Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
| Sidney Sussex College | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Location | Sidney Street (map) | ||
| Full name | The College of the Lady Frances Sidney Sussex | ||
| Motto | Dieu me Garde de Calomnie (Latin) | ||
| Motto in English | God preserve me from calumny | ||
| Founder | Lady Frances Sidney, Countess of Sussex | ||
| Established | 1596 | ||
| Colours | |||
| Sister college | St John's College, Oxford | ||
| [[Master (college) |Master]] | Dr Andrew Wallace-Hadrill OBE | ||
| Website | http://www.sid.cam.ac.uk | ||
| Boat club | http://www.ssbc.org.uk | ||
Sidney Sussex College (often referred to informally as "Sidney") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.
The college was founded in 1596 and named after its foundress, Frances Sidney, Countess of Sussex. It was from its inception an avowedly Puritan foundation: some good and godlie moniment for the mainteynance of good learninge. Oliver Cromwell was among the first students (although his father became ill and he never graduated), and his head is now buried beneath the College's chapel.
While the College's geographic size has changed little since 1596, an additional range was added to the original E-shaped buildings in the early seventeenth century and the appearance of the whole was changed significantly in the 1820s and 1830s under the leadership of the Master at the time, William Chafy. By the early 1800s the building's original red brick was unfashionable and the hall range was suffering serious structural problems. The opening up of coal mines on estates left to the College in the eighteenth century provided extra funds which were to be devoted to providing a new mathematical library and accommodation for Mathematical Exhibitioners. As a result, the exterior brick was covered with a layer of cement, the existing buildings were heightened slightly, and the architectural effect was also heightened, under the supervision of Sir Jeffry Wyatville.[1]
The college is nicknamed 'Sidney Sainsbury's' by neighbouring Cambridge students, due to its proximity to the Sidney Street branch of Sainsbury's, frequented by Cambridge students from all colleges thanks to its central location.
Sidney student population is relatively small with roughly 350 undergraduate students and 190 graduates. Academically speaking, Sidney Sussex has, of late, tended towards a mid-table position in the unofficial Tompkins Table (placing 14th out of 29 in 2008). However, the college has traditionally excelled in certain subjects, notably Engineering, History and Law.
Sidney's sporting performance is unexceptional, although it currently has strong women's football and netball teams, and performs well at darts. The college is musically strong, its alumni including Al Doyle (1998) and Felix Martin (1999) of the electronic band, Hot Chip — lead guitar and percussion/keyboards respectively.[citation needed]
The college claims to have the cheapest bar in Cambridge, which is one of the few student-run bars in Cambridge University, a source of much pride for Sidney students. Clare, Darwin, Downing and Emmanuel Colleges also have student-run bars. Recent price rises have put this position into doubt as the college authorities were concerned with the level of cheap alcohol.
In the television show University Challenge, Sidney Sussex had a winning team in both 1971 and 1978–79. The 1978 team, comprising John Gilmore, John Adams, David Lidington, and Nick Graham, went on to win the "Champion of Champions" University Challenge Reunion competition in 2002.
Confraternitas Historica
The Confraternitas Historica, or Confraternitas Historica Dominae Franciscae Comitis Sussexiae, is the history society of Sidney Sussex College and is reputed to be the longest-running student history society in Cambridge University, with uninterrupted activity dating back to 1908.[citation needed]
Notable alumni
Former members of the college include the political and military leader Oliver Cromwell, the noted early historian Thomas Fuller and the seventeenth century poet and dramatist Thomas May. Other notable politicians to have attended the college include the civil servant Sir Basil Engholm, David Owen (now Lord Owen), the former Foreign Secretary and former leader of the Social Democratic Party, and current MPs, Chris Grayling, Minister of State at the Department for Work and Pensions, and David Lidington, Minister for Europe at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Brian Lenihan, the Minister of Finance in Dail Eireann in the Republic of Ireland is another notable alumni.
The college's strong tradition in the sciences was certified by the Nobel-prize-winning physicists Cecil Frank Powell and C. T. R. Wilson, and more recently by John E. Walker (1997 Nobel Prize in Chemistry) and the New Zealand-born Alan MacDiarmid (2002 Nobel prize in Chemistry).
Sir Benjamin Lockspeiser, the first president of CERN was also an undergraduate at the college and psychiatrist W. Ross Ashby gained a substantial amount of material for his landmark writings Design For A Brain and An Introduction To Cybernetics whilst in residence.
More recently, Paddy Lowe, the director of the Formula One team McLaren was at Sidney Sussex, as was Carol Vorderman, the popular television host, known primarily for her role on the game show Countdown.
John Madden, the Hollywood director, known for the Academy-award-winning Shakespeare In Love and television series such as Inspector Morse and Prime Suspect also studied at Sidney Sussex.
See also
- Category:Alumni of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
- Category:Fellows of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
- List of Masters of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
- Sidney Sussex College Boat Club
External links
References
- ^ Peter Salt, 'Wyatville's remodelling and refurbishment of Sidney Sussex College, 1820-1837', Proceedings of the Cambridge Antiquarian Society, 81 (1992), 115-55
