Jesus College, Cambridge

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Colleges of the University of Cambridge Jesus College
College name	The College of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist and the glorious Virgin Saint Radegund, near Cambridge
Named after	The Virgin Mary Saint John the Evangelist Saint Radegund Jesus Lane and Jesus Parish
Established	1496
Location	Jesus Lane
Admittance	Men and women
Master	Prof. Robert Mair
Undergraduates	489
Graduates	270
Sister college	Jesus College, Oxford
Official website
Boat Club website

Jesus College in the University of Cambridge was founded in 1496 on the site of a Benedictine nunnery by John Alcock, then Bishop of Ely. It has been traditionally believed that the nunnery was turned into a college because the nunnery had gained a reputation for licentiousness.

The college’s full name is “The College of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist and the glorious Virgin Saint Radegund, near Cambridge”. Its common name comes from the name of its chapel, Jesus Chapel. Founded in the beginning of the 11th century, the chapel is the oldest University building in Cambridge still in use.

When founded in 1496, the college consisted of buildings taken over from the nunnery: namely the chapel, and the cloister attached to it; the nuns’ refectory, which became the college hall; and the former lodging of the prioress, which became the Master’s Lodge. This set of buildings remains the core of the college to this day, and this accounts for its distinctly monastic and non-collegiate character, which sets it apart from other Cambridge colleges. A library was soon added, on the floor above the college hall, and the chapel was considerably modified and reduced in scale by Alcock.

The 500th anniversary of the college’s foundation in 1996 saw the completion of the new Quincentenary Library, designed by Eldred Evans and David Shalev, which was shortly followed by a new accommodation building.

The college is also known for its grounds, which are unlike those of Cambridge’s other old colleges, being much more spacious. Set back from Jesus Lane, all the courts are open on at least one side (with the exception of the Cloister). The main entrance to the college is a walled passage, called the “Chimney” (derived from the French word chemin).

Jesus College is one of the few colleges to allow anyone to walk on the lawns of its courts, with the exception of First Court, Cloister Court and those that are burial sites for deceased nuns from the original nunnery. However, in common with other Cambridge colleges, this privilege is only extended during the summer term. Jesus is one of the more beautiful colleges but gets far fewer tourists than most other colleges due to being slightly away from the centre.

Professor Robert Mair, Fellow of St John’s and Professor of Geotechnical Engineering in the university, has been Master of Jesus since March 2001.

Jesus College is the 6th wealthiest college in Cambridge with assets of £127 million(2007).

The college also maintains two choirs, both directed by Daniel Hyde:

• Jesus College Choir consists of male and female students and sings regular services twice a week in the chapel. One of the leading choirs in Cambridge, its singers are mainly drawn from the college's own students, but also includes singers from a number of other colleges.
• Jesus College Chapel Choir consists of around 20 choristers combined with the Gentlemen of the College Choir, and also sings services twice a week in the chapel. It is unique among Cambridge college choirs in that the choristers are volunteers - that is, they are drawn from schools around the city, and do not attend a particular choir school.

[edit] Notable Jesuans

Name	Birth	Death	Career
Thomas Cranmer	1489	1556	Archbishop of Canterbury
John Bale	1495	1563	Bishop of Ossory
Thomas Goodrich	1554		Bishop of Ely
Arthur Golding	1535/6	1606	Protestant propagandist
Sir Fulke Greville	1554	1628	Biographer of Sir Philip Sidney
Richard Sterne	1596	1683	Archbishop of York, Master of Jesus College (1634)
John Eliot	1604	1690	Translated the Bible into Algonquian
William Beale	1784	1854	Master of Jesus College (1632)
John Flamsteed	1646	1719	First Astronomer Royal
Thomas Herring	1693	1757	Archbishop of Canterbury
Matthew Hutton	1693	1758	Archbishop of Canterbury
John Jortin	1698	1770	Ecclesiastical historian
David Hartley	1705	1757	Philosopher
Laurence Sterne	1713	1768	Novelist
Henry Venn	1725	1797	A leader of the Evangelical movement in the Church of England
Gilbert Wakefield	1756	1801	Principal of two nonconformist academies
Robert Malthus	1766	1834	Population theorist
Samuel Taylor Coleridge	1772	1834	Poet, critic and philosopher
Steve Fairbairn	1862	1938	Rowing coach
Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch	1863	1944	Novelist and critic
Sir Harold Scott	1887	1969	Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service from 1945 to 1953
E. M. W. Tillyard	1889	1962	Literary critic, master (1945-1959)
Alistair Cooke	1908	2004	Broadcaster
Jacob Bronowski	1908	1974	Broadcaster
James Reeves	1909	1978	Author and literary critic
Don Siegel	1912	1991	American Film Director and Producer
David Clive Crosbie Trench	1915	1988	24th Governor of Hong Kong
Peter Mitchell	1920	1992	Biochemist
Raymond Williams	1921	1988	Literary and cultural critic
Edwin Boston	1924	1986	clergyman and steam enthusiast
Michael Podro	1931	2008	Art historian
Lord Renfrew	1937		Archaeologist
Lisa Jardine	1944		Literary critic
Roger Scruton	1944		Philosopher
David Hare	1947		Playwright
Simon Hornblower	1949		Prof of Classics and Grote Prof of Ancient History UCL
Anthony Wilson	1950	2007	Journalist, founder of Factory Records
Geoff Hoon	1953		Chief Whip and Secretary to the Treasury
Nick Hornby	1957		Novelist and journalist
Kimberley Rew			Songwriter and guitarist
Prince Edward	1964		Earl of Wessex
James Wood	1965		Literary critic

See also Category:Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge

[edit] Masters of Jesus College

See also Category: Fellows of Jesus College, Cambridge

Name	Start of service	End of service
William Chubbes	1497	1505
John Eccleston	1505	1516
Thomas Alcock	1516	1516
William Capon	1516	1546
John Reston	1546	1551
Edmund Pierpoint	1551	1557
John Fuller	1557	1558
Thomas Redman	1559	1560
Edward Gascoyne	1560	1562
John Lakin	1562	1563
Thomas Ithell	1563	1579
John Bell	1579	1589
John Duport	1590	1617
Roger Andrewes	1618	1632
William Beale	1632	1634
Richard Sterne	1634	1644
Thomas Young	1644	1650
John Worthington	1650	1660
Richard Sterne	1660	1660
John Pearson	1660	1662
Joseph Beaumont	1662	1663
Edmund Boldero	1663	1679
Humphrey Gower	1679	1679
William Saywell	1679	1701
Charles Ashton	1701	1752
Philip Yonge	1752	1758
Lynford Caryl	1758	1781
Richard Beadon	1781	1789
William Pearce	1789	1820
William French	1820	1849
George Elwes Corrie	1849	1885
Henry Arthur Morgan	1885	1912
Arthur Gray	1912	1940
Wynfrid Laurence Henry Duckworth	1940	1945
Eustace Mandeville Wetenhall Tillyard	1945	1959
Denys Lionel Page	1959	1973
Alan Cottrell	1973	1986
Colin Renfrew	1986	1996
David Crighton	1997	2000
Robert Mair	2001

[edit] External links

• Jesus College website
• Jesus College Student Union website
• Jesus College Graduate Union website
• Map showing the college’s location near the centre of Cambridge
• Jesus College Medical Society website
• Jesus College Choir website
• Jesus College Music Society

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Coordinates: 52°12′32.75″N 00°07′24.24″E / 52.2090972, 0.1234 (Jesus College)