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Gresham College
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, 1740]]
Gresham College is an unusual institution of higher learning off Holborn in central London. It enrolls no students and grants no degrees. The Collège de France offers perhaps a Parisian equivalent.
Gresham College has provided lectures free and open to the public since its foundation under the Will of Sir Thomas Gresham in 1597, long before there was any university in London — excepting the quasi-university Inns of Court.
Thomas Gresham, founder of the Royal Exchange, left his estate jointly to the City of London Corporation and to the Mercers' Company, which operate through the Joint Grand Gresham Committee under the presidency of the Lord Mayor of the City of London.
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, 1740]]
Gresham College is an unusual institution of higher learning off Holborn in central London. It enrolls no students and grants no degrees. The Collège de France offers perhaps a Parisian equivalent.
Gresham College has provided lectures free and open to the public since its foundation under the Will of Sir Thomas Gresham in 1597, long before there was any university in London — excepting the quasi-university Inns of Court.
History
Sir Thomas Gresham, founder of the Royal Exchange, left his estate jointly to the City of London Corporation and to the Mercers' Company, which operate through the Joint Grand Gresham Committee under the presidency of the Lord Mayor of the City of London. Gresham's will provided for the setting up of the College — in Gresham's mansion in Bishopsgate (on the site now occupied by Tower 42, the former NatWest Tower), and endowed it with the rental income from shops sited around the Royal Exchange, which Gresham had established.
The early success of the College led to the incorporation of the Royal Society in 1663, which pursued its activities at the College in Bishopsgate before moving to its own premises in Crane Court in 1710. The College remained in Gresham's mansion in Bishopsgate until 1768, and moved about London thereafter until the construction in 1842 of its own buildings in Gresham Street EC2. Gresham College did not become part of the University of London on the founding of the University in the 19th century, although a close association between the College and the University persisted for many years. Since 1991, the College has operated at Barnard's Inn Hall, Holborn EC1.
Professors
Gresham's seven original endowed chairs of Divinity, Music, Astronomy, Geometry, Physic (meaning Medicine), Law and Rhetoric reflect the curriculum of the medieval university (the trivium and quadrivium); but as a place for the public and frequent voicing of new ideas, the college played an important role in the Enlightenment and in the formation of the Royal Society. Its famous professors have included Christopher Wren, who lectured on astronomy in the 17th century, and Robert Hooke.
The professors received £50 a year, and the terms of their position were very precise, for example:
- The geometrician is to read as followeth, every Trinity term arithmetique, in Michaelmas and Hilary terms theoretical geometry, in Easter term practical geometry. The astronomy reader is to read in his solemn lectures, first the principles of the sphere, and the theory of the planets, and the use of the astrolabe and the staff, and other common instruments for the capacity of mariners.
Today, the professors hold their positions for three years, and give six lectures a year. An eighth chair, of Commerce, joined the original seven in 1985. Since 2000, the college has regularly hosted visiting professors to lecture on topics outside its usual range, and it also hosts occasional seminars and conferences.
Excerpts from the Last Will of Sir Thomas Gresham (1575)
THIS IS THE LASTE WILL WRITTEN and disposition of me Sir Thomas Gresham of the cittye of London knighte, concerninge all my mannors, landes, tenementes, and hereditamentes, mentioned and conteyned in one quadripartite indenture, made betweene me the said Sir Thomas Gresham and dame Anne my wife on the one partye, and Phillippe Scudamore gent. and Thomas Celey on thother partie, dated the 20 day of May, in the seaventeenth yere of the raigne of our soveraigne lady queene Elizabeth....
AND I will and dispose, that ... the said maior and corporation of the said cittye [London] ... shall give and distribute to and for the sustentation, mayntenaunce, and findinge foure persons from tyme to tyme to be chosen, nominated, and appointed by the said maior and cominalty and cittezens and theire successors, mete to read the lectures of divynitye, astronomy, musicke, and geometry, within myne owne dwellinge house in the parishe of St. Hellynes in Bishopsgate streete and St. Peeters the pore in the cittye of London ... the somme of two hundred pounds of lawfull money of England, in manner and forme followinge, viz. to every of the said readers for the tyme beinge the somme of fifty pounds of lawfull money of England yerely, for theire sallaries and stipendes, mete for foure sufficiently learned to read the said lectures; the same stipendes and sallaries , and every of them, to be paid at two usuall tearmes in the yere yerely, that is to say, at the feastes of thannunciation of St. Mary the Virgin and of St. Mighell tharchangell, by even portions to be paid....
AND ... that they and theire successors every yere yerely shall give, and pay, and distribute to and for the findinge, sustentation and maynetenaunce of three persons, by them the said wardeins and cominalty and theire successors from tyme to tyme to be chossen and appointed, meete to reade the lectures of law, phissicke, and rethoricke, within myne nowe dwellinge house in the parrishe of St. Hellyns in Bishopesgate streete and St. Peters the pore, in the said cittye of London ... the somme of one hundred and fifty poundes of lawfull money of England, in manner and forme followinge, viz. to every of the said readers for the tyme beinge the somme of fiftye poundes, for theire sallaries and stipendes, mete for three sufficeintly learned to reade the said lectures, at two usuall tearmes in the yere, that is to say, at the feast of thannunciation of the blessed Virgin Marye and of St. Mighell the Archangell, by even portions to be paid....
Thomas Gresham's mansion converted into an instructional facility with lodgings and research space for professors of Law, Physics, Music, Divinity, Geometry, Rhetoric, and Astronomy.
AND ... shall permitte and suffer seaven persons, by them from tyme to tyme to be elected and appointed in manner and forme aforesaid, meete and sufficiently learned to reade the said seaven lectures, to have the occupation of all my said mansion house, gardeins, and of all other thappurtenaunces, for them and every of them there to inhabite, study, and daylie to reade the said severall lectures. And my will is, that none shall be chossen to reade any of the said lectures, so longe as he shall be married, nor be suffered to reade any of the said lectures after that he shalbe married, neither shall receave any fee or stipend appointed for the readinge of the said lectures....
IN WITNES whereof I the said Sir Thomas Gresham have written this will all with myne owne hand, and to each of the eight leaves have subscribed my name ; and to a labell fixed there unto all the eight leaves have setto my seal with the grashopper, the 5 day of July, in the seventeenth yere of the raigne of our soveraigne lady queene Elizabeth, and in the yere of our Lord God, ann. 1575.
- By me THOMAS GRESHAM
Witnesses to this last will and testament of the said Sir Thomas Gresham the persons whose names be subscribed,
- PH. SCUDAMOR,
- THOMAS BILLINGFORD,
- HENRY NOWELL.
See also
External links
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- , Richard Chartres and David Vermont (1998), ISBN 0-947822-16-X (PDF, 108 pages)
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