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| Oxford University Brasenose College |
| All Souls Balliol Brasenose Christ Church Corpus Christi Exeter Hertford Jesus Keble Lady Margaret Hall Lincoln Magdalen Merton New Nuffield Oriel Pembroke The Queen's St Anne's St Edmund Hall St Hilda's St Hugh's St John's St Peter's Somerville Trinity University Wadham Worcester |
| An early 20th Century postcard of Brasenose. |
| The construction of Brasenose College began in 1509, with a Royal Charter dated 1511 formally establishing "The King's Hall and College of Brasenose" for the study of sophistry, logic, philosophy and, above all, theology. The Brasenose website has an excellent history of the college. |
| A view almost identical to the postcard above. |
| Visitors to Oxford - and doubtless residents and students too - have long been fascinated by the college name and its origins. There have been several explanations, including the idea that it was originally "brazen huis", or "brew house", but the generally accepted explanation is that it the name refers to a bronze (brazen) door-knocker in the shape of a nose which now hangs above the high table of the main hall of the college. |
| In 1890, a house in Stamford, Lincolnshire, came up for sale. The house was called "Brazenose" and had a door-knocker dating from the 12th century. The college bought the house and restored the knocker to what was believed to be its rightful home, having been taken to Stamford in the 1330s by a group of students from the original Brasenose Hall. |
| A selection of well-known Brasenose Alumni. This list is of course subjective, but if you feel we have omitted a person of standing, please tell us ! Henry Addington; John Buchan; David Cameron; Colin Cowdrey; William Golding; Douglas Haig; Bruce Kent; John Mortimer; Michael Palin; Geoffrey Rippon; Robert Runcie. |
| The information about Brasenose on this page has been gleaned from various books and websites - search the internet and see what you can discover. |
| As one might expect, noses have always been a part of the College history, and have been reproduced in many forms. The college archives contain many examples, including tie-pins and pipes. |
| The George Washington Connection. Follow this link to read about Brasenose's connection with George Washington and how his debt was cleared ! |
| We are always looking for anecdotes, facts and figures about Oxford and its colleges. If you would like to contribute something, please email us - and if you have any old postcards that would be even better ! Good quality scans of the postcards would be appreciated. |
| All Souls Balliol Christ Church Corpus Christi Exeter Hertford Jesus Keble Lady Margaret Hall Lincoln Magdalen Merton New Nuffield Oriel Pembroke The Queen's St Anne's St Edmund Hall St Hilda's St Hugh's St John's St Peter's Somerville Trinity University Wadham Worcester |
