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List of masters of Trinity College, Cambridge

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Trinity College, a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, is headed by a master who oversees the general operation of the college. The role is officially appointed by the monarch at the recommendation of the college, and involves presiding over meetings of the college council and its governing body, although the executive powers of the master are limited.[1] In addition, the master supports relations with students and alumni of the college, and serves as an ambassador for its global development activities.[2]

Historic building in a quadrangle
Master's lodge in Great Court, Trinity College

In 1546, Trinity College was founded by Henry VIII, merging the colleges of Michaelhouse and King's Hall.[3] John Redman, then Warden of King's Hall, was thus appointed first Master of Trinity College. There have been 40 appointments to the position; William Bill was appointed master twice, in 1551 and 1558.[4] The longest serving master was Richard Bentley, from 1700 until his death in 1741. He held the post despite widespread unpopularity amongst the fellows, a feud which lasted for about 30 years. During this, Bentley survived numerous criminal charges, and had his university degree rescinded between 1718 and 1724.[5] The current master, Dame Sally Davies, was appointed on 8 February 2019. She assumed the role during a ceremony on 8 October of that year, becoming the 39th Master of Trinity College, and the first woman to hold the position.[6][7]

For much of the past, the master was required to hold a degree from the University of Cambridge, and was usually a member of Trinity College. Historical statutes also stated that the office of the master could only be held up to the age of 70 or 75, at the decision of the fellows.[1] Currently, the master holds office for a fixed term of up to eight years. There is no longer a requirement to have studied at Trinity College, or the University of Cambridge, but recent masters have usually been distinguished academics. The incumbent is always referred to as the master, regardless of gender, for historical reasons.[2]

The Master of Trinity College resides in the Master's Lodge, located in Great Court. It was originally built in 1554, and is a Grade I listed building. The entrance hall has 16th-century panelling, and the drawing room has a late 15th-century plaster ceiling. The façade of the building towards Great Court was renovated between 1841 and 1843 by Anthony Salvin. In 1892, the architect Arthur Blomfield constructed the west wing of the lodge with additional rooms for private accommodation of the master, which freed some of the historic rooms for public use.[8] The Master's Lodge is customarily the royal residence when visiting the university.[9] It includes a state bedroom that was refurbished for the 1843 visit of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.[10]

Several masters of the college contributed to the development of its buildings throughout history. Thomas Nevile, master of the college from 1593, remodelled the majority of the college buildings. He demolished several buildings to clear space for the Great Court, which is now reputedly the largest enclosed courtyard in Europe.[11] Upon his death, he bequeathed a sum of money that entirely paid for the construction of Nevile's Court.[12] In the late 17th century, Nevile's Court was further developed by Christopher Wren under the instruction of the master of the college, Isaac Barrow, forming the Wren Library.[13] In the 1860s, William Whewell paid for the construction of Whewell's Court, two neo-Gothic courts located on the opposite side of Trinity Street.[14]

List of masters

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Nevile's Court, Trinity College
 
Statue of Isaac Barrow by Matthew Noble in Trinity College Chapel
 
Whewell's Court, Trinity College
 
Statue of William Whewell by Thomas Woolner in the chapel
List of masters
Name Portrait Birth Death Term of office Notes Ref(s).
John Redman — 1499 1551 1546–1551 Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity (1538–1542), Public Orator of Cambridge (1537–1538), Warden of King's Hall (1542–1546), later forming Trinity College [15][16]
William Bill   c. 1505 1561 1551–1553 Master of St John's College, Cambridge (1547–1551), Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University (1548), Provost of Eton College (1558–1561), Dean of Westminster (1560–1561). [17][18]
John Christopherson — c. 1519 1558 1553–1558 Chaplain and confessor to Mary I, Dean of Norwich (1554–1557), Bishop of Chichester (1557–1558) [19]
William Bill   c. 1505 1561 1558–1561 Second term as Master of Trinity College [17]
Robert Beaumont — c. 1525 1567 1561–1567 Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity (1559–1561), Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University (1564 and 1566) [20][21]
John Whitgift   c. 1530 1604 1567–1577 Archbishop of Canterbury (1583–1604) [22]
John Still   c. 1541 c. 1608 1577–1593 Master of St John's College, Cambridge (1574–1577), Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University (1575 and 1592), Bishop of Bath and Wells (1593–1608) [23]
Thomas Nevile   c. 1548 1615 1593–1615 Dean of Peterborough (1591–1597) and Dean of Canterbury (1597–1615), Master of Magdalene College (1582–1593); significantly developed Trinity College, including expanding Great Court and building Nevile's Court [24][25]
John Richardson   1564 1625 1615–1625 Biblical scholar, Regius Professor of Divinity (1607–1617), Master of Peterhouse, Cambridge (1609–1615), Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University (1617) [26]
Leonard Mawe — 1552 1629 1625–1629 Bishop of Bath and Wells (1628–1629), Master of Peterhouse (1617–1625) [27]
Samuel Brooke — 1575 1631 1629–1631 Playwright, Gresham Professor of Divinity (1612–1629) [28][29]
Thomas Comber   1645 1699 1631–1645 Linguist, Dean of Carlisle (1629–1654) [30]
Thomas Hill — c. 1600 1653 1645–1653 Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge (1644–1645), Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University (1646) [31]
John Arrowsmith — 1602 1659 1653–1659 Theologian, Master of St John's College, Cambridge (1644–1653), Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University (1647), Regius Professor of Divinity (1651–1656) [32]
John Wilkins   1614 1672 1659–1660 Natural philosopher, cofounder of the Royal Society, Warden of Wadham College, Oxford (1648–1659), Bishop of Chester (1668–1672) [33][34][35]
Henry Ferne — 1602 1662 1660–1662 Dean of Ely (1661–1662), Bishop of Chester (1662) [36]
John Pearson   1613 1686 1662–1672 Theologian, Master of Jesus College, Cambridge (1660–1662), Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity (1661–1673), Bishop of Chester (1673–1686) [37]
Isaac Barrow   1630 1677 1672–1677 Christian theologian and mathematician, known for early development of infinitesimal calculus; Regius Professor of Greek (1660–1663), first Lucasian Professor of Mathematics (1663–1669), academic advisor of Isaac Newton [38][39]
John North — 1645 1683 1677–1683 Regius Professor of Greek (1672–1674), buried in Trinity College Chapel [40]
John Montagu   c. 1655 1728 1683–1699 Dean of Durham (1700–1728), benefactor to the college [41]
Richard Bentley   1662 1742 1700–1742 Classical scholar, critic, theologian, Regius Professor of Divinity (1717–1742) [42]
Robert Smith   1689 1768 1742–1768 Mathematician, Plumian Professor of Astronomy and Experimental Philosophy (1716–1760), buried in Trinity College Chapel [43]
John Hinchliffe   1731 1794 1768–1789 Bishop of Peterborough (1769–1794), Dean of Durham (1788–1794) [44]
Thomas Postlethwaite   1731 1798 1789–1798 Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University (1791) [45]
William Lort Mansel   1753 1820 1798–1820 Public Orator of Cambridge (1788–1798), Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University (1799), Bishop of Bristol (1808–1820) [46]
Christopher Wordsworth   1774 1846 1820–1841 Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University (1820 and 1826), youngest brother of the poet William Wordsworth [47]
William Whewell   1794 1866 1841–1866 Polymath, scientist, theologian, mathematician, poet; funded the construction of Whewell's Court [48]
William Hepworth Thompson   1810 1886 1866–1886 Classical scholar, Regius Professor of Greek (1853–1867), reformer of Trinity College and the University of Cambridge [49]
Henry Montagu Butler   1833 1918 1886–1918 Headmaster of Harrow School (1860–85), Dean of Gloucester (1885–86) [50]
J. J. Thomson   1856 1940 1918–1940 Physicist, laureate of the Nobel Prize in Physics (1906), known for the discovery of the electron [51]
G. M. Trevelyan   1876 1962 1940–1951 Historian and author, Regius Professor of History (1927–1943), Chancellor of Durham University (1950–1957) [52]
Edgar Adrian   1889 1977 1951–1965 Electrophysiologist, laureate of Nobel Prize for Physiology (1932) for work on the function of neurons, President of the Royal Society (1950–1955), President of the Royal Society of Medicine (1960–1962), Chancellor of the University of Cambridge (1967–1975) [53]
Rab Butler   1902 1982 1965–1978 Conservative Party politician, Deputy Prime Minister (1962–1963) [54]
Alan Hodgkin   1914 1998 1978–1984 Physiologist and biophysicist, joint winner of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (1963), awarded Copley Medal (1965), later President of the Royal Society (1970–1975) [55]
Andrew Huxley   1917 2012 1984–1990 Physiologist and biophysicist, laureate of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (1963), President of the Royal Society (1980–1985) [56]
Michael Atiyah   1929 2019 1990–1997 Mathematician, Savilian Professor of Geometry (1963–1969), laureate of the Fields Medal (1966) and Abel Prize (2004), President of the Royal Society (1990–1995) [57][58][59]
Amartya Sen   1933 1998–2004 Economist and philosopher, laureate of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences (1998), recipient of the Bharat Ratna (1999) [60][61]
Martin Rees   1942 2004–2012 Cosmologist and astrophysicist, fifteenth Astronomer Royal (appointed 1995), President of the Royal Society (2005–2010) [62][63][64]
Gregory Winter   1951 2012–2019 Molecular biologist, laureate of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (2018), known for work on the therapeutic use of monoclonal antibodies [65]
Sally Davies   1949 2019–present Physician (haematologist), Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department of Health (2004–2016), Chief Medical Officer (2010–2019) [7][66]

References

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