Radcliffe Observatory was the

astronomical observatory An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysical, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. H ...

of the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the world's second-oldest university in contin ...

from 1773 until 1934, when the Radcliffe Trustees sold it and built a new observatory in

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foot ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

. It is a

Grade I listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ire ...

. Today, the observatory forms a part of

Green Templeton College Green Templeton College (GTC) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. The college is located on the previous Green College site on Woodstock Road next to the Radcliffe Observatory Quarter in North Oxford and ...

of the University of Oxford.

History

Top of Radcliffe Observatory, Green Templeton College, Oxford

The observatory was founded and named after John Radcliffe by the Radcliffe Trustees. It was built on the suggestion of the astronomer

Thomas Hornsby Thomas Hornsby (1733 in Durham, England, Durham – 11 April 1810 in Oxford) was a British astronomer and mathematician. Life Hornsby became a Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Oxford in 1760. He occupied the Savilian Chair of Astronomy at Oxfo ...

, who was occupying the

Savilian Chair of Astronomy The position of Savilian Professor of Astronomy was established at the University of Oxford in 1619. It was founded (at the same time as the Savilian Professorship of Geometry) by Sir Henry Savile, a mathematician and classical scholar who was ...

, following his observation of the notable

transit of Venus frameless, upright=0.5 A transit of Venus across the Sun takes place when the planet Venus passes directly between the Sun and a superior planet, becoming visible against (and hence obscuring a small portion of) the solar disk. During a tra ...

across the sun's disc in 1769 from a room in the nearby

Radcliffe Infirmary The Radcliffe Infirmary was a hospital in central north Oxford, England, located at the southern end of Woodstock Road on the western side, backing onto Walton Street. History The initial proposals to build a hospital in Oxford were put forwa ...

. The observatory building commenced to designs by

Henry Keene Henry Keene may refer to: * Henry George Keene, a soldier, civil servant, and orientalist * Henry George Keene (1826–1915), an English historian * Henry Keene (Oregon politician) * Henry Keene (architect) {{hndis, Keene, Henry ...

in 1772, and was completed in 1794 to the designs of

James Wyatt James Wyatt (3 August 1746 – 4 September 1813) was an English architect, a rival of Robert Adam in the neoclassical and neo-Gothic styles. He was elected to the Royal Academy in 1785 and was its president from 1805 to 1806. Early life W ...

, with a prominent octagonal

tower A tower is a tall structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting structures. Towers are specifi ...

based on the

Tower of the Winds The Tower of the Winds or the Horologion of Andronikos Kyrrhestes is an octagonal Pentelic marble clocktower in the Roman Agora in Athens that functioned as a '' horologion'' or "timepiece". It is considered the world's first meteorological ...

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh List ...

. Its tower is topped with a statue by John Bacon of

Atlas An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of maps of Earth or of a region of Earth. Atlases have traditionally been bound into book form, but today many atlases are in multimedia formats. In addition to presenting geograp ...

holding up the World. Until 1839, the

was responsible for the observatory. At this date the appointment of George Henry Sacheverell Johnson an astronomer with no observational experience caused the creation of the new role of Radcliffe Observer. Because of the viewing conditions, weather, urban development and light pollution at

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the Un ...

, the observatory moved to

in 1939. Eventually that site, in

, also became untenable and the facility was combined with others into the

South African Astronomical Observatory South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) is the national centre for optical and infrared astronomy in South Africa. It was established in 1972. The observatory is run by the National Research Foundation of South Africa. The facility's func ...

(SAAO) in the 1970s. The building is now used by

off the Woodstock Road and is a centrepiece of the college. The original instruments are now in the

Museum of the History of Science, Oxford The History of Science Museum in Broad Street, Oxford, England, holds a leading collection of scientific instruments from Middle Ages to the 19th century. The museum building is also known as the Old Ashmolean Building to distinguish it from th ...

, except for the Radcliffe 18/24-inch Twin Refractor telescope, which was transferred to the University of London Observatory. Radcliffe telescope, University of London Observatory

Radcliffe telescope, University of London Observatory

Radcliffe Observers

The following have been Radcliffe Observers: * 1839 Manuel John Johnson * 1860

Robert Main The Reverend Robert Main (12 July 1808 – 9 May 1878) was an English astronomer. Life Born at Upnor in Kent, he was the eldest son of Thomas Main; Thomas John Main the mathematician was a younger brother. Robert Main attended school ...

* 1879 Edward James Stone * 1897

Arthur Alcock Rambaut Arthur Alcock Rambaut (21 September 1859 – 14 October 1923) was an Irish astronomer. Life Rambaut was born in County Waterford, Ireland, the third son of Rev. Edmund F. Rambaut, vicar of Christ Church, Blackrock, County Dublin. He was edu ...

* 1924

Harold Knox-Shaw Harold Knox-Shaw (12 October 1885 – 11 April 1970) was an English astronomer. He was born in St Leonards-on-Sea, Sussex. He was the oldest of four siblings. During his youth he earned scholarships to Wellington College in Berkshire and to ...

* 1950

David Thackeray Andrew David Thackeray (19 June 1910 – 21 February 1978), was an astronomer trained at Cambridge University. He served as director of the Radcliffe Observatory for 23 years. Career Thackeray went to school at Eton College, where he observed ...

Gallery

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1772 establishments in England Astronomical observatories in England Astronomical observatories in South Africa Buildings and structures of the University of Oxford Departments of the University of Oxford Grade I listed buildings in Oxford Grade I listed scientific buildings Green Templeton College, Oxford Infrastructure completed in 1794 Towers completed in 1794 Towers in Oxford James Wyatt buildings Defunct astronomical observatories

History

Radcliffe Observers

Gallery

See also

References

Further reading

External links