Pembroke College, Oxford Information

Pembroke College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, located in Pembroke Square. The college was founded in 1624 by King James I of England, using in part the endowment of merchant Thomas Tesdale, and was named after William Herbert, 3rd Earl of Pembroke, Lord Chamberlain and then-Chancellor of the University.

Like many of Oxfords colleges, Pembroke admitted its first mixed-sex cohort in 1979, having previously accepted men only. As of 2018, Pembroke had an estimated financial endowment of £58.5 million. Pembroke offers the study of almost all the courses offered by the university.

Dame Lynne Brindley, former head of the British Library, has been Master of the College since 2013. She will be stepping down at the end of the 2019–2020 academic year.

In the early seventeenth century, the endowment of Thomas Tesdale, a merchant from nearby Abingdon, and Richard Wightwick, the parish priest of Donnington, Shropshire, enabled the conversion of Broadgates Hall, which had been a University hostel for law students since its construction in the fifteenth century, to form the basis of a fully-fledged college. The letters patent to found the college were signed by King James I in 1624, with the college being named after William Herbert, 3rd Earl of Pembroke, Lord Chamberlain, Chancellor of the University, and rumoured patron of William Shakespeare.

The arms of Pembroke College were granted by the College of Heralds on 14 February 1625, the formal blazon describing it as:

Both James I, as founder of the college, and the Earl of Pembroke are commemorated in the arms. The former, representing the union of the crowns as James I of England and James VI of Scotland, is symbolised by the rose (of England) and the thistle (of Scotland). The three lions rampant are taken from the Earl’s personal coat arms.

Following its foundation, the college proceeded to expand around Broadgates, building what is now known as "Old Quad" in the 1600s. Built in stages through the seventeenth century out of the local Cotswold limestone, space restrictions saw the south-side of the Quad built directly on top of the old City Wall.

A Chapel was built in 1732, and the introduction of further accommodation in 1846, and the Hall in 1848 to designs by Exeter-based architect John Hayward created "Chapel Quad"—widely considered one of the most beautiful Quads in the University. The Chapel was designed and built by William Townsend, although the interior was dramatically redesigned by Charles Kempe—a Pembroke graduate—in 1884. Pembroke alumnus Dr. Damon Wells is a significant benefactor of the college over many years; he enabled the restoration of the Chapel in 1972, and continues to support the Chaplaincy and History Fellowship. The Chapel which is still used for regular worship bears his name.

Further expansion of the college came in the 1960s, after the closure of Beef Lane to the north of Chapel Quad. The private houses north of the closed road were acquired by the college in a piecemeal fashion and reversed so that access was only possible from the rear. The area is now known as "North Quad" and was formally opened in 1962.

In April 2013 the Duke of Kent officially opened a new quadrangle named for the lead donor Chris Rokos The new buildings include a 170-seat multi-purpose auditorium, a new cafe, art gallery, and teaching and function rooms. The development is physically joined to the colleges existing city-centre site via a new bridge crossing Brewer Street and the original medieval city wall, and landing in the old fellows garden adjacent to Chapel Quad. Having historically been one of the universitys physically smaller colleges, following the opening of the new building, undergraduates are now able to live in college premises for all years of study; postgraduates benefit from more rooms, and six flats for those with partners.

A modern annexe, built near to college on the banks of the Isis at Grandpont, provides accommodation for thirty-six graduates and around forty undergraduates. Named the Geoffrey Arthur Building (commonly referred to as "The GAB"), the building was named for the diplomat Sir Geoffrey Arthur—a former master of the college (1975–1985).

Pembroke offers a broad range of courses, covering almost all the subject areas offered by the university; Literae Humaniores (Classics), Geography and Computer Science are notable exceptions. In particular, the college has had a strong involvement with Economics, as well as Management Studies, being the first traditional Oxford college to appoint a Fellow in the field. The college has maintained a close relationship with the Saïd Business School.

In March 2002 two Pembroke fellows resigned after allegations that they had offered a place to the fictional child of an undercover reporter in return for a donation to the college library. The journalist had taped a conversation where he posed as the father of a fictitious son.

Pembroke runs its own access schemes entitled Pem-Brooke and Pembroke North which work with disadvantaged students from London and areas of the North. These schemes provide students with long-term academically intensive programmes, which will give students important skills that will support them with both Oxbridge applications but also Russell Group university applications. This type of approach is seen as atypical within widening participation work in Oxford.

Pembroke is home to a Junior Common Room (undergraduate community) notable for its artistic wealth and sporting prowess. The JCR is the wealthiest in Oxford due to the purchase and sale of a Francis Bacon painting in the early 20th century; it was bought in 1953 for £150 and sold for £400,000 in 1997. The JCR has used those funds to support a socially progressive student support scheme and an impressive artistic acquisition programme.

The Middle Common Room, for postgraduates, is housed in a suite of historic mahogany-panelled rooms and is noted for its connections with a wide range of nations.

The college has a strong sporting reputation across the university. Recent years have seen the JCR achieve particular success at rugby, cricket, football, hockey and darts. In 2018, Pembroke made history by becoming the first college to win two rugby honours in one year, with the womens team winning Cuppers, and the mens team winning the Cuppers Bowl. 2018 also saw Pembroke win Cuppers in mixed netball and futsal. The MCR has been particularly strong at womens boxing, polo and cricket. Despite being a newly formed team, Pembroke has also done well in pool, reaching the semifinals in the 2015 Pool Cuppers.

Pembroke College Boat Club is one of Oxfords strongest boat clubs, in 2013 holding both the Torpids and Summer Eights mens headship, with the womens 1st boat sitting at 4th and 7th places respectively. In 2016, the men held Head of the River in Torpids and 4th in Summer Eights, and the women held 3rd and 2nd for Torpids and Summer Eights respectively. Pembroke Mens 2nd Torpids also bumped five places up to 11th in Division 1—the first time there have been two mens boats from a single college in over 40 years. Pembroke has been the top club in aggregate points across all boats for three years running. In 2003, Pembroke became the first college ever to win the "Double Headship Trophy" for having both mens and womens Eights head the river. In 2018, the Pembroke Womens 1st boat again achieved the Summer Eights headship.

Samuel Johnson was one of the colleges more famous alumni, though he did not complete his degree (he was later awarded an honorary degree by the University); lack of funds forced him to leave Oxford after about a year and a half. Two of his desks and various other possessions are displayed around the college. He spoke fondly of Pembroke to his death, recalling especially the colleges many poets, telling friends that ‘we were a nest of singing birds.James Smithson, whose bequest founded the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. (despite him never having visited the United States) was an undergraduate at Pembroke, under the name "James Lewis Macie"—he changed his name to that of his natural father after the death of his mother. Meanwhile, Senator J. William Fulbright, who established the Fulbright Program, was a Rhodes Scholar at Pembroke in the 1920s.

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