William Dennison was an

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 ...

academic and administrator. He was a contested

Master Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

University College, Oxford University College (in full The College of the Great Hall of the University of Oxford, colloquially referred to as "Univ") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It has a claim to being the oldest college of the univer ...

Contested Mastership of University College

On the death of the previous Master of University College,

Arthur Charlett Arthur Charlett (1655 – 4 November 1722) was an Oxford academic and administrator. He was Master of University College, Oxford for thirty years until his death in 1722. He was noted for his love of society, and for his expensive way of living. ...

, on 4 November 1722, the position of Master was contested by two men,

Thomas Cockman Revd Dr Thomas Cockman, Doctor of Divinity (1675–1745) was an Oxford academic and administrator. He was Master of University College, Oxford. Cockman was an undergraduate at University College, Oxford, matriculated in 1692, then a Fellow of th ...

and William Dennison.Carr, William,
University College
', pages 172–175. Dennison was previously a Percy Fellow at University College. In the first election on 4 December 1722, Thomas Cockman was elected by a narrow margin. A formal complaint was made to the

Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford is the chief executive and leader of the University of Oxford. The following people have been vice-chancellors of the University of Oxford (formally known as The Right Worshipful the Vice-Chancel ...

that the election was contrary to the statutes. Another election was organised, at which Dennison presided. Dennison was elected on 17 December 1722. However, Cockman's name had already been formally recorded as Master of the College. Both men complained to the Vice-Chancellor and a decision was made in favour of Dennison. The situation escalated with an appeal to

the Crown The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has different ...

. The issue was not finalised until 1729 when it was resolved in favour of Thomas Cockman rather than Dennison. This was the only time in University College's history when it had two Masters.

References

Year of birth missing Year of death missing 18th-century English people 18th-century English educators Fellows of University College, Oxford Masters of University College, Oxford {{UOxford-stub