Oxford

We took three of our students along on a trip to Oxford last Saturday. More probably would have come, but the car only seats five. It's a little less than a two hour drive to the outskirts of the city. Because it is still a Medieval town at heart, cars are generally not allowed. So we had to "park and ride" the local bus.

Oxford's Medieval streets ban cars.

The city, originally Oxen Ford because it was at a shallow point on the Thames where ox carts loaded with goods could ford the stream, was laid out by the Saxons in the 10th & 11th centuries. The basic layout hasn't changed, and many existing buildings date to the 13th century.

Our guide explains the details of the dining hall at Jesus College.

There are all sorts of "free" tours, commercial tours, etc. in Oxford, but we had read that the "official" tour was best, so we paid for that, and it did not disappoint. The guide was both an Oxford graduate and a retired university employee. He did not say in what capacity he was employed, but he was sufficiently knowledgeable to have been a professor -- an Oxford "don."

Grounds of Trinity College

As at Cambridge, the colleges are all independent entities. One does not apply to study at Oxford University, but to one of the 38 colleges or six "halls" that make up the system. Students live and eat in their college, and are assigned a "tutor" who is their primary teacher. But they attend lectures at any or all colleges, or at the university at large, and they graduate from the University.

Students and parents load up cars for end term break.

We did not realize, when we picked the day, that we would be visiting at the end of the winter term. Though cars are usually not allowed in the city, hundreds of parents had special permits this day to load up their offspring and all worldly goods to vacate the halls for a three week break. (Unlike our U.S. dorms, rooms must be totally vacated during all breaks, which means students tend to bring less stuff.) The place was bedlam, and very crowded. Many of the colleges were closed to visitors.

Above the entrance to Merton College, the bishop on the right holds a bag of gold.
Even in the Middle Ages, major donors get their honors!

We did manage to peek in through the gates at several of the famous colleges: Trinity College, Brasenose College, Merton College, Lincoln College, and All Souls College (the one with such a large endowment that it has an elite research faculty, but no students!). The tour got us past the "closed to visitors" sign at Jesus College, where we visited the Quad, the Great Hall, and the Chapel.

Dormitory at Jesus College decorated with boasting of the house crew (rowing) victories. 

We also paid to get inside Christ Church, perhaps the most famous of the colleges, and certainly one of the largest and most beautiful campuses. Christ Church Cathedral is here, and the Hall and the grand Staircase will be familiar to anyone who has seen any of the Harry Potter films. Unfortunately, the Hall was closed for a parents' banquet.

Interior of Christ Church Cathedral

We also paid for a short tour of one of the more notable facilities that does not belong to any college, but to the university as a whole: The Bodleian Library. This turned out to be the most fascinating half hour of the day!

The Bodleian Library entrance

While each college has a library of its own, the university began a central library early in the 14th century. Most of those precious, hand-copied books were burned as "Catholic" at the time of the Reformation.

The flat where Bill Clinton lived during his years as a  Rhodes Scholar.
It was in Oxford that he "smoked but did not inhale."
Decades later, Chelsea Clinton also lived here while studying at Oxford.

In 1598, Sir Thomas Bodley, an influential diplomat in the court of Queen Elizabeth I, volunteered, as a retirement project, to restore the library. Bodley was an innovator, bringing in new ideas such as setting books upright on shelves, rather than stacking them one on top of the other ("the stacks"), and creating a catalog system.

Entry to the Oxford Internet Institute. These people are also in my line of work.

In 1610, Bodley used his influence to negotiate an agreement to have a free copy of every book published in Britain sent to his library. The agreement is still in force, and the Bodleian now receives more the 6,000 volumes each week!

Our Luther students blend in with the Oxford crowd -- except for the tourist cameras.

While Cambridge has become more noted for the sciences in modern times, Oxford's strength remains in the liberal arts -- especially politics and economics. This is probably why 26 British Prime Ministers, including the current one, were educated here. Of the 26, 13 were members (students) of Christ Church college.