As with everything else on the trip, you can expect longer posts in the weeks and months to come, but I was lucky enough to spend two days wandering around the University of Cambridge. As to be expected, it is an incredibly beautiful university and town. There was sunny weather, and not a lot of tourists- all the perfect storm for history! A quiet favourite of mine, though was Emmanuel College….
Emmanuel College is a bit removed from the other medieval colleges, but I rather like that. Founded in 1584 by Elizabeth I’s Chancellor to the Exchequer, Sir Walter Mildmay, it is a quiet college. Emmanuel College is quite small, there are less than 700 students total. When you are looking at it from Downing Street, you are suitably impressed. You can also walk through the impressive gate for free (not always guaranteed in Cambridge), and take in the beautiful front courtyard!
What struck me the most about this college is just how stately it is. You see several colleges along the River Cam if you go punting, but some of the land based colleges (is there a better term for this??) aren’t as impressive. However, Emmanuel College stands across from various shops and businesses, and still gives that very foreboding feeling. Although we didn’t have time to check it out, the chapel at Emmanuel College was designed by Sir Christopher Wren, only one of three at Cambridge. And something I love at Cambridge in general? All of the clocks! Nearly every college has a clock face showing, and it is a thread tying all of the colleges together. (They all even seem to be the same navy and gold design- please let me know if you know more!)
Have you visited Emmanuel College at Cambridge? And what is your own favourite college?
Cheers,
The Historian
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