Trinity College, Cambridge

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...was one of the colleges I didn’t visit from inside. It was founded in 1546 by Henry VIII by merging two existing colleges (Michaelhouse, founded in 1324 and King’s Hall, founded in 1317). Additional land was taken from church property after the dessolution of the monasteries. Since ever, this college has been known as the most arisctocratic and elitist college in Oxford and Cambridge. Among its Alumni are well-known personalities like Sir Isaac Newton and also some of the (future) British monarchs like Edward VII are included. Famous buildings include the Wren library, designed and built by Sir Christopher Wren between 1676 and 1690, as well as the Great Gate House with a statue of Edward III, re-founder of predecessor college King’s Hall in 1337.

Please check out my tip “Visiting the Colleges” for some details you should know before planning your visit.

We only had time to visit one college and as we were on our way to find King's College. we poked our noses into the courtyard of Trinity College and were told that this was the best college to visit so we paid our admission fee of L2.20, grabbed a leaflet and off we went to explore. We weren't able to visit the library as we were there after 2 pm but we did see the hall which reminded me of something out of a Harry Potter movie and the Chapel.

Trinity is the wealthiest college in Cambridge, it was founded by Henry VIII in 1546 from property seized from the monasteries.

Wren Library open Monday-Friday 12pm-2pm
Hall open daily 3 pm-5 pm
Chapel open daily 10am-5pm

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Trinity College is the most wealthy college in Cambridge. Isaac Newton is their most famous graduate and there is a statue of him in the chapel - Kristi commented that he had such a little head for such a brainy man. Other famous graduates are Tennyson, Lord Byron & 31 noble prize winners.

It was GBP2.20 to walk around the college grounds, the chapel & the canteen. The college is closed at times to the public so best to check the web page

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We were told by our guide that Trinity college & St John's college being their neighbour are big rivals in both sport & academia. There is no staircases inside starting with the letter J which led to some speculations this was because of their rivals St John's, however the real reason is that there is no J in the Roman alphabet.

Our guide also told us that St John's & Trinity college held a competition to see who could erect a clock tower first. St John's had space for a clock in their designs and planned to build it in, however Trinity college beat them to it by erecting one out of wood thus winning the right to have a clock. There is a noticiable empty space where the clock would have been at St John's college. The Trinity clock chimes twice, some say the second chime is to rub St John's noses in the fact they have no clock. The real reason is the chimes that strike on the hour are chimed once in low note & again in high note.

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Trinity College is the largest college in the University. The College was founded by King Henry VIII in 1546, it was made up of two standing colleges, the King's Hall and Michaelhouse.

Statues of King James I and his wife and their son Prince Charles can be seen along with Sir Isaac Newtons and W.M. Thackeray, who both lived in he College.

The clock strikes twice on the hour, once for the Trinity College and once for the St Johns college that does not sport a clock although when it was built it did have a space left to have a clock installed.

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This is another famous, often-visited place in Cambridge. It's particularly known for the highly ornate, decorative gate.

It was founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, who merged Michaelhouse and King's Hall colleges. The majority of its buildings date back to the 16th and 17th centuries. Its graduates have included Sir Isaac Newton, Francis Bacon, James Clerk Maxwell, Lord Byron, Alfred Lord Tennyson, and countless others. Today, it has about 600 undergraduates, 300 graduate students, and 160 fellows.

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We took a short walk around the gardens of the college after visiting the library.

"Trinity College was founded by Henry VIII in 1546 as part of the University of Cambridge. Since then Trinity has flourished and grown, and is now a home to around 600 undergraduates, 300 graduates, and over 160 Fellows. Princes, spies, poets and prime-ministers have all been taught here, and members of the College go on to a very wide range of professions and careers after taking degrees in all the subjects the University offers."

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We were dropped off here on our way to Sir Christopger Wren's library, which is situated inside Trinity College.

"The Great Gate, built in 1530 as part of King's Hall and the largest of all the college gates, is the only one with two doors, one large and one small. When a new Master is admitted, a ceremony is held at the larger gate.

Above the Great Gate, on the outside of the College, is a statue of the College's founder, King Henry VIII. Some years ago, his sceptre was replaced by a chairleg as an undergraduate prank; its current whereabouts are unknown. Underneath are the coats of arms of Edward III and his sons.

Among the cobbles outside the Gate is a very unusual stone, geologically speaking, which has the letters TCN inscribed on it in memory of a past Senior Bursar, T. C. Nicholas, who was a Fellow of Trinity from before the First World War until he died in 1992 aged 101.

To the right are the former rooms of Sir Isaac Newton, the famous mathematician and natural philosopher. In what was once his garden is an apple tree reputedly descended from one at his home at Woolsthorpe in Lincolnshire. The novelist William Thackeray also lived on the same staircase in what is now part of the Porter's Lodge.

As you step through the Gate, the roof bosses feature the coats of arms of previous Masters including Lord (Rab) Butler (1965-78) and William Bill (1551-53).

Facing inwards towards Great Court are statues of King James I, his wife Anne of Denmark and his heir, Prince Charles, later King Charles I."