The Clarendon Building is an early 18th-century neoclassical building of the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, 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 List of oldest un ...

. It is in Broad Street,

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, England, next to the

Bodleian Library The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1602 by Sir Thomas Bodley, it is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. With over 13 million printed items, it is the second-largest library in ...

and the

Sheldonian Theatre The Sheldonian Theatre, in the centre of Oxford, England, was built from 1664 to 1669 after a design by Christopher Wren for the University of Oxford. The building is named after Gilbert Sheldon, List of Wardens of All Souls College, Oxford, Wa ...

and near the centre of the city. It was built between 1711 and 1715 and is now a

Grade I listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

History

Until the early 18th century, the printing presses of the

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

(OUP) were in the basement of the

. This meant that the compositors could not work when the Theatre was in use for ceremonies. Therefore, the University commissioned a new building to house the OUP.

Nicholas Hawksmoor Nicholas Hawksmoor ( – 25 March 1736) was an English architect. He was a leading figure of the English Baroque style of architecture in the late-seventeenth and early-eighteenth centuries. Hawksmoor worked alongside the principal architects ...

produced a neoclassical design, construction started in 1711 and it was completed in 1715. The builder and sculptor was William Townesend of

. The building was funded largely from the proceeds of the commercially successful '' History of the Great Rebellion'' by the 1st Earl of Clarendon, whose legacy later paid for the building of the Clarendon Laboratory in Oxford as well. In the 1820s, the OUP moved to new premises in Walton Street, after which the University used the Clarendon Building for administrative purposes. In 1975, the building was transferred to the

, for which it now provides office and meeting space for senior members of staff.

Student occupation

On 22 January 2009, student demonstrators occupied part of the Clarendon Building for seven hours, following similar protests at other UK universities. The demonstrators called for the University to condemn Israel's role in the 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict and to cancel a lecture series at

Balliol College Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and ar ...

inaugurated by

Shimon Peres Shimon Peres ( ; ; born Szymon Perski, ; 2 August 1923 – 28 September 2016) was an Israeli politician and statesman who served as the prime minister of Israel from 1984 to 1986 and from 1995 to 1996 and as the president of Israel from 2007 t ...

. The protestors ended their protest after an agreement with the Senior Proctor.

References

Oxford - Bodleian Library - entrance building

External links

* {{Authority control 1715 establishments in England Industrial buildings completed in 1715 Buildings and structures of the University of Oxford Grade I listed buildings in Oxford Grade I listed industrial buildings Grade I listed library buildings Nicholas Hawksmoor buildings Oxford University Press Bodleian Library

History

Student occupation

References

Further reading

External links