in excess of £20 million. In comparison, the National Trust's rental income in 2005-6 was around £78 million. (See Trinity College's riches)

A second legend is that it is possible to walk from Cambridge to Oxford on land solely owned by Trinity. Several varieties of this legend exist - others refer to the combined land of Trinity College, Cambridge and Trinity College, Oxford, or of Trinity College, Cambridge and Christ Church, Oxford. All are most certainly false.

Trinity has a tradition of maintaining extensive wine cellars beneath Great Court and Whewell's Court, the size and value of which is the subject of rumour[5].

Trinity also lays claim to the invention of an English, less sweet, version of crème brûlée sometimes known as “Trinity burnt cream”[6], although the college catering department refers to it as "Trinity Creme Brulee."[7]

Notable alumni

Trinity Nobel Prize winners

Trinity Prime Ministers

College Officials

List of Masters

The head of Trinity College is the Master. The first Master was John Redman who was appointed in 1546. The role is a Royal appointment and in the past was sometimes made by the Monarch as a favour to an important person. Nowadays the Fellows of the College, and to a lesser extent the Government, choose the new Master and the Royal role is only nominal. In modern times the Master has customarily been of the highest academic distinction. The last three Masters have all been fellows of the college. A complete list of the Masters of Trinity is below.

List of Deans of Chapel

Notes

^ Student numbers from 2006 projections in the Trinity College Annual Record, Winter 2005. The largest college claim includes fellows as college members. Excluding fellows, Trinity would be second largest of the Cambridge colleges.
^ Bloomberg.com (2005-12-01). "Cambridge and Oxford Adopt U.S. Methods to Win Alumni Donations". Retrieved on 2006-06-19.. By way of comparison, the second wealthiest college in Cambridge (St. John's) has an estimated endowment of c. £504 million, and the richest college in Oxford (St. John's) has about £200 million.
^ Odgers Ray & Berndtson (2005-11). "Job advertisement for new Trinity College Senior Bursar" (PDF) 4. Retrieved on 2006-06-19. Of this amount approx. £75 million is part of the college's Amalgamated Trust Funds, which is dedicated for specific purposes.
^ "Varsity report" (PDF) (2006-11). Retrieved on 2006-11-20.
^ University of Cambridge (2006-05-10). "Job advertisement for new Trinity College Junior Bursar, Cambridge University Reporter". Retrieved on 2006-06-19.
^ £700 million divided by 1093 students = £640k.
^ In 2006, Cambridge University endowment amounted to £4.1 billion, of which £2.9 billion (70.7%) belonged to the colleges directly. Using this ratio with the comparable 2005 figure of £3.1 billion, the total endowment of all colleges was £2.2 billion in 2005. This is £1.5 billion less Trinity's endowment (which amounts to a third of the total endowment of all colleges) - divided by 24,000 students (number of non-Trinity students) gives £63,000.
^ Trinity College, Cambridge
^ Applica
^ Trinity College web site, accessed 4 June 2008.
^ Nobel laureates by country#Laureate count per nation
^ Student breaks 'Chariots of Fire' record Times Online article. October 27, 2007.

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