St John's College, University of Sydney
St John's College | ||||||||||
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University of Sydney | ||||||||||
Location | University of Sydney, H2 10 Missenden Road, Camperdown NSW, 2050 | |||||||||
St John the Evangelist – author of the fourth Gospel | ||||||||||
Previous names | The College of St John the Evangelist | |||||||||
Rector | Dr Mark Schembri | |||||||||
Residents | 252 | |||||||||
Website | Homepage Alumni Homepage |
St John's College, or the College of
Established in 1857, the college is the oldest
History
The College of
In 1854, the first effort to establish a Catholic college within the
In 1887, James Francis Hogan wrote in The Irish in Australia that "
English Benedictine influence
St. John's was established as a
The carved Gothic-style reliquary box in the chapel contains the skull of St. Bede the Lesser, a Benedictine monk who died before AD 1000. The relic had been preserved in a reliquary in the church of St. Benignus at Genoa, served by the Benedictine monks of Monte Cassino until the early 19th century. The relic was transported to Sydney by the missionary priest Martial Mary and presented to Archbishop Vaughan while he was residing in the college.[citation needed]
Governance
Government of the college is vested in the College Council by the 1857 Act of Incorporation The Council consists of the
Rectors
- (1858–1860) Maurus O'Connell OSB
- (1860–1874) John Forrest D.D.[6][7]
- (1874–1877) OSB
- (1877–1883) Anselm Gillett OSB
- (1883–1884) Fr Daniel Clancy SJ
- (1884–1887) David Barry OSB
- (1887–1888) Patrick Murphy
- (1888–1915) James J. O'Brien
- (1915–1933) Maurice O'Reilly CM
- (1933–1958) John C. Thompson CM
- (1958–1958) William Cantwell CM(acting)
- (1958–1968) John Burnheim
- (1968–1969) Edmund Barry (acting)
- (1969–1977) Gregory Meere
- (1977–1980) Joseph Rheinberger VG
- (1980–1992) Lester Cashen OAM
- (1992–1994) Barry Tunks
- (1994–1995) Martin Milani (acting)
- (1995–2000) Marshal McMahon
- (2000–2000) Paul O'Donnell (acting)
- (2000–2000) Michael Connors
- (2001–2001) John Hill
- (2001–2002) Colin Fowler OP (acting)
- (2002–2008) David Daintree KHS
- (2009–2013) Michael Bongers
- (2013–2022) Adrian Diethelm
- (2022–present) Mark Schembri
Visitors
- (1858–1877) OSB
- (1877–1883) OSB
- (1884–1911) Patrick Francis Moran
- (1911–1940) Michael Kelly
- (1940–1971) Norman Gilroy
- (1971–1983) James Darcy Freeman
- (1983–2001) Edward Bede Clancy
- (2001–2014) George Pell
- (2014–present) Anthony Fisher
Fellows
St John's College has a number of honorary fellows. These are distinguished members of the university and wider community who have been selected to support the rector by representing the interests of the college in their own spheres and by mentoring students
Student club
The student club is the body that looks after much of the day-to-day activity of the students of the college. Formed in 1891, the club is governed by its own constitution and is led by its house committee. This committee is elected by the students at the end of each academic year. The activities of the club are varied, ranging across social, cultural, sporting, and disciplinary areas. The house committee comprises the House President, House Secretary, House Treasurer and six committee members.
Architecture
Architects
In February 1859,
From October 1859 to April 1860, relations between Wardell and the council deteriorated for various reasons, resulting in Wardell's resignation in June 1860. With the main building program already in progress, the council retained Wardell's plans and proceeded with the construction under the supervision of
Original building
St John's College is perhaps the grandest
Built entirely in sandstone, the college is 14th century
The main facade on the north wing is a typical exercise in Victorian near-symmetry, with the central tower nearly in the middle. Under the tower is a porte-cochère. Continuing south along the visitor's line of entry on the main axis is a visually low, dark vestibule. This enhances the view, through an open arcade and transverse passage, of the more brightly sidelit formal stone staircase. To the north of the stair hall on the principal floor is the central space. To the east of this space is the chapel, viewed through an arcaded screen. To the south is a vista across the stairwell, through an ante-room to the library and on to the students' accommodation. To the west is the Great Hall, although this was not visible from the central space on Wardell's original design. Lastly, through a wide opening to the north is the Lady Chapel in the tower.
Chapel and Lady Chapel
The Chapel of St John's College, unusual in being located on the first floor, was completed in 1863. The chapel has a plan that includes five bays. The two bays at the east end are distinguished as a chancel by a change in floor level. The eastern half of the chapel is in the traditional collegiate Choir arrangement. The details of the tracery and mouldings are late 13th and early 14th century English Gothic. There is a small gallery over the chapel, originally designed to enable invalids from the infirmary to hear Mass. The chapel is covered by a high wooden roof
Many of the sanctuary furnishings are believed to have been designed by Blackett in the 1860s, including the Blessed Sacrament shrine, which is made of Bondi Gold sandstone, the tabernacle, cedar choir stalls and pews. The walls of keyed sandstone were originally covered in plasterwork with Pugin-like decoration, but the plasterwork was completely removed in 1963. The chapel's
Great Hall
The Great Hall, or dining hall, is a space with a large wooden roof of collar beams and arched braces, with king post and raking queen posts. Each truss is visually supported by short stone shafts with foliate capitals and corbels in the early 14th century manner, as is the tracery. The formal entry stairs intended to be placed to the south have never been built, and the original eastern wall has been replaced by an open arcade. On the western wall of the Great Hall is the Purcell Window, completed in 1930 by Hardman & Co. Birmingham. The upper windows contain the coats of arms of the universities of Sydney, Oxford (trefoils), Cambridge (trefoils), Paris (left soufflet) and St. John's College (right soufflet). The Great Hall has on display a collection of portraits of past visitors, rectors, fellows, and students, with the most significant portrait being Archbishop Polding / Gallery oil painting of Archbishop Polding DSB, 1866, by Eugene Montagu Scott (1835–1909), which was originally commissioned for St Mary's Cathedral.
Brennan Hall and library
Brennan Hall is named after the notable Australian poet and classical scholar Christopher Brennan (1870–1932), who was a regular visitor and close friend of Maurice J. O'Reilly, the then rector. Brennan Hall has a double arcade of slender wooden piers. Each pier has four engaged shafts with appropriate bases and capitals supporting arched braces. All motifs are in the 14th century manner, like the reticulated tracery in the square loaded windows. Brennan Hall is more grand than convenient, as it is a major thoroughfare.
The library holds several collections of books donated by past rectors and fellows of the college, contained in custom-made locked shelving units as a private library of books of historical relevance to the college. The stained glass windows on the eastern and western walls of the library are by Hardman & Co., Birmingham. The eastern windows contain the coats of arms of Bishop Davis, Archbishop Polding, St John's College, and Archbishop Vaughan. The western windows contain the coat of arms of William Bernard Ullathorne, Cardinal Moran and Archbishop Kelly.
Later developments: 1918–present
In 1918, Wardell's son, Herbert, working with his partner George Denning, designed what is known as the '38 wing (it was eventually begun in 1938), estimating the cost at £14,000. Construction was not started for 20 years because of lack of funds and was finally finished on a reduced scale in 1939.
In 1937 Countess Freehill donated £15,000 to the college on the conditions that it be used for the erection of the tower and that Hennessy and Hennessy be the architects. The design for the tower was 10 metres shorter than Wardell would have liked. Wardell believed that without the full height of the tower, the horizontal aspect of the building would not be balanced. Nonetheless, the tower was built to the amended design.[8]
The 1960s saw great activity, with extensions to the college. In 1961, one hundred years after the first construction, Menzies Wing On the east end of the South Range was begun. The architects were McDonell, Mar and Anderson. The Menzies Wing was opened by the Right Honourable
Student life
St. John's College offers a traditional Oxbridge-style "collegial" experience of university life, situated on grounds within the University of Sydney's main campus.[9]
Academic life
The college is primarily an academic community. Academic assistance is provided to scholars by the academic coordinator, assisted by a team of resident and non-resident tutors comprising senior and postgraduate scholars and university teaching staff and academics. The tutorial program is comprehensive (over 50 subjects per week), designed to supplement the teaching programs provided by the university.
Chapel
The St. John's College chapel was completed in 1863 in the Gothic Revival style as part of the northern wing and longitudinal arm of the college. The chapel is actively used as a place of worship and also for weddings, concerts, and other college events.
Formal dinners
Formal dinners are held at 6.30 pm on Mondays and Wednesdays throughout the academic year. Attendance is mandatory and all members of the college must wear an academic gown and dress appropriately – men with jacket and tie, women in dress or skirt. There are ample occasions during the academic year when either
Sport
Sport is an important aspect of collegial life. St. John's College teams compete against the other Sydney colleges in a wide range of sports for the Rawson Cup (men's sport) and the Rosebowl Cup (women's). The Rawson Cup was donated by Sir Harry Rawson in 1906. The Rawson sports are played throughout the university year, including cricket, rowing, rugby, swimming and diving, soccer, tennis, basketball, and athletics. Other sports which feature in the Rosebowl Cup are hockey, netball and softball.
The college has expansive sporting facilities, including a rugby oval, football oval, cricket nets, and floodlit tennis and basketball courts. All college residents are also members of Sydney Uni Sport and Fitness and are entitled to access to all exclusive member benefits and services, including three on-campus gymnasiums and an indoor aquatic centre.
Social and cultural
Major events each year include a college play, an informal, and two black tie formal, balls, and the intercollegiate debating competition. The Student Club operates a bar, 'The Dail', in the area adjacent to the Junior Common Room.
Music and drama
The college choir sings at Mass in the chapel regularly and also performs on other occasions. Concerts to showcase the musical talents of students are presented each year. Arts of Gold is a bi-annual event which showcases the artistic talents of St. John's students to raise money for a selected charity. The college takes part in the Intercollegiate Debating Cup every year, competing with the other colleges of the University of Sydney. Competition is of a high standard, with many college teams consisting of university debaters.
The college competes in the Palladian Cup, in which the colleges compete in solo and group instrumental and dramatic performance. St. John's won the Palladian Cup in 2007 and 2019.
The college enjoys a close relationship with Capella Sublima, an
International students
Currently over ten per cent of St. John's residents come from overseas. Students are present from the United States, Canada, China and Hong Kong, Great Britain, Ireland, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.
Distinguished alumni
Politics
- Tony Abbott – former Prime Minister of Australia
- Joe Hockey – former Treasurer of Australia
- planning, former minister for Redfern Waterloo, former minister for the arts, and former lord mayor of the City of Sydney[11]
- Peter Collins – former NSW leader of the opposition, former NSW minister for health, former NSW attorney-general and former treasurer of NSW.
- Greg Bartels – former mayor of City of Willoughby and former secretary of the New South Wales Liberal Party.[12] Bartels Park in Chatswood is named after Greg Bartels.
Law
- Justice QC – former member of the New South Wales Legislative Council and solicitor-general; former member of the Australian Senate and, in the ministry of Edmund Barton, leader of government in the Senate; and founding justice of the High Court of Australia[13]
- Justice Sir Cyril Walsh KBE PC – former Justice of the High Court of Australia
- Justice Roddy Meagher AO QC LLD (honoris causa) (Syd) – barrister, legal scholar and former Justice of the Court of Appeal, Supreme Court of New South Wales
- Justice John Hailes Flood Nagle AO QC – former Justice of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, Chief Judge at Common Law, and Royal Commissioner into NSW prisons. He was also president of the board of trustees of the Art Gallery of NSW.[14]
- Justice Hugh Dennis Macrossan[15] – former Justice of the Supreme Court of Queensland; appointed Senior Puisne Judge in 1926; appointed chief justice, Supreme Court of Queensland in 1940.
- Australian Ambassador to the Holy See
Business
- Sir Lend Lease Corporation
- Sir – founder and CEO of asset managers CQS Management
- Francis Bede Freehill – a founder of the City Mutual Life Assurance Society Ltd., director of the Australian Newspaper Co. Ltd., and co-founder of the Catholic Press
Diplomacy
- Rhodes Scholar
Academics
- Paul D. Scully-Power AM – Australia's first astronaut, former chairman of the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority, former chief technology officer of Tenix, and former chancellor of Bond University
- James Franklin– historian, mathematician, and philosopher
Sport
- NSW Waratahs and WallabyHalfback.
- Sam Carter –
- Ed Fernon – Olympic Modern Pentathlete[18][19]
- Garmin–Cervélo
- Richard St John Honner[20] – Australian Olympian (1926 – 400m, 400m hurdles, long jump)
- Paddy Ryan – Waratahs and Wallabies Prop[21]
- Wallaby
Rhodes Scholars
- Terence Glasheen MBE (1938)[22]
- Air Vice-Marshal Colin Hingston AM (1972)[22]
- Michael L'Estrange AO (1976)
- The Hon Tony Abbott MP (1981)
Order of Australia and Order of the British Empire recipients
- James Dwyer McGee[23] (1952 – OBE)
- Kevin Fagan (1987 – AO – In recognition of service to the welfare of ex-service personnel, to medicine and to the community)
- William Norman "Bill" Peach (1991 – AM – For service to the media and to tourism)
- Colin Hingston AM[24] (2000 – AM – For exceptional service to the Australian Defence Force in the field of Strategic Logistics and, in particular, as Head National Support)
- Frank Sartor (2002 – AO – For service to the community, particularly through the implementation of plans to improve facilities and infrastructure in the City of Sydney, and to support for the Olympic and Paralympic Games)
- Justice Roddy Meagher (2005 – AO – For service to the judiciary, to legal scholarship and professional development, and to the arts)
- Michael L'Estrange (2007 – AO – For service to the development and implementation of public policy in Australia, particularly national security and foreign policy, and to international relations through fostering diplomatic, trade and cultural interests, including strengthening Australia's relationship with the United Kingdom)
Papal knighthood recipients
- John Lane MullinsKCSG(1920)
- Hugh Dennis MacrossanKCSG(1929)
- Michael Hintze KCSG(2005)
- Walter Burfitt[26] KCSS (1940)
References
- ^ a b "History". St. John's College within the University of Sydney. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
- ^ "The Irish in Australia"—by James Francis Hogan, 1887. Reproduced by Project Gutenberg (retrieved 15 June 2006).
- ^ A.E. Cahill, Archbishop Vaughan and St. John's College, University of Sydney, Journal of the Australian Catholic Historical Society, 14 (1992), 36-49.
- ^ Sons of St Benedict: The English Benedictines and St John's College, Peter Cunich, 1987.
- ^ "An Act to Incorporate Saint John's College as a College within the University of Sydney". St. John's College. 15 December 1857. Archived from the original on 28 August 2007. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
- ^ "Reverend John Forrest | Monument Australia".
- ^ "Forrest, John (1820–1883)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.
- ^ Whitaker, Anne-Maree (2023). "The Freehill philanthropy: benefactions to the Catholic Church by Patrick, Frank and Eileen Freehill" (PDF). Journal of the Australian Catholic Historical Society. 44: 89–102. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
- ^ "St John's College – Handbook". St. John's College. 2007. Archived from the original on 11 December 2007. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
- ^ "Index". Capella Sublima. 2007. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
- ^ St John's College Matriculation Book, viewed 2007
- ^ Vale Mayor Bartels, https://cwwpa.org/2015/05/08/vale-mayor-bartels/.
- ^ Australian Dictionary of Biography Online, http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/adbonline.htm.
- ^ The judge who showed NSW how degrading its prisons were, http://www.smh.com.au/national/obituaries/the-judge-who-showed-nsw-how-degrading-its-prisons-were-20090924-g4ok.html
- ^ a b Australian Dictionary of Biography – Hugh Dennis Macrossan, http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A100356b.htm
- ^ "Sam Carter". Brumbies Rugby. 2015. Archived from the original on 20 January 2015. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- ^ "Sam Carter". Australian Rugby. 2015. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- ^ "Ed Fernon: Athlete Biography". Australian Olympic Committee. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- ^ "Interview with Ed Fernon". Bite Back. 4 December 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- ^ Australian Dictionary of Biography – Richard St John Honner, http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A140550b.htm
- ^ "New South Wales Waratahs prop Paddy Ryan called into Wallabies squad for clash with Springboks". The Daily Telegraph. 30 August 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2015 – via The Australian.
- ^ a b "Engage with us". The University of Sydney. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
- S2CID 72534798.
- ^ RAAF News – A scholar and a gentleman, http://www.defence.gov.au/news/raafnews/editions/4502/topstories/story26.htm
- ^ Australian Dictionary of Biography – John Lane Mullins, http://adbonline.anu.edu.au/biogs/A100596b.htm
- ^ Australian Dictionary of Biography – Dr Walter Burfitt, http://adbonline.anu.edu.au/biogs/A070487b.htm