King's Hall was one of the earliest constituent colleges of

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

. It was founded in 1317, the second after Peterhouse. King's Hall was established by King Edward II to provide chancery clerks for his administration, and was rich compared to nearby Michaelhouse, which occupied the southern area of what is now Great Court, Trinity College, Cambridge. Henry VIII combined King's Hall, Michaelhouse and seven hostels to form

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

in 1546.

History

Alan Cobban has identified John Hotham, Bishop of Ely, as the person who guided Edward II in this foundation. It received

letters patent Letters patent (plurale tantum, plural form for singular and plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, President (government title), president or other head of state, generally granti ...

from

Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...

in 1337. In 1412, the master or warden is recorded as Richard Derham. In 1433, Richard Pyghtesley was described as a clerk, in King's Hall (). second entry, county margin: Huntingdonshire; as plaintiff; http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT1/H6/CP40no689/aCP40no689fronts/IMG_0860.htm King's Hall no longer exists, as it was combined with Michaelhouse in the mid 16th century by

King Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disagreement w ...

, as one of his last acts. At the time, the King had been wiping out and seizing Church lands from monasteries. It is thought that the King had great plans to create a college to rival Oxford's Christ Church with great new architecture, but he died a few weeks after the college was created. The layout of Great Court is mainly due to Thomas Nevile, a master of Trinity. The universities of

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 ...

and Cambridge, being both religious institutions and quite rich, expected to be the next target, and, indeed, the King duly passed an Act of Parliament that allowed him to suppress (and confiscate the property of) any college he wished. The universities of Oxford and Cambridge remained dominated by Anglican clergy until well into the 19th century - this was one of the driving aspects for the setting up of secular institutions, e.g. University College, London to cater for dissenters. The universities used their contacts to plead with Henry VIII's sixth wife,

Catherine Parr Catherine Parr ( – 5 September 1548) was Queen of England and Ireland as the last of the six wives of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 12 July 1543 until Henry's death on 28 January 1547. Catherine was the final queen consort o ...

. The Queen persuaded her husband not to close them down, but to create a new college. The King did not want to use royal funds, so he instead combined the two colleges of King's Hall and Michaelhouse and seven hostels of Catherine's, Garratt, Gregory's, Margaret's, Ovyng's, Physwick (formerly part of Gonville and Caius) and Tyler's to form

Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, thr ...

in 1546. This, combined with lands confiscated from the Church, caused Trinity to be the richest and biggest college, a position it has retained.

Location

King's Hall was located in what is now the northern section of the Great Court of Trinity College, and there still stands an original building from that time. It is found off Great Court next to the Chapel, and contains some of the most coveted rooms in the College, generally held only by long-standing fellows of great academic merit, staircases C and D Great Court. The Clock Tower was from King's Hall but was moved from where the sundial now is, and the Great Gate of Trinity was built just before the amalgamation and thus still bears the King's Hall name, in Latin. The last buildings of Michaelhouse were recorded as being knocked down with the completion of the southern section of Great Court.

Notes

* This article derives some information from an edition of ''Trinity College - An Historical Sketch'' by G. M. Trevelyan, along with information from various individuals associated with the College and the University. *In

Geoffrey Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer ( ; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for ''The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...

's ''

The Canterbury Tales ''The Canterbury Tales'' () is a collection of 24 stories written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. The book presents the tales, which are mostly written in verse, as part of a fictional storytelling contest held ...

'', " The Reeve's Tale" tells of two students from 'Soler Halle' (another name for King's Hall), who take their revenge on a thieving miller and his family for stealing grain from the University.

References

External links

A photo of King's HallTrinity College Official Site

University of Cambridge Official Site
{{Trinity College, Cambridge Former colleges of the University of Cambridge Trinity College, Cambridge 1317 establishments in England 1546 disestablishments Educational institutions established in the 14th century