The Memorial Gates at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

were erected in 1952 as a celebration of the university's quincentenary, or five hundredth anniversary. They form a portal through the University Avenue side of the perimeter fence around the university's current site on Gilmorehill. They stand before the Hunter memorial and

Hunterian Museum The Hunterian is a complex of museums located in and operated by the University of Glasgow in Glasgow, Scotland. It is the oldest museum in Scotland. It covers the Hunterian Museum, the Hunterian Art Gallery, the Mackintosh House, the Zoology M ...

, on the other side of the John McIntyre Building from the Main Gate. The large gates in the centre are generally locked, although the small pedestrian gates to the left and right are opened during the day. The gates bear the names of thirty distinguished figures associated with the university. The gates are protected as a category B listed building. The university was originally situated on High Street, near the current site of the University of Strathclyde. The move to the Gilmorehill campus began in the late 19th century.

Erection

The Memorial Gates were erected in 1952 to commemorate the university's quincentenary, which had been in 1951. They were presented to the university by the General Council, the body of graduates of the university, on 18 June 1952. They are attached to older gatepiers, which were erected in 1889 to designs by A G Thomson.

Design

The Memorial Gates were designed by architect A Graham Henderson. The installation is formed of two large central gates, suitable for admitting vehicles, held up by large stone gateposts, with a smaller pedestrian gate on either side. The gates are set back from the main fence and connected to it by curved walls of the same stone as the gateposts. The central gates bear the names of thirty distinguished figures associated with the university (originally twenty-eight with two names added later), with a figure of the University Mace running between the two gates. The gateposts are topped by a lion and unicorn, and the dates 1451 and 1951, on the right and left respectively, while the two pedestrian gates have two each of the heraldic emblems of the university's former

nations A nation is a community of people formed on the basis of a combination of shared features such as language, history, ethnicity, culture and/or society. A nation is thus the collective identity of a group of people understood as defined by t ...

at their top. The curved wall on one side bears the university's motto, ''

Via, Veritas, Vita ''Via et veritas et vita'' (, ) is a Latin language, Latin phrase meaning "the way and the truth and the life". The words are taken from Vulgate version of , and were spoken by Jesus Christ in reference to himself. These words, and sometimes the ...

'', while the other bears the inscription, ''Almae Matri Alumni Pietatis Causa'', indicating the gates represent the devotion of the alumni to their alma mater.

Names

The Memorial Gates bear the names of the following people connected with the university: *Bute: John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute, a benefactor of the university after whom the Bute Hall is named *Hunter: William Hunter, physician who bequeathed to the university what became the

*Macewan:

Sir William Macewen Sir William Macewen, (; 22 June 1848 – 22 March 1924) was a Scottish surgeon. He was a pioneer in modern brain surgery, considered the ''father of neurosurgery'' and contributed to the development of bone graft surgery, the surgical trea ...

, surgeon ( Regius Professor of Surgery from 1892 to 1924) *Cullen:

William Cullen William Cullen FRS FRSE FRCPE FPSG (; 15 April 17105 February 1790) was a Scottish physician, chemist and agriculturalist, and professor at the Edinburgh Medical School. Cullen was a central figure in the Scottish Enlightenment: He was ...

, physician ( Regius Professor of Practice of Medicine from 1751 to 1755) *Gillespie: Patrick Gillespie, Covenanter ( Principal from 1653 to 1660) *Dewar:

Donald Dewar Donald Campbell Dewar (21 August 1937 – 11 October 2000) was a Scottish politician who served as the inaugural First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland from 1999 until his death in 2000. He previously served as ...

, First Minister of Scotland* *Caird: John Caird, theologian ( Principal from 1873 to 1898) *Millar: John Millar, philosopher ( Regius Professor of Law from 1761 to 1800) *Stair:

James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount of Stair James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount Stair (May 1619 – 29 November 1695), Scottish lawyer and statesman, and a key influence on the Scottish Enlightenment. He was a leading figure of Scottish law, “and also one of the greatest thinkers on law ...

, jurist,

Lord President of the Court of Session The Lord President of the Court of Session and Lord Justice General is the most senior judge in Scotland, the head of the judiciary, and the presiding judge of the College of Justice, the Court of Session, and the High Court of Justiciary. The L ...

*Morton:

James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton (c. 1516 – 2 June 1581, aged 65) was the last of the four regents of Scotland during the minority of King James VI. He was in some ways the most successful of the four, since he won the civil war that had b ...

Regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

of Scotland, political benefactor *Kelvin:

William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, (26 June 182417 December 1907) was a British mathematician, Mathematical physics, mathematical physicist and engineer born in Belfast. Professor of Natural Philosophy (Glasgow), Professor of Natural Philoso ...

, physicist ( Chancellor from 1904 to 1908) *Watt: James Watt, inventor of the steam engine *Maxwell: Sir John Maxwell of Nether Pollok,

Lord Justice Clerk The Lord Justice Clerk is the second most senior judge in Scotland, after the Lord President of the Court of Session. Originally ''clericus justiciarie'' or Clerk to the Court of Justiciary, the counterpart in the criminal courts of the Lord ...

(

Rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

from 1691 to 1718) *Boyd:

Zachary Boyd Zachary Boyd (1585–1653) was a Scottish minister and university administrator who wrote many sermons, scriptural versifications and other devotional works.James II, King of Scotland when the university was founded *Lister:

Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister, (5 April 182710 February 1912) was a British surgeon, medical scientist, experimental pathologist and a pioneer of antiseptic surgery and preventative medicine. Joseph Lister revolutionised the craft of su ...

, pioneer of sterile surgery ( Professor of Surgery from 1860 to 1869) * Adam Smith, father of modern economics, author of ''

The Wealth of Nations ''An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations'', generally referred to by its shortened title ''The Wealth of Nations'', is the '' magnum opus'' of the Scottish economist and moral philosopher Adam Smith. First published in ...

'' ( Professor of Moral Philosophy from 1752 to 1764 and

from 1787 to 1789) *Baillie: Robert Baillie, Covenanter ( Principal from 1660 to 1662) *Melville: Andrew Melville, Protestant reformer ( Principal from 1574 to 1580) *Turnbull: William Turnbull,

Bishop of Glasgow The Archbishop of Glasgow is an archiepiscopal title that takes its name after the city of Glasgow in Scotland. The position and title were abolished by the Church of Scotland in 1689; and, in the Scottish Episcopal Church, it is now part of th ...

, founder of the university *Bradley:

A. C. Bradley Andrew Cecil Bradley, (26 March 1851 – 2 September 1935) was an English literary scholar, best remembered for his work on Shakespeare. Life Bradley was born at Park Hill, Clapham, Surrey. His father was the preacher Charles Bradley (178 ...

, literary critic (

Regius Professor of English Language and Literature The Regius Chair of English Language and Literature at the University of Glasgow was founded in 1861 by Queen Victoria, and is the only Regius Professorship in the Faculty of Arts. History The first professor appointed was John Nichol, a grad ...

from 1889 to 1900) *Campbell: Thomas Campbell, poet (

from 1826 to 1829) *Montrose: James Graham, 1st Duke of Montrose, benefactor ( Chancellor from 1714 until 1742) *Hamilton:

James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton, 6th Laird of Cadzow (c. 1415 – 6 November 1479) was a Scottish nobleman, scholar and politician. Early life James Hamilton was the son of James Hamilton of Cadzow, 5th Laird of Cadzow. He was born at Cadz ...

, benefactor, Sheriff of Lanarkshire *Lushington: Edmund Law Lushington, classical scholar ( Professor of Greek from 1838 to 1875,

from 1884 to 1887) *Reid:

Thomas Reid Thomas Reid (; 7 May ( O.S. 26 April) 1710 – 7 October 1796) was a religiously trained Scottish philosopher. He was the founder of the Scottish School of Common Sense and played an integral role in the Scottish Enlightenment. In 1783 he wa ...

, philosopher ( Professor of Moral Philosophy from 1764 to 1781) *Burnet: Gilbert Burnet, historian ( Professor of Divinity from 1669 to 1674) *Smith: John Smith, politician, leader of the Labour Party* *Elder: Isabella Elder, benefactor of women's education, provided North Park House as the home for Queen Margaret College *Foulis: Robert Foulis, Printer to the university, founder of former Academy of Fine Arts *During the university's 550th anniversary celebrations in 2001, the names of

and John Smith were installed on the Memorial Gates to mark their contribution to Scottish politics in the late 20th century.

References

External links

University of Glasgow :: Story :: The Memorial GatesA large image of the Memorial Gates
{{coord, 55.87225, N, 4.2882, W, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title

Memorial Gates Memorial gates and arches are architectural monuments in the form of gates and arches or other entrances, constructed as a memorial, often dedicated to a particular war though some are dedicated to individuals. The function is similar to that of a ...

Gates in Scotland Listed gates in Scotland Category B listed buildings in Glasgow Listed monuments and memorials in Scotland Monuments and memorials in Glasgow Infrastructure completed in 1952 1952 in Scotland