An English Summer with Danbo #4/4 - Cambridge

(This post is Part 4 of 4, An English Summer with Danbo, June~July 2014.)

Clare Bridge and the River Cam, Cambridge

We took a day out of our 2014 UK trip to check out Cambridge. Sometime in the middle of our Oxford leg of the trip.

The first place we looked up on arrival was Wolfson College, where Hubby will be staying once he starts his MCL programme in October.

The last thing in our Cambridge day trip was a belated anniversary dinner for two at Midsummer House.

Wolfson College, Cambridge

A small college only for mature students, Wolfson College was founded in 1965 as "University College", and changed its name in 1973 to recognise a benefactor, the Wolfson Foundation. Wolfson is known as one of the new colleges, one of the more modern colleges that don't follow all the traditions of some of the older colleges, for instance, at the dining hall, there is no High Table (which is reserved for Fellows) - Fellows and students dine together at Formal Hall dinners.

I discovered that among Wolfson alumni are Susan Kiefel and Song Sang-Hyun. Susan Kiefel is a Justice of the High Court of Australia (as at the date of this post), and Song Sang-Hyun former Judge of the ICC, and current President of the ICC (as at the date of this post).

Cambridge Law Faculty at the Sidgwick Site

We visited the law faculty building. This glass and steel building that was designed by Norman Robert Foster - of London's Gherkin fame. (Yawn, boring architecture.)

The Mathematical Bridge, Queens' College, Cambridge

Probably the best known bridge in Cambridge, the Mathematical Bridge was designed by William Etheridge and built by James Essex in 1749, but has since been rebuilt twice (in 1866 and 1905). As neatly explained by Wikipedia, the bridge is built entirely of straight timbers that are arranged in a series of tangents with radial members to tie the tangents together and triangulate the structure.

New Court at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge

Corpus Christi College is best known as the only college that was founded by the Cambridge townspeople. It is the 6th oldest college - having been established in 1352 - and is the second smallest of the traditional colleges of Cambridge.

Considering the college's age, it's not surprising that it has withstood major historical events (such as WWII) and has notable alumni, e.g. Christopher Marlowe, John Fletcher (Shakespeare's contemporary), Sir Jeremy Stuart-Smith (a current justice of the High Court of England and Wales), Sir Terence Etherton (the current Chancellor of the High Court of England and Wales), and British actor Hugh Bonneville (of Notting Hill and Downton Abbey fame). 

Closer to home, its alumni includes Philip Jeyaretnam SC and former President of the Law Society of Singapore (and the son of JB Jeyaretnam, who was one of Singapore's most vocal and prominent oppisiton politician).

King's College was founded in 1441 by King Henry VI. Building for the college began in 1446, but plans were disrupted due to the War of the Roses and the deposition of Henry VI. The plans were taken up by King Henry VII in 1508, and the building of the college was completed in 1544, during King Henry VIII's reign.

King's College Chapel, Cambridge

Notable alumni include Robert Walpole (Britain's first PM), philosopher George Santayana, EM Forster, John Maynard Keyes, Alan Turing, Salman Rushdie, and Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers (former Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, former Senior Lord of the English Court of Appeal, and founding President of the UK Supreme Court) - not forgetting several Nobel laureates.

The architectural style of King's College Chapel is late Gothic architecture, and the ceiling is the world's largest fan vault ceiling. Its 26 stained glass windows are considered some of the best examples from that era - 24 of the windows date back to the 16th century, and the altarpiece, the Adoration of the Magi, was painted by Sir Peter Paul Rubens.

King Henry VIII at the Great Gate of Trinity College, Cambridge

Trinity College is the largest colllege in Cambridge, likewise with many notable alumni. It was founded by Henry VIII in 1546 by merging 2 colleges, Michaelhouse (founded in 1324) and King's Hall (founded by Edward II in 1317 and refounded in 1337 by Edward III), and 7 hostels. Possibly the best known historical fact at the time of Trinity's founding was that Henry VIII had passed a Parliamentary Act which permitted him to suppress and confiscate the property of colleges, and had been seizing the property and lands from abbeys and monasteries. The universities pleaded with Henry VIII's 6th (and last) wife, Catherine Parr, to persuade the King to leave the universities alone.

The statue of Henry VIII that stands above the Great Gate holds a table leg in place of a sceptre or sword. Legend says that students had switched the item with a table leg as a prank.

The New Court (left) of Trinity College, Cambridge

The fountain and dining hall of Trinity College, Cambridge

The New Court (left) of Trinity College, Cambridge

The Great Court of Trinity College, Cambridge

The sundial and Clock Tower of Trinity College, Cambridge

The Great Court of Trinity College was built mainly between 1599-1608 and was designed by Thomas Neville.

Trinity College Chapel, Cambridge

Sir Isaac Newton, Trinity College Chapel, Cambridge

Trinity College Chapel is Grade I listed and dates from the 16th century. The Chapel houses memorials and statues of former Fellows, as well as to graduates and Fellows who died during WWI and WWII. Taking centre stage among the statutes is the statue of Sir Isaac Newton.

Other than Newton, other notable alumni include Charles Babbage (father of the computer), Francis Bacon (empiricism and scientific method), Lord Byron (the Romantic poet), Jawaharlal Nehru (India's 1st PM), Alfred Tennyson (Victorian era Poet Laureate), Ludwig Wittgenstein (the philosopher), Ernest Rutherford (nuclear physics - Rutherford model, Rutherford scattering/backscattering, the Rd), Niels Bohr (the Bohr model, etc), William Lamb (former British PM), Rajiv Gandhi (India's 7th PM, son of Indira Gandhi, India's 3rd PM), Lee Hsien Loong (Singapore's current PM as at the date of this post). 

Trinity College also currently holds the record for the college with the highest number of Nobel prizes won.

Jerwood Library in Latham Court, Trinity Hall, Cambridge

Among the old and ancient college buildings, it was pleasant to see something different - the Jerwood Library of Trinity Hall. Trinity Hall itself is the 5th oldest college in Cambridge, but the Jerwood Libary is 20th century - it was opened in 1999 by Lord Howe of Aberavon, Margaret Thatcher's longest-serving Cabinet minister (Conservative). Notable alumni include Stephen Hawking and actress Rachel Weisz.

The Clare Bridge and the River Cam, Cambridge

The Clare Bridge (1640) is the oldest surviving Cambridge bridge - the others were destroyed in the Civil War to make Cambridge more defensible. The bridge is built in the classical style by Thomas Grumbold.

Trinity Bridge, Cambridge

Punting is ubiquitous along the River Cam. Would've been nice to take a punt, but we were short on time.

An English Summer with Danbo (June~July 2014)

I. London
● Food Diaries #1: Dinner by Heston
● Food Diaries #2: Jamie Oliver's Fifteen
● Food Diaries #3: Zucca, London
● Food Diaries #4: Pearl Liang, London
II. Windsor
III. Oxford
● Food Diaries #5: Browns Brasserie & Bar
● Food Diaries #6: Quod Restaurant & Bar
● Food Diaries #7: Al Andalus
IV. Cambridge
● Food Diaries #8: Midsummer House