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Lincoln College, Oxford

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Lincoln College (in full: The College of the Blessed Mary and All Saints, Lincoln) is one of the constituent colleges

Colleges of the University of Oxford

The University of Oxford comprises 38 Colleges and 6 Permanent Private Halls of religious foundation. Colleges and PPHs are autonomous self-governing corporations within the university, and all teaching staff and students studying for a degree of the university must belong to one of the colleges...

 of the University of Oxford

University of Oxford

The University of Oxford , located in the UK city of Oxford, is the oldest surviving university in the English-speaking world and is regarded as one of the world's leading academic institutions. Although the exact date of foundation remains unclear, there is evidence of teaching there as far back...

 in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...

. It is situated in the centre of Oxford, backing onto Brasenose

Brasenose College, Oxford

Brasenose College, originally Brazen Nose College , is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom...

 and, lying on Turl Street

Turl Street

Turl Street is a street in Oxford, England. It is located in the city centre, linking Broad Street at the north and High Street at the south. It is colloquially known as The Turl and runs past three of Oxford's historic colleges: Exeter, Jesus and Lincoln. It meets the High Street by the early 18th...

 as it is, is the second oldest of the three Turl Street Colleges (Lincoln, Exeter

Exeter College, Oxford

Exeter College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth oldest college of the University. The main entrance is on the east side of Turl Street...

, and Jesus

Jesus College, Oxford

Jesus College is one of the colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship Street, Cornmarket Street and Market Street...

). As of 2006, Lincoln had an estimated financial endowment

Financial endowment

A financial endowment is a transfer of money or property donated to an institution, usually with the stipulation that it be invested, and the principal remain intact in perpetuity or for a defined time period...

 of £69m.

History

The College was founded on October 13 1427 by Richard Fleming

Richard Fleming

Richard Fleming , Bishop of Lincoln and founder of Lincoln College, Oxford, was born at Crofton in Yorkshire....

, then Bishop of Lincoln

Bishop of Lincoln

The Bishop of Lincoln heads the Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury. The bishops were in communion with the See of Rome until the English Reformation of the 1530s....

, (cadaver tomb

Cadaver tomb

A cadaver tomb is a church monument or tomb featuring an effigy in the form of a decomposing body....

 in Lincoln Cathedral

Lincoln Cathedral

Lincoln Cathedral is a historic Anglican cathedral in Lincoln in England and seat of the Bishop of Lincoln in the Church of England...

) to combat the Lollard teachings of John Wyclif. He intended it to be "a little college of true students of theology who would defend the mysteries of Scripture against those ignorant laymen who profaned with swinish snouts its most holy pearls". To this effect, he obtained a charter for the College from King Henry VI, which combined the parishes of All Saints, St Michael's at the North Gate and St Mildred's within the College under a rector. The College now uses All Saints Church

All Saints Church, Oxford

All Saints Church is on the north side of the High Street in central Oxford, England, on the corner of Turl Street. It is now the library of Lincoln College. This former church is Grade I listed.-History:...

 as its library and has strong ties with St Michael's Church at the North Gate, having used it as a stand-in for the College chapel when necessary and has appointed its minister since 1427.

Encountering both insufficient endowment and trouble from the Wars of the Roses

Wars of the Roses

The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic civil wars between supporters of the rival houses of Lancaster and York, for the throne of England. They are generally accepted to have been fought in several spasmodic episodes between 1455 and 1487...

 (for their charter was from the deposed Lancastrian

House of Lancaster

The House of Lancaster was a branch of the royal House of Plantagenet. It was one of the opposing factions involved in the Wars of the Roses, an intermittent civil war which affected England and Wales during the 15th century...

), the College seems only to have survived thanks to tireless efforts by its fellows in gaining recognition of the college's validity and the munificence of a second Bishop of Lincoln, Thomas Rotherham

Thomas Rotherham

Thomas Rotherham, also known as Thomas de Rotherham , was an English cleric and statesman.-Life:...

. Richard Fleming died in 1431, and the first rector, William Chamberleyn, in 1434, leaving the College with few buildings and little money. The second rector, John Beke, saw the College's safety secured by attracting donors; the College had seven fellows by 1436. John Forest, Dean of Wells and a close friend of Beke's, donated such an amount that the College promised to recognise him as a co-founder; it did not keep this promise. His gifts saw the construction of a chapel, a library, hall and kitchen. After a pointed sermon from the incumbent rector, Thomas Rotherham was compelled to give his support and effectively re-founded it in the 1478, with a new charter from King Edward IV.

In the 18th Century Lincoln became the cradle of Methodism

Methodism

Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to Reverend John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement in the Anglican Church. His younger brother...

 when John Wesley

John Wesley

John Wesley was an Anglican cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, with founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...

, a fellow there from 1726, held religious meetings with his brother Charles

Charles Wesley

Charles Wesley was a leader of the Methodist movement, son of Anglican clergyman and poet Samuel Wesley, the younger brother of Anglican clergyman John Wesley and Anglican clergyman Samuel Wesley , and father of musician Samuel Wesley, and grandfather of musician Samuel Sebastian Wesley...

 and the rest of Wesley's 'Holy Club', whom the rest of the university took to calling 'Bible-moths'. His appearances at College became less frequent after he departed for Georgia as a Missionary

Missionary

A missionary is a member of a religion who works to convert those who do not share the missionary's faith; someone who proselytizes. The word "mission" is derived from the Latin missioninimus A missionary is a member of a religion who works to convert those who do not share the missionary's faith;...

 chaplain in 1735. Indeed, he took to signing his publications as "John Wesley, Sometime Fellow of Lincoln College". A portrait of him hangs in the Hall and a bust overlooks the front quad. The room where he is believed to have worked is also named after him and was renovated by American Methodists at the beginning of the 20th Century.

In the next century, Lincoln was the first college in Oxford (or Cambridge) to admit a Jew

Jew

The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...

ish Fellow, the Australian-born philosopher Samuel Alexander

Samuel Alexander

Samuel Alexander OM was an Australian-born British philosopher. He was the first Jewish fellow of an Oxbridge college .-Early life:...

 (appointed 1882).

Years after the success of his Cold War spy novels, novelist and Lincoln graduate John le Carré

John le Carré

John le Carré is an English author of espionage novels, several of which have been adapted for film and television...

, himself a one-time spy, revealed that fictional spymaster George Smiley

George Smiley

George Smiley is a fictional character created by John le Carré. Smiley is an intelligence officer working for MI6 , the British overseas intelligence agency...

 was modelled on former Lincoln rector Vivian H. H. Green

Vivian H. H. Green

Vivian Hubert Howard Green was a Fellow and Rector of Lincoln College, Oxford, a priest, author, teacher, and historian...

. At least one other recent Lincoln Rector, Sir Maurice Shock, enjoyed a prior career in British intelligence, although there is little evidence to substantiate the college's reputation as a recruiting ground for spies.

The College was the first in Oxford or Cambridge to provide a Middle Common Room exclusively for the use of graduate students. Lincoln has admitted women since the 1970s.

In 2007, the College took the rare step of unveiling a commissioned portrait of two members of staff who were not fellows or benefactors of the College, in commemoration of their work. Chef Jim Murden and Butler Kevin Egleston have worked in the College's Kitchen and Buttery for 31 and 26 years respectively, as of 2008. Noted artist Daphne Todd was commissioned for the painting, who has had such notable sitters as HRH the Grand Duke of Luxembourg

Grand Duke of Luxembourg

The Grand Duke of Luxembourg is the sovereign monarch and head of state of Luxembourg. Luxembourg has been a grand duchy since 15 March 1815, when it was elevated from a duchy when placed in personal union with the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...

 and Spike Milligan

Spike Milligan

Terence Alan Patrick Seán Milligan KBE , known as Spike Milligan, was an Irish comedian, writer, musician, poet and playwright. Milligan was the co-creator and the principal writer of The Goon Show, in which he also performed. Aside from his well-known comedy and poetry, Milligan did some painting...

.

The College is known as being the setting for many literary works, such as Thomas Hardy

Thomas Hardy

Thomas Hardy, OM was an English novelist and poet of the naturalist movement, although in several poems he displays elements of the previous romantic and enlightenment periods of literature, such as his fascination with the supernatural. He regarded himself primarily as a poet and composed novels...

's Jude the Obscure

Jude the Obscure

Jude the Obscure is the last of Thomas Hardy's novels, begun as a magazine serial and first published in book form in 1895. The book was burned publicly by William Walsham How, Bishop of Wakefield, in that same year. Its hero, Jude Fawley, is a working-class young man who dreams of becoming a...

. C.P. Snow was inspired for his novel The Masters

Strangers and Brothers

Strangers and Brothers is a series of novels by C. P. Snow, published between 1940 and 1974. They deal - amongst other things - with questions of political and personal integrity, and the mechanics of exercising power....

by the story of Mark Pattison, a fellow at Lincoln, whose enthusiastic hopes for Lincoln were frustrated by older, more conservative fellows of the college; Snow's story transposes the story to a Cambridge College. It has also been the setting for three episodes of Inspector Morse

Inspector Morse

Detective Chief Inspector Endeavour Morse is a fictional character in a series of thirteen detective novels by British author Colin Dexter, as well as the 33 episode television series produced by Central Independent Television from 1987–2000, in which he was portrayed by John Thaw...

. Recently, Lewis has used Turl Street in front of the College for filming.

The College at present

Academically, Lincoln has consistently been one of the top ten colleges in the Norrington Table

Norrington Table

The Norrington Table is an annual ranking that lists the colleges of the University of Oxford that have undergraduate students in order of the performance of their undergraduate students on that year's final examinations....

 since 2006, and at various points since the new millennium before then. It is notable that with such a small student body, its Norrington score is much more susceptible to fluctuation than larger colleges. Its library holds some 60,000 books and is a popular place for graduates and undergraduates alike to work, especially given that it is open until 2am most nights compared to the earlier closing time of the Bodleian and faculty libraries. It is kept up-to-date by regular purchases, and welcomes suggestions for books pertinent to studies. The upper reading room, or Cohen Room, has an elaborate plastered ceiling and the Senior Library (downstairs) holds some of the college's older books, including pamphlets from the English Civil War period, Wesleyana, and plays dating from the late 1600s and early 1700s, as well as a varied collection of manuscripts. The science library is also to be found downstairs. Access to the library is generally restricted to current students and staff at the college, although alumni may use the library if acceptable justification is provided.

As is common with Oxford colleges, the College has a longstanding rivalry with neighbour Brasenose College (which was also founded by a later Bishop of Lincoln

William Smyth

William Smyth , was Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield from 1493 to 1496 and then Bishop of Lincoln until his death. He held political offices, the most important being Lord President of the Council of Wales and the Marches. He became very wealthy and was a benefactor of a number of institutions...

). The two colleges share a tradition revived annually on Ascension Day. The story goes that, centuries ago, as a mob chased students at the University through the town, the Lincoln porter allowed in the Lincoln students but refused entry to the Brasenose member, leaving him to the mercy of the mob. An alternative is that a Lincoln man bested a Brasenose man in a duel. Either episode resulted in the Brasenose student's death, and ever since, on Ascension Day, Lincoln College has invited in members of Brasenose College every year through the one door connecting the two colleges, for free beer as penance. Since the nineteenth century, the beer has been flavoured with ivy so as to discourage excessive consumption.

The College has ties to Middlebury College

Middlebury College

Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college located in Middlebury, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1800, it is one of the oldest liberal arts colleges in the United States. Middlebury was the first American institution of higher education to grant a bachelor's degree to an...

 in the form of the American college's Bread Loaf School of English, to which a clock donated by Middlebury stands in honour in the Porters' Lodge. The Bread Loaf School runs a summer graduate course at Lincoln, and a few students from Middlebury attend Lincoln as visiting students for a year through this connexion.

The College Grace

The College grace is read aloud at every formal hall, usually by a student. To encourage readers, students who read the grace twice in a term receive a bottle of wine. The College grace is in Latin:



Translated, this is rendered:

"Most gracious Father, who by thy providence rulest, in thy generosity feedest, and by thy blessing preservest all that thou hast created; bless us, we beseech thee, and these creatures for our use, so that they may be hallowed and of benefit to us, and we, strengthened thereby, may be rendered fitter for all good works; to the praise of thy eternal name, through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen."

Architecture

According to Nikolaus Pevsner

Nikolaus Pevsner

Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture. He is best known for his 46-volume series of county-by-county guides, The Buildings of England .-Life:The son of a Jewish merchant, Pevsner was born in Leipzig,...

, Lincoln College preserves "more of the character of a 15th century college than any other in Oxford". This is mainly because both the facade to Turl Street

Turl Street

Turl Street is a street in Oxford, England. It is located in the city centre, linking Broad Street at the north and High Street at the south. It is colloquially known as The Turl and runs past three of Oxford's historic colleges: Exeter, Jesus and Lincoln. It meets the High Street by the early 18th...

 and the front quad

Quad

-Architecture:*Quadrangle in architecture, e.g., on a university campus*Quad, a dormitory room or suite housing four residents*Quad Cities, a region which includes the Iowa cities of Bettendorf and Davenport and the Illinois cities of Moline, East Moline, and Rock Island-Beer:* Quadrupel is a...

 are still of only two storeys (although the parapet

Parapet

A parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony or other structure. Where extending above a roof, it may simply be the portion of an exterior wall that continues above the line of the roof surface, or may be a continuation of a vertical feature beneath the roof such as a...

s and battlement

Battlement

A battlement in defensive architecture such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet , in which portions have been cut out at intervals to allow the discharge of arrows or other missiles. These cut-out portions form crenels...

s are of the 19th century). One of the key factors in explaining why it is so well preserved is that, for much of its history, the College was one of the poorest of the Oxford colleges, and was unable to invest in expansion and renovation. The College also owns most of the buildings across Turl Street from the college proper, in whole or in part, which chiefly contain student accommodation. The creeper that covers the College's front quad walls is Virginia Creeper

Virginia creeper

Virginia creeper may refer to:* Parthenocissus quinquefolia, plant, Virginia creeper or five-leaved ivy* Parthenocissus vitacea, plant, False Virginia Creeper* George B...

 (Parthenocissus quinquefolia), dark green in the Summer, through to scarlet in Autumn, whilst being bare in Winter.

There are three quads — front quad (15th century), chapel quad (1608–1631) and grove quad (19th century, more properly the Grove) — as well as a number of irregular spaces.
The college chapel

Chapel

A chapel is a building used as a place for fellowship and of worship for Christians. It may be attached to an institution such as a large church, a college, a hospital, a palace, a prison or a cemetery, or may be an entirely free-standing building, sometimes with its own grounds...

 was built in late perpendicular style between 1629 and 1631; its windows are enamelled rather than stained, which is a process of painting the windows then firing them, a complicated procedure. They are the work of Abraham van Linge

Abraham van Linge

Abraham van Linge, along with his brother, Bernard van Linge, was a Dutch window painter, the bulk of whose work was done between the 1620s and the 1640s. They painted at a time when stained glass was losing its popularity in favour of their method, the usage of vitreous enamels on glass as a blank...

, who was an expert in this technique. The East end window of the chapel depicts twelve biblical scenes: the top six depict scenes from Jesus' life (including the Last Supper

Last Supper

In the Christian Gospels, the Last Supper was the last meal Jesus shared with his Twelve Apostles and disciples before his death...

), whilst the six below depict corresponding scenes from the Old Testament

Old Testament

In Christianity, the Old Testament is the collection of books that form the first of the two-part Christian Biblical canon. These works correspond to the Hebrew Bible , with some variations and additions. In the Eastern Orthodox Church the comparable texts are known as the Septuagint, from the...

 (Including Adam and Eve

Adam and Eve

Adam and Eve were, according to the Book of Genesis of the Bible, the first man and woman created by God...

 at Creation

Creation according to Genesis

Creation according to Genesis is the account of the creation of the world and of the first man and woman as found in the first two chapters of the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible....

 and the whale spitting out Jonah

Jonah

Jonah is the name given in the Hebrew Bible to a prophet of the northern kingdom of Israel in about the 8th century BC, the central character in the Book of Jonah famous for being swallowed by a fish...

). The North and South windows show twelve Christian figures each: on the North, twelve prophets; on the South, the Twelve Apostles

Twelve Apostles

In Christianity, apostles were missionaries among the leaders in the Early Church and, in the Epistle to the Hebrews, Jesus Christ himself. The term was also used, especially by the Gospel of Luke, for "the Twelve," Jesus' inner circle of disciples...

. The screen separating the ante-chapel

Ante-chapel

Ante-chapel is the term given to that portion of a chapel which lies on the western side of the choir screen.In some of the colleges at Oxford and Cambridge the ante-chapel is carried north and south across the west end of the chapel, constituting a western transept or narthex...

 (containing the organ) and the chapel proper is made of cedar, and reportedly filled the chapel with the strong scent of cedar for around the first one hundred years of its existence.

Much of the chapel was restored in a project beginning in 1999, having been deemed to be in unacceptable disrepair in the early 1990s, when a drive for funds to this end began. The black slate and white marble tiles were repaired, cleaned and replaced where necessary, whilst most of the age damage was to be found in the woodwork, which was suffering greatly from poor ventilation and having been laid directly on to earth, resulting in worm and wet rot. Cracks in the enamel of the windows were also repaired where most obvious and disfiguring. The renovations were done in the hope of preserving the chapel's 17th century character as much as possible, and indeed, the chapel has remained much unchanged since the wooden figurines (of St Peter, St Paul, Moses

Moses

Moses was, according to biblical texts, a religious leader, lawgiver, and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed. Also called Moshe Rabbeinu in Hebrew Moses was, according to biblical texts, a...

 and Aaron

Aaron

In the Bible, Aaron , sometimes called Aaron the Levite , was the brother of Moses, and represented the priestly functions of his tribe, becoming the first High Priest of the Hebrews...

) were placed on the front pews and the carved ceiling was installed in the 1680s.

Perhaps the college's most striking feature, its library is located in the converted 18th century church of All Saints, handed over to the college in 1971. All Saints churchtower is a notable feature of Oxford's skyline, one of the city's "dreaming spires". The Rector's lodgings in Turl Street

Turl Street

Turl Street is a street in Oxford, England. It is located in the city centre, linking Broad Street at the north and High Street at the south. It is colloquially known as The Turl and runs past three of Oxford's historic colleges: Exeter, Jesus and Lincoln. It meets the High Street by the early 18th...

 are neo-Georgian and were built in 1929–1930; they are reached from within college through a gate in Chapel Quad, but have a main door on Turl Street. After the church spire collapsed in 1700, amateur architect and Dean of Christ Church Henry Aldrich

Henry Aldrich

Henry Aldrich was an English theologian and philosopher.-Life:He was educated at Westminster School under Dr Richard Busby. In 1662, he entered Christ Church, Oxford, and in 1689 was made Dean in succession to the Roman Catholic John Massey, who had fled to the Continent. In 1692, he was...

 designed a new church; it is thought, however, that on some of the later features of the church, the work of Nicholas Hawksmoor

Nicholas Hawksmoor

Nicholas Hawksmoor was a British architect born to a humble family in Nottinghamshire.His career formed the brilliant middle link in Britain's trio of great baroque architects...

, one of Britain's great baroque

Baroque

Baroque is an artistic style prevalent from the late 16th century to the early 18th century. The popularity and success of the Baroque style was encouraged by the Roman Catholic Church, which had decided at the time of the Council of Trent that the arts should communicate religious themes in...

 architects is to be found, namely on the tower and spire. The library has a full peal of eight bells, which are regularly rung.

Unlike many other colleges, all of the architecture of the college proper is mediaeval stone and there is no modern accommodation annexe. To quote the Lincoln College Freshers' Handbook, "Unlike most colleges, we have no grotty sixties annexe to spoil all the pretty bits". The college bar, Deep Hall (or Deepers), is immediately below the great hall and used to be the college beer cellar. It is one of the oldest parts of the college, and the pillars inside it are perhaps the oldest feature of the college. It is through Deep Hall that the MCR and college wine cellars are accessed, the latter of which extends completely beneath the Grove.

Student accommodation

The college is one of relatively few in Oxford to guarantee all undergraduates three years of college-owned accommodation. Similarly, virtually all graduate students are provided housing for the duration of their studies. The college's housing stock is extensive and centrally located. About 80 students live on the three quads described above, with over 100 more living in rooms above the shops on the other side of Turl Street. These comprise the Mitre rooms, formerly guest rooms of the Mitre Inn, which was owned by the College since the 15th Century. The accommodation was incorporated into the College in 1969, but the restaurants were left to the inn. Lincoln House, directly across from the College, was constructed in 1939 as an annexe. There were at one point vague plans for a bridge over Turl Street connecting the annexe to the College proper; these never materialised beyond a fantasy. Further accommodation is provided at Bear Lane

Bear Lane

Bear Lane is a short but historic street in central Oxford, England. The lane is located just north of Christ Church. It runs between the junction of Blue Boar Street and Alfred Street to the west, and King Edward Street and the north of Oriel Square to the east.The south side of Bear Lane faces...

 (across High Street

High Street, Oxford

The High Street in Oxford, England runs between Carfax, generally recognized as the centre of the city, and Magdalen Bridge to the east. Locally the street is often known as The High. It forms a gentle curve and is the subject of many prints, paintings, photographs, etc...

). Donors Emily and John Carr gave to the College numbers 113 and 114 on the High Street, with land extending back to Bear Lane, which the College still owns and constitutes the Bear Lane accommodation. Also owned are 12 terraced houses (together officially called Lincoln Hall, but most commonly referred to simply as 'Mus Road') in Museum Road

Museum Road

Museum Road is a short road in central Oxford, England. It leads to the Oxford University Museum of Natural History and the Radcliffe Science Library at its eastern end where it meets Parks Road. At its west end is a junction with Blackhall Road. It continues as the Lamb & Flag Passage past the...

 (by Keble College

Keble College, Oxford

Keble College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its main buildings are on Parks Road, opposite the University Museum and the University Parks. The college is bordered to the north by Keble Road, to the south by Museum Road, and to the west by Blackhall...

). A number of outlying houses make up the remainder of the housing stock.

Junior Common Room

Due to Lincoln's small numbers and tightly-knit community, its Junior Common Room (JCR) plays a greater role in student life than do the JCRs of most other colleges. JCR elections, held in Trinity and Michaelmas Terms, attract one of the highest turnouts of any Oxford college. The JCR, like all JCRs in Oxford, is both a communal room for undergraduates (with a television, kitchen, vending machine, daily newspapers, a DVD library and sofas) as well as the name of the body that represents said undergraduates to the senior members of College and on a university-wide basis. All undergraduate members of the College are automatically members of the JCR, unless they specifically express a desire not to be a part of it. Honorary membership to others is sometimes extended, but have limited rights compared to other members.

The JCR is run by an Executive group of seven officers, headed by the President, which is ultimately responsible for the JCR, whilst the JCR Committee comprises thirty-four members and fulfils a wide range of duties, all aimed at the general improvement of the lives of and facilities available to the undergraduate body of the College. The JCR President for 2009–10 is James Meredith. His recent predecessors are Jøno Lain (2008-9), Peter Morcos (2007–8), Nicolas Long (2006–7), Oliver Munn (2005–6), Alasdair Henderson (2004–5), Mairi Brewis (2003–4) and Phil Bownes (2002–3). JCR meetings are held three times a term, in 2nd week, 5th week and 8th week of each.

The JCR was founded in 1854 as the Lincoln College Debating Society but was renamed in 1919 (although it continued to be referred to by its former name for some time after). From 1886, the society provided members of the Common Room with tobacco and cigarettes from its funds, as well as tea and coffee; however, "The President shall have the power to stop smoking while the Torpid [a rowing eight entering a regatta in Hilary Term

Hilary term

Hilary Term is the second academic term of Oxford University's and Dublin University's academic year. It runs from January to March and is so named because the feast day of St Hilary of Poitiers, 14 January, falls during this term...

] and the Eight [an eight entering a regatta in Trinity Term

Trinity term

Trinity term is the name of the third and final term of Oxford University's and Dublin University's academic year. It runs from about mid April to about the end of June and is named after Trinity Sunday, which falls eight weeks after Easter, in May or June....

] are in training." Tobacco and cigarettes are no longer available from the JCR, but tea and coffee are to be found in the JCR kitchen, along with a vending machine within the JCR proper.

Notable former students

• Peter Ainsworth
  Peter Ainsworth
  Peter Michael Ainsworth is a Conservative politician in the United Kingdom. He is the Member of Parliament for East Surrey.-Early life:...
  
   — MP for East Surrey
  East Surrey (UK Parliament constituency)
  East Surrey is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
  
  
• Eve Best
  Eve Best
  Eve Best , is a British actress best known for her stage work.-Early life and education:Best grew up in Ladbroke Grove and attended Wycombe Abbey Girls’ School before going on to Lincoln College, Oxford where she read English. Among her earliest public performances were with the W11 Opera...
  
   — actress
• Bill Cash
  Bill Cash
  William Nigel Paul Cash, usually known as Bill Cash , is a British Conservative politician and Member of Parliament for Stone.-Education:...
  
   — MP for Stone
  Stone, Staffordshire
  Stone is an old market town in Staffordshire, England, situated about seven miles north of Stafford, and around seven miles south of the city of Stoke-on-Trent. It is the second town, after Stafford itself, in the Borough of Stafford, and has long been of importance from the point of view of...
  
  
• Steph Cook
  Steph Cook
  Stephanie Cook MBE is a retired modern pentathlete and Olympic gold medallist....
  
   — modern pentathlete
  Modern pentathlon
  The modern pentathlon is a sports contest that includes five events: pistol shooting, épée fencing, 200 m freestyle swimming, show jumping, and a 3 km cross-country run...
  
   and Olympic gold medallist
• David Craig, Baron Craig of Radley
  David Craig, Baron Craig of Radley
  Marshal of the Royal Air Force David Brownrigg Craig, Baron Craig of Radley, GCB, OBE is a retired Royal Air Force officer and member of the House of Lords.-Early and familiy life:...
  
   — House of Lords
  House of Lords
  The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is also commonly referred to as "the Lords". Parliament comprises the Sovereign, the House of Commons , and the Lords...
  
   crossbencher and former Chief of the Defence Staff
  Chief of the Defence Staff (United Kingdom)
  The Chief of the Defence Staff is the professional head of the British Armed Forces and the principal military adviser to the British Government. Formally, the British Monarch is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and therefore is senior to the CDS. In practice the Government provide...
  
  
• Nathaniel Crewe, 3rd Baron Crewe — Bishop of Oxford, Bishop of Durham, Rector of Lincoln College
• William Davenant
  William Davenant
  Sir William Davenant , also spelled D'Avenant, was an English poet and playwright. Along with Thomas Killigrew, Davenant was one of the rare figures in English Renaissance theatre whose career spanned both the Caroline and Restoration eras, and who was active both before and after the English Civil...
  
   — poet and playwright
• Theodore "Dr Seuss" Geisel
  Dr. Seuss
  Theodor Seuss Geisel was an American writer and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books written under the pen name Dr. Seuss. He published over 60 children's books, which were often characterized by imaginative characters, rhyme, and frequent use of trisyllabic meter...
  
   (1904–1991) — writer and cartoonist
• J.A. Hobson (1858–1940) — Liberal
  Liberal Party (UK)
  The Liberal Party was one of the two major British political parties from the mid 19th century until the rise of the Labour Party in the 1920s, and a third party of varying strength and importance up to 1988, when it merged with the Social Democratic Party to form a new party which would become...
  
   thinker and political theorist
• Girish Karnad
  Girish Karnad
  Girish Raghunath Karnad is a contemporary writer, playwright, actor and movie director in Kannada language. He is the latest of seven recipients of Jnanpith Award for Kannada, the highest literary honour conferred in India....
  
   — Indian playwright, film actor and director
• John le Carré
  John le Carré
  John le Carré is an English author of espionage novels, several of which have been adapted for film and television...
  
   — author
• David Lewis
  David Lewis (politician)
  David Lewis , CC was a Russian-born Canadian labour lawyer and social democratic politician. He was national secretary of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation from 1936 to 1950, and was one of the key architects of the New Democratic Party in 1961...
  
   (1909–1981) — Canadian MP and leader of the New Democratic Party
  New Democratic Party
  The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a social democratic political party in Canada. In the Canadian House of Commons, it holds a centre-left position in the Canadian political spectrum. The leader of the federal NDP is Jack Layton...
  
  
• Rachel Maddow
  Rachel Maddow
  Rachel Anne Maddow is an American radio personality, television host, and political commentator. Her syndicated talk radio program, The Rachel Maddow Show, airs on Air America Radio. Maddow also hosts a nightly television show, The Rachel Maddow Show, on MSNBC. She was also a guest host of...
  
   — American television anchor and political analyst
• Maulana Mohammad Ali
  Maulana Mohammad Ali
  Maulana Mohammad Ali Jouhar was an Indian Muslim Jurist journalist and poet, and was among the leading figures of the Khilafat Movement.-Early life:...
  
   (1878–1931) — Indian Muslim leader, journalist and poet
• John Morley
  John Morley, 1st Viscount Morley of Blackburn
  John Morley, 1st Viscount Morley of Blackburn OM, PC was a British Liberal statesman, writer and newspaper editor.-Early life:...
  
   — Liberal statesman and writer
• Emily Mortimer
  Emily Mortimer
  Emily Mortimer is an English actress. She began performing on stage, and has since appeared in several film and television roles, including Scream 3 and Match Point .-Early life:...
  
   — actress
• Chukwuemeka Ojukwu
  Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu
  General Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, Ikemba Nnewi, known as Emeka Ojukwu, was the leader of the secessionist state of Biafra in Nigeria , during the Nigerian Civil War, and previously Military Governor of the Eastern Region of Nigeria...
  
   — Biafra
  Biafra
  The Republic of Biafra was a secessionist state in south-eastern Nigeria. Biafra was inhabited mostly by the Igbo people and existed from 30 May 1967 to 15 January 1970. The secession was led by the Igbo due to economic, ethnic, cultural and religious tensions among the various peoples of Nigeria...
  
  n secessionist
• Osbert Lancaster
  Osbert Lancaster
  Sir Osbert Lancaster, CBE was a cartoonist, author, art critic and stage designer, best known to the public at large for his cartoons published in the Daily Express.-Biography:...
  
   — cartoonist, critic and author
• Sir Peter Parker
  Peter Parker (British businessman)
  Sir Peter Parker KBE LVO was a British businessman, best known as chairman of the British Railways Board from 1976 to 1983.-Early life:...
  
   (1924–2002) — Chairman of the British Railways Board
  British Railways Board
  The British Railways Board was a nationalised industry in the United Kingdom that existed from 1962 to 2001. From its foundation until 1997, it was responsible for most railway services in Great Britain, trading under the brand names British Railways and, from 1965, British Rail...
  
  , 1976–1983
• Tom Paulin
  Tom Paulin
  Thomas Neilson Paulin is a Northern Irish poet and critic of film, music and literature. He lives in England, where he is the GM Young Lecturer in English Literature at Hertford College, Oxford.- Life and work :...
  
   — poet
• Francis Pilkington
  Francis Pilkington
  Francis Pilkington was an English composer, lutenist and singer. Pilkington received a B.Mus. degree from Oxford in 1595. In 1602 he became a singing man at Chester Cathedral and spent the rest of his life serving the cathedral. He became a minor canon in 1612, took holy orders in 1614 and was...
  
   — composer
• Jamie Shea
  Jamie Shea
  Jamie Patrick Shea is Director of Policy Planning in the Private Office of the Secretary General at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.He was born 11 September, 1953 in London and is a British citizen...
  
   — NATO
  NATO
  The North Atlantic Treaty Organization ); ), also called "the Atlantic Alliance", is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on April 4, 1949...
  
   spokesman
• William Sholto Douglas (1893–1969) — RAF
  Royal Air Force
  The Royal Air Force is the United Kingdom's air force, the oldest independent air force in the world. Formed on 1 April 1918, the RAF has taken a significant role in British military history ever since, playing a large part in World War II and in more recent conflicts.The RAF operates almost 1,109...
  
   pilot and WWII military commander
• Sir John Stanley
  John Stanley (politician)
  Sir John Paul Stanley is a British politician, and Conservative Member of Parliament for Tonbridge and Malling.-Early life:...
  
   — MP for Tonbridge and Malling
  Tonbridge and Malling (UK Parliament constituency)
  Tonbridge and Malling is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.-Boundaries:It is located in the west of the county of Kent in south eastern England and includes the area of Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council as well as parts of Sevenoaks...
  
  
• Edward Thomas
  Edward Thomas (poet)
  Philip Edward Thomas was an Anglo-Welsh poet and journalist. He is commonly considered a war poet, although few of his poems deal directly with his war experiences...
  
   (1878–1917) — poet
• William Richard Williams
  William Richard Williams (theologian)
  Reverend Professor William Richard Williams was the Principal of the United Theological College Aberystwyth, the first Secretary of the Council of Churches of Wales, and later its President.-Biography:...
  
   (1896–1962) — theologian
• Colin Winter
  Colin Winter
  Colin O'Brien Winter , was an Anglican bishop of Damaraland, a diocese of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa coextensive with the territory of Namibia during the apartheid era.¹-Biography:Born in England in Stoke-on-Trent, Winter was educated at Loughborough College, Oxford...
  
   (1928–1981) — bishop and anti-apartheid
  History of South Africa in the apartheid era
  Apartheid—meaning separateness in Afrikaans —was a system of legal racial segregation enforced by the National Party government in South Africa between 1948 and early 1994....
  
   activist

Academics/teachers

• Edward Abraham
  Edward Abraham
  Edward Penley Abraham, CBE, FRS was an English biochemist instrumental in the development of penicillin.-Life:...
  
   (Sir Edward) (Fellow 1948–1999)
• Peter Atkins
  Peter Atkins
  Peter William Atkins is an English chemist and a fellow and professor of chemistry at Lincoln College of the University of Oxford. He is a prolific writer of popular chemistry textbooks, including Physical Chemistry, 8th ed. , Inorganic Chemistry, and Molecular Quantum Mechanics, 4th ed...
  
   (Fellow 1965–2007, Acting Rector 2007)
• Howard Florey (Lord Florey) (Fellow 1934–1962)
• Susan Greenfield
  Susan Greenfield
  Susan Adele Greenfield, Baroness Greenfield, CBE is a British scientist, writer, broadcaster, and member of the House of Lords...
  
   (Fellow 1985–present)
• Norman Heatley
  Norman Heatley
  Norman George Heatley was a member of the team of Oxford University scientists who developed penicillin.He was born in Woodbridge, Suffolk, and as a boy was an enthusiastic sailor of a small boat on the River Deben; an experience which gave him a lifelong love of sailing...
  
   (Fellow 1948-1978, Supernumerary Fellow 1978–2004)
• Keith Murray
  Keith Murray, Baron Murray of Newhaven
  Keith Anderson Hope Murray, Baron Murray of Newhaven KCB was a leading British academic.Educated at Edinburgh Academy and the University of Edinburgh where he gained a BSc in Agriculture, Murray went into employment with the Ministry of Agriculture from 1925 to 1926...
  
   (Fellow 1937–1993, Rector 1944–1953)
• Mark Pattison
  Mark Pattison
  Mark Pattison was an English author and a Church of England priest. He served as rector of Lincoln College, Oxford.-Life:...
  
   (Fellow 1839–1884, Rector 1861–1884)
• John Potter (Fellow 1694–1747)
• John Radcliffe (Fellow 1670–1675)
• Nevil Sidgwick
  Nevil Sidgwick
  Nevil Vincent Sidgwick was an English theoretical chemist who made significant contributions to the theory of valency and chemical bonding....
  
   (Fellow 1901–1958)
• John Wesley
  John Wesley
  John Wesley was an Anglican cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, with founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
  
   — theologian and founder of methodism
  Methodism
  Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to Reverend John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement in the Anglican Church. His younger brother...
  
  
• Vivian H. H. Green
  Vivian H. H. Green
  Vivian Hubert Howard Green was a Fellow and Rector of Lincoln College, Oxford, a priest, author, teacher, and historian...
  
   (Fellow 1951–2005, Rector 1983–1987)
• Paul Langford
  Paul Langford
  Professor Paul Langford is a British historian and Rector of Lincoln College, Oxford.Educated at Monmouth School and Hertford College, Oxford, he was elected to a Junior Research Fellowship in modern history at Lincoln College in 1969, becoming a tutorial fellow in 1970...
  
  (Fellow 1970–Present, Rector 2000–Present)

External links

• Lincoln College Website
• Junior Common Room Website
• Middle Common Room Website