University College, Durham
University College, informally known as Castle, is the oldest constituent college of Durham University in England. Centred on Durham Castle on Palace Green, it was founded in 1832 by William van Mildert, Bishop of Durham. As a constituent college of Durham University, it is listed as a higher education institution under section 216 of the Education Reform Act 1988. Almost all academic activities, such as research and tutoring, occur at a university level.
University College moved into its current location in 1837. Around 150 students are accommodated within Durham Castle. Other college buildings, including converted 18th century houses and purpose-built accommodation from the 1950s, 1970s and 1980s, are within five minutes' walk of the castle. The college has 700 undergraduates and is currently the most over-subscribed college of the university. In 1987 it admitted women undergraduates for the first time, having previously been an all-male college.
University College fosters a traditional atmosphere, encouraging its members to attend formal dinner which happens every Thursday. Formals take place in the great hall, consisting of a three-course dinner for which gowns are required dress. Students must also recite grace in Latin and must not stand until both a senior member of the JCR and the MCR have bowed to the high table. The MCR typically hosts a subsequent Port & Cheese event for their members following the formal. Castle also hosts the June Ball, a white-tie event as part of the end of examination celebrations. The MCR hosts their own Charity Ball in the month of June.
From January 2012 until March 2019 the Master of the college was political theorist David Held. Wendy Powers joined as the college Principal on 1 June 2020.
History
Early years
University College was formed upon the creation of University of Durham in 1832. It was the first college of the university, and is therefore known as the "foundation college", but the university was founded explicitly on the Oxbridge model; the intention was already for the university to develop along collegiate lines in the manner of Oxford and Cambridge, as it has.Previously, for centuries, Durham Castle had been the bishop's palace for the Bishop of Durham until the residence was moved to Auckland Castle in 1832. Bishop William van Mildert, one of the founders of the university, had intended for the castle to be given to the college. Temporary accommodation for students was provided at the Archdeacon's Inn on Palace Green until University College moved into its permanent home in 1837 after van Mildert's successor, Edward Maltby, completed renovations of the Castle.
The castle's keep, formerly a ruin, was redeveloped for student accommodation; in particular, the college's chapels and Great Hall have been restored. Since then high levels of maintenance have been, and still are, necessary to preserve the buildings of the castle.The university's second college, Hatfield Hall, was formed in 1846 as a response to the high costs of maintaining Castle. These costs arose from the students' expectations of being provided with servants and room furnishings.
The university struggled for the rest of the 19th century, held back by a lack of prestige and a distance from the centres of power in the UK.
By 1882, Castle contained some 79 undergraduates out of 205 at the university as a whole. Despite the university largely failing to gain recognition and prestige, a number of other colleges had opened by the end of the nineteenth century. Of these, Bishop Cosin's Hall failed to become financially viable and was absorbed into University College in 1864. Enrolment numbers continued to fluctuate.
1919–38
The inter-war years were transformative for Castle. The college was the smallest in Durham university, with just 34 undergraduates in 1928,and was struggling to meet maintenance costs. The Castle, situated on the banks of "The Peninsula", was in danger of collapsing into the River Wear and many of its internal structures were weak. The combination of high costs and low undergraduate numbers meant that the college was often threatened with closure or merger with Hatfield. Castle was saved largely through charitable donations. A visit in the 1920s from Edward, Prince of Wales, helped increase the profile of the cause. In the 1920s, the castle's foundations were secured through reinforcement with concrete. Following these and other extensive building refurbishments of the 1920s and 1930s the college was now able to expand.
Post-war
One of its most successful periods followed during the Second World War when personnel of the Durham University Air Squadron were posted in the castle, doing short courses before joining the Royal Air Force. Those from the college who died during World War II were commemorated by the redevelopment of the Norman Gallery area of the Castle in the 1950s. This period also saw the launch of Castellum, an annual journal of the Castle Society, created to keep former students in touch with college life. In order to continue this expansion, the college purchased Lumley Castle in 1946 to house students, and by 1948 seventy five students were housed there. This section of the college developed a spirit of its own and is still remembered today through activities such as the Lumley Run.During the 1950s and 1960s the college expanded through developments at Owengate and Bailey Court, both around Palace Green. In the 1970s, the college's lease of Lumley Castle ended. Moatside Court was instead developed, and meant that all the college's students were now housed within five minutes of the main castle. During this period there was rapid change in the size and structure of the college, which expanded to over 300 undergraduates by 1979.
Female students were admitted to the college for the first time in 1987; until then it had been single sex. Since this time the college has become fully mixed, with undergraduate numbers expanding to nearly seven hundred. Expansion caused a strain on college numbers, however, and in 2004 the college was unable to provide accommodation for all of its fresher students for the first time in its history. Following the foundation of Josephine Butler in 2006, Durham's first new college to be opened since 1972, pressure from the university to take on additional students lessened, and undergraduate numbers were intentionally reduced in the following years. In line with the wider UK expansion of the higher education sector, the college expanded again in the 2010's, with the opening of a new self catered site in Durham City centre at Kepier Court.
College traditions
College arms
Although it had been in use before this period, the college arms were officially granted by the College of Arms on 29 May 1912, on the occasion of the eightieth anniversary since the founding of the college by the Bishop of Durham in 1832. The arms are blazoned: Azure, a Cross patonce or, between four Lions rampant Argent, on a Chief of the last, the Cross of St Cuthbert Sable, between two Durham Mitres Gules. The blue field with the gold cross and four lions are the arms of the Diocese of Durham, the mitres represent the Bishop and St. Cuthbert's cross is included as Durham Cathedral is dedicated to, and is the resting place of St. Cuthbert. Underneath is the motto, in Latin, "Non nobis solum", meaning "Not for ourselves alone". It is derived from a sentence quoting Plato in Cicero's most influential philosophical work, his treatise ''De Officiis.''Grace
Before being served at formal hall, on the Tuesday and Thursday evening of each week during term-time, students recite the following Latin grace, led by a senior member of the JCR. Although the origin of the grace is officially unknown, an almost identical version was in use at the time as a post-prandial grace by Westminster School.Domine omnipotens, aeterne Deus; qui tam benigne nos pascere hoc tempore dignatus es; largire nobis, ut tibi semper pro tua in nos bonitate ex animo gratias agamus; vitam honeste et pie transigamus; et studia ea sectemur quae gloriam tuam illustrare et ecclesiae tuae adiumenta esse possint; per Christum dominum nostrum. Amen.Translated into English, it reads as follows:
Almighty Lord, eternal God; who hast so graciously deigned to feed us at this time; grant to us, that we may ever give Thee heartfelt thanks for Thy goodness to us; that we may pass our lives honourably and piously; and that we may follow such pursuits as can shed light on Thy glory and afford assistance to Thy church; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Buildings and architecture
Construction of Durham Castle began in 1072, which makes it the oldest building in use at any University in the world.The castle retains much of its original design and structure, and is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site with Durham Cathedral.
To the east of the courtyard lies the Keep. It was re-built in the 1840 by Anthony Salvin, having previously lain in ruins. This area has the largest concentration of students living in the castle. To the south of the courtyard is the Gatehouse, built originally by Hugh de Puiset in the 12th century and re-developed in the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries. Around this are the college's more modern offices.
The college's other buildings are at Moatside Court, Owengate and Bailey Court. The developments at Moatside Court and Bailey Court date from the 1960s and 1970s, whilst Owengate was formed from a series of old houses in the 1950s. Of these, Moatside Court's rooms were of a notoriously poor quality, but were renovated in 2006 at the cost of over £1 million. Moatside now contains a gym and kitchens on every floor.