The rivalry between

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

and

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

has been a part of London life for nearly two centuries.

Origins

University College was founded with the backing of Jews, Utilitarians and non-Anglican Christians as a secular institution intended to educate "the youth of our middling rich people between the ages of 15 or 16 and 20 or later". King's College, by contrast, was founded by royal charter for "the general education of youth in which the various branches of Literature and Science are intended to be taught, and also the doctrines and duties of Christianity ..inculcated by the United Church of England and Ireland." The College counted

King George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

and then-

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

the

Duke of Wellington Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ar ...

among other eminent politicians and theologians of the

British Establishment In sociology and in political science, the term the establishment describes the dominant social group, the elite who control a polity, an organization, or an institution. In the praxis of wealth and power, the Establishment usually is a self-s ...

as its early benefactors. Strand102

Early in 1829, the

Earl of Winchilsea Earl of Winchilsea is a title in the Peerage of England. It has been held by the Finch-Hatton family of Kent, and united with the title of Earl of Nottingham under a single holder since 1729. The Finch family is believed to be descended from He ...

publicly challenged Wellington about the Duke's simultaneous support for the Anglican King's College and the

Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 ( 10 Geo. 4. c. 7), also known as the Catholic Emancipation Act 1829, was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that removed the sacramental tests that barred Roman Catholics in the United Kingdom f ...

. The result was the

Wellington–Winchilsea duel The Wellington-Winchilsea Duel took place on 21 March 1829 at Battersea, then in Surrey on the outskirts of London. It was a bloodless duel fought between the British Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke ...

Battersea Fields Battersea Park is a 200-acre (83-hectare) green space at Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth in London. It is situated on the south bank of the River Thames opposite Chelsea, London, Chelsea and was opened in 1858. The park occupies ...

on 21 March. Shots were fired but no-one was hurt. Duel Day is still celebrated annually at King's as a formal dinner and reenactment held in March.

Student Rags

Student Rags were manifestations of the rivalry between the two institutions. Rags were "colourful, subversive, and occasionally dangerous" for both participants and bystanders and reached their height between the two

World War A world war is an international War, conflict that involves most or all of the world's major powers. Conventionally, the term is reserved for two major international conflicts that occurred during the first half of the 20th century, World War I ...

s. A long-running campaign of the rags were the attempts to capture each other's

mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, sports team, university society, society, military unit, or brand, brand name. Mascots are als ...

s. Running battles were supposedly brought to an end by the colleges' authorities in the first half of the twentieth century, but rivalry amongst the two University of London colleges continues to this day.

College mascots

The mascots of both universities were frequently kidnapped by students of the other. In 1922, King's students—allegedly bitter about a rugby defeat—kidnapped Phineas, the large wooden highlander model that had served as UCL's unofficial mascot since 1900. After more than an hour of fighting and an eventual intervention by the Metropolitan Police, Phineas was returned to UCL with a broken arm. Reggie the Lion has been the King's mascot since 1923. Reggie was captured by UCL students in 1927 and filled with rotten apples. That same year, King's and UCL students brawled in the UCL Main Quad following a failed kidnapping attempt. Six students were hospitalised and two arrested as a result of the incident. Other incidents have included the tarring and feathering of Phineas and the burial of Reggie in

Hampstead Heath Hampstead Heath is an ancient heath in London, spanning . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band of London Clay. The heath is rambling ...

. The affair culminated in 1989 with the infamous theft of

Jeremy Bentham Jeremy Bentham (; 4 February Dual dating, 1747/8 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.

5 February 1748 Old Style and New Style dates, N.S. 5 (five) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number, and cardinal number, following 4 and preceding 6, and is a prime number. Humans, and many other animals, have 5 digits on their limbs. Mathematics 5 is a Fermat pri ...

– 6 June 1832) was an English philosopher, jurist, and social reformer regarded as the founder of mo ...

's mummified head by King's students, who reportedly played football with it and were threatened with fines and expulsion. Mascot theft has since died down with both universities' mascots under securely protection.

Women

UCL was the first major university to admit women in the UK, reflecting another historical ideological difference with King's College.

References

External links