Knox College is a postgraduate theological college of the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

located at the St. George campus in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Canada. It was founded in 1844 as part of a

schism A schism ( , , or, less commonly, ) is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a single religious body, suc ...

movement in the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

following the

Disruption of 1843 The Disruption of 1843, also known as the Great Disruption, was a schism in 1843 in which 450 evangelical ministers broke away from the Church of Scotland to form the Free Church of Scotland. The main conflict was over whether the Church of Sc ...

. Knox is affiliated with the

Presbyterian Church in Canada The Presbyterian Church in Canada () is a Presbyterian denomination, serving in Canada under this name since 1875. The United Church of Canada claimed the right to the name from 1925 to 1939. According to the Religion in Canada, Canada 2021 Censu ...

and confers doctoral degrees as a member school of the

Toronto School of Theology Affiliated with the University of Toronto, the Toronto School of Theology (TST) is an Ecumenism, ecumenical consortium of seven Seminary, theological colleges. Its seven member schools are Emmanuel College, Toronto, Emmanuel College, Knox College, ...

History

Controversy arising from the issue of state control in the Church of Scotland led to the Disruption of 1843 and the establishment of the Free Church of Scotland. In response, several

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

ministers and congregations within the Canadian

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...

of the Church of Scotland switched their affiliation to the new denomination. Queen's College, a Presbyterian seminary in

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

, decided in 1844 to remain affiliated with the Church of Scotland, prompting some of its students to defect and establish Knox College in Toronto. Named for

Scottish Reformation The Scottish Reformation was the process whereby Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland broke away from the Catholic Church, and established the Protestant Church of Scotland. It forms part of the wider European 16th-century Protestant Reformation. Fr ...

theologian

John Knox John Knox ( – 24 November 1572) was a Scottish minister, Reformed theologian, and writer who was a leader of the country's Reformation. He was the founder of the Church of Scotland. Born in Giffordgate, a street in Haddington, East Lot ...

, the new college became affiliated with the Free Church.University of Toronto
/ref> Knox College Toronto 1887

The first class included 14 students and took place on November 5, 1844, in the home of Rev. Henry Esson on James Street, at the present site of

Toronto Eaton Centre CF Toronto Eaton Centre, commonly referred to simply as the Eaton Centre, is a shopping mall and office complex in the Downtown Toronto, downtown core of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is owned and managed by Cadillac Fairview (CF). It was named ...

. For the next two years, Knox College transitioned to larger buildings acquired at Adelaide Street and later Front Street, at the present site of the

Fairmont Royal York Hotel The Fairmont Royal York, formerly and still commonly known as the Royal York, is a large historic luxury hotel in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located along Front Street West, the hotel is situated at the southern end of the Financial District, in ...

. Scottish minister Rev. Dr. Michael Willis, the founding president of the Anti-Slavery Society of Canada (1851), became the first

principal Principal may refer to: Title or rank * Principal (academia), the chief executive of a university ** Principal (education), the head of a school * Principal (civil service) or principal officer, the senior management level in the UK Civil Ser ...

of the college in 1857. Willis came to Toronto in 1846 from St. John's Renfield Church, Glasgow, where he followed

Thomas Chalmers Thomas Chalmers (17 March 178031 May 1847), was a Scottish Presbyterian minister, professor of theology, political economist, and a leader of both the Church of Scotland and of the Free Church of Scotland (1843—1900), Free Church of Scotl ...

and took part in the Disruption of 1843. Knox was formally granted its charter from the colonial government in 1858, thereby possessing the authority to confer academic degrees. In 1861, the Canada Presbyterian Church was created from the union of the Canadian synods of the Free Church of Scotland with the

United Presbyterian Church of Scotland The United Presbyterian Church (1847–1900) was a Scottish Presbyterian denomination. It was formed in 1847 by the union of the United Secession Church and the Relief Church, and in 1900 merged with the Free Church of Scotland to form the U ...

. Knox College absorbed the existing United Presbyterian Church theological college that was founded in London, Canada West in 1844. In 1867, Knox College assisted the establishment of

The Presbyterian College, Montreal The Presbyterian College/Le Collège Presbytérien, 3495 University Street, Montreal, Quebec, is a Theological College of the Presbyterian Church in Canada, and is affiliated with McGill University through its School of Religious Studies. The Pre ...

, as the second theological college affiliated with the Canadian Presbyterian Church. Knox College donated some of the books from its library collection, and several Knox alumni served as faculty of The Presbyterian College. In 1875, Knox College moved to a new Gothic-revival building at 1 Spadina Crescent, and operated as the main seminary for the newly formed Presbyterian Church in Canada. Towards the end of the century, Knox began encouraging its students to attend non-divinity studies at the nearby

University College In a number of countries, a university college is a college institution that provides tertiary education but does not have full or independent university status. A university college is often part of a larger university. The precise usage varies f ...

of the

. Knox College entered formal affiliation with the University of Toronto in 1885. In 1890, Knox College became part of the university within a federated governance structure. In 1915, Knox College moved to its present site adjacent to University College. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Knox College accommodated faculty and students from The Presbyterian College, Montreal, whose building was used for military training until 1946. In 1969, Knox became a founding member of the

. By virtue of an amendment of its charter, Knox College has granted theology degrees conjointly with the university and the Toronto School of Theology since 1978.

Ewart College Ewart College was a historical women's college located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, affiliated with the Presbyterian Church in Canada. In September 1991, it merged with Knox College, University of Toronto. Founded on October 11, 1897, it was the ...

, a women's college of the Presbyterian Church, was merged into Knox College in 1991. Founded in 1897, Ewart College was initially known as the ''Presbyterian Missionary and Deaconess Training School'' and then ''Ewart Missionary Training Home'' after Catherine Seaton Ewart in 1960. In 2005, Knox observed its 160th anniversary with a visit and lecture by Alison Elliot, the

Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland The moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland is the minister or elder chosen to moderate (chair) the annual General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which is held for a week in Edinburgh every year. After chairing the Ass ...

Campus and architecture

The current Knox College building, completed in 1915, was designed by architectural firm Chapman & McGiffin and reflects the

Collegiate Gothic Collegiate Gothic is an architectural style subgenre of Gothic Revival architecture, popular in the late-19th and early-20th centuries for college and high school buildings in the United States and Canada, and to a certain extent Europ ...

style that was once popular in North America. It has a U-shaped layout that surrounds a cloister or courtyard in the center. The cloister is divided into two parts by a roofed walkway which crosses between the east and west wings of the building. The building itself includes offices, residences, a library hall (Caven Library), and a chapel. The Gothic style of the structure is evident throughout, but is most accentuated inside the lobby in the eastern wing of the building (at the entrance from King's College Circle), which is characterized by columns rising into

fan vault A fan vault is a form of vault used in the Gothic style, in which the ribs are all of the same curve and spaced equidistantly, in a manner resembling a fan. The initiation and propagation of this design element is strongly associated with E ...

s. Staircases in this lobby provide access to the chapel on the south side and the library on the north side. File:Knox College 5218.jpg, Western entrance and façade (on St. George Street) File:Knox College, Toronto (fragment of facade).jpg, Eastern entrance (on King's College Circle) File:Knox courtyard1.jpg, One of the two internal cloisters File:Knox College passageway at the University of Toronto.jpg, The vaulted walkway that crosses between the cloisters File:Knox College DSCF0052.jpg, Lobby of the eastern wing of the building, with Gothic

s File:Knox College chapel DSCF0031.jpg, The chapel (looking south towards the altar)

Chapel

The chapel is one of the facilities Knox college provides to the University of Toronto community. It is noted for its Hellmuth Wolff organ. The chapel has a large south-facing window of amber-stained glass. Seating is provided by two rows of pews on either side of the central aisle. There is a front piece in front of the frontmost pews for hymn books of those at the front of the congregation.

Chancel organ

This organ was built in 1915 by Casavant and is original to the building. It is split between two chambers at the front of the room and consists of 26 stops and 24 ranks. The

console Console may refer to: Computing and video games * System console, a physical device to operate a computer ** Virtual console, a user interface for multiple computer consoles on one device ** Command-line interface, a method of interacting with ...

was replaced in 1959, and in 1974 a four-rank mixture was added to the Great. It has Ventil chests and electro-pneumatic action.

Gallery organ

In 1991, a second, 32-stop, three-manual instrument was added in a new rear gallery. It is an historically oriented organ in the North German baroque style, built as Opus 33 by Wolff & Associés of

Laval, Quebec Laval is a city in Quebec, Canada. It is in the southwest of the province, north of Montreal. It is the largest suburb of Montreal, the third-largest city in the province after Montreal and Quebec City, and the thirteenth largest city in Can ...

. The pipework is modelled on the Johan Niclas Cahman organ at Leufsta Bruk, Sweden from 1726/28. The case, though, is a modern interpretation of north-European style that does not refer to any particular historic instrument. The key action and stop action are both mechanical. The two bellows can be pumped either by foot or with an electric blower. Notably, the Wolff organ is tuned to a modified fifth comma meantone temperament devised by Harald Vogel following 17th-century Swedish theorists. This same tuning has been used for the

Arp Schnitger Arp Schnitger (2 July 164828 July 1719 (buried)) was an influential Northern German organ builder. Considered the paramount manufacturer of his time, Schnitger built or rebuilt over 150 organs. He was primarily active in Northern Europe, especial ...

organ in

Norden Norden is a Scandinavian and German word, directly translated as "the North". It may refer to: Places England * Norden, Basingstoke, a ward of Basingstoke and Deane * Norden, Dorset, a hamlet near Corfe Castle * Norden, Greater Manchester, a vill ...

, Germany.

Academics

Knox College is a graduate theological institution and seminary, conferring three basic degrees, four graduate degrees, and one diploma. It administers both academic programs for the general-interest study of theology and professional programs. The basic degree program comprises the degrees of Master of Divinity, Master of Pastoral Studies, Master of Theological Studies, and Certificate in Theological Studies. The advanced degrees of Master of Arts in Theology, Master of Theology, Doctor of Philosophy in Theological Studies and Doctor of Ministry are awarded conjointly with the

. *Certificate in Theological Studies (C.T.S.) *Master of Divinity (M.Div.) *Master of Pastoral Studies (M.P.S.) *Master of Theological Studies (M.T.S.) *Master of Arts in Theology (M.A. h. *Master of Theology (Th.M.) *Doctor of Philosophy in Theological Studies (Ph.D. .S. *Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.)

Principals

* Michael Willis (1857–1870) * William Caven (1873–1904) * William MacLaren (1904–1909) * Alfred Gandier (1909–1925; became principal of Emmanuel College) * Thomas Eakin (1926–1940) * Walter W. Bryden (1945–1952) * Stanley Glen (1952–1976) * Allan Farris (1976–1977 death) * J. Charles Hay (1978–1985) * Donald J. M. Corbett (1985–1990) * Arthur Van Seters (1992–1999) * J. Dorcas Gordon (1999–2017) * John A. Vissers (2017-2022) * Ernest van Eck (2022-) A number of faculty have served as Acting Principal during vacancies and sabbaticals. The convener of the Board of Governors of Knox College is Dr. Candace Grant.

In popular culture

In the Season 2, episode 12 of '' Star Trek: Discovery'', "Through the Valley of Shadows", the college was used as a filming location for the

Klingon The Klingons ( ; Klingon language, Klingon: ''tlhIngan'' ) are a humanoid species of aliens in the science fiction franchise ''Star Trek''. Developed by screenwriter Gene L. Coon in 1967 for the Star Trek: The Original Series, original ''Star T ...

monastery on Boreth.

References

Malcolm McGrath on Knox College pipe organ imgp8975p

External links

* {{authority control Gothic Revival architecture in Toronto Presbyterian universities and colleges Presbyterian Church in Canada Seminaries and theological colleges in Canada Collegiate Gothic architecture Colleges of the University of Toronto