Magdalene College, Cambridge

Magdalene College
University of Cambridge
Magdalene College on the River Cam
Magdalene College on the River Cam
Arms of Magdalene College, being the arms of Thomas Audley, 1st Baron Audley of Walden. Blazon: Quarterly per pale indented Or and azure, on a bend of the second between in sinister chief and dexter base an eagle displayed a fret between two martlets of the first.
Scarf colours: navy, with two equally-spaced narrow lavender stripes
LocationMagdalene Street (map)
Full nameThe College of Saint Mary Magdalene in the University of Cambridge
Latin nameCollegium Sanctae Mariae Magdalenae[1]
AbbreviationM[2]
MottoGarde ta Foy (Old French)
Motto in EnglishKeep your faith
Founders
Established1428; 596 years ago (1428)[3]
Refounded 1542[4]
Named afterMary Magdalene
Previous namesBuckingham College (1428–1542)
Sister collegeMagdalen College, Oxford
MasterSir Christopher Greenwood
Undergraduates383 (2022-23)
Postgraduates199 (2022-23)
Endowment£71.4m (2022)[5]
Visitor Richard Neville, 11th Baron Braybrooke[6]
Websitewww.magd.cam.ac.uk
JCRjcr.magd.cam.ac.uk
MCRmcr.magd.cam.ac.uk
Boat clubmagdaleneboatclub.co.uk
Map
Magdalene College, Cambridge is located in Central Cambridge
Magdalene College, Cambridge
Location in Central Cambridge
Magdalene College, Cambridge is located in Cambridge
Magdalene College, Cambridge
Location in Cambridge

Magdalene College (/ˈmɔːdlɪn/ MAWD-lin)[7] is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.[8] The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Mary Magdalene.

Magdalene counted some of the most prominent men in the realm among its benefactors, including Britain's premier noble the Duke of Norfolk, the Duke of Buckingham and Lord Chief Justice Christopher Wray.[9] Thomas Audley, Lord Chancellor under Henry VIII, was responsible for the refoundation of the college and also established its motto—garde ta foy (Old French: "keep your faith"). Audley's successors in the mastership and as benefactors of the college were, however, prone to dire ends; several benefactors were arraigned at various stages on charges of high treason and executed.[10]

The college remains one of the smaller in the university, numbering around 400 undergraduate and 200 graduate students. It has maintained strong academic performance over the past decade, achieving an average of ninth in the Tompkins Table and coming second in 2015. Magdalene is home to the Pepys Library, which holds the collection of rare books and manuscripts that belonged to the English diarist Samuel Pepys, an alumnus of the college.

  1. ^ Gee, Kathryn (1 May 2024). "Latin Name and English Pronunciation of the College of Saint Mary Magdalene in the University of Cambridge". WhatDoTheyKnow. The name as recorded in the College Charter is 'Collegium Sanctae Mariae Magdalenae'
  2. ^ University of Cambridge (6 March 2019). "Notice by the Editor". Cambridge University Reporter. 149 (Special No 5): 1. Retrieved 20 March 2019.
  3. ^ a b "College History, The Early Days". Madgalene College website. Archived from the original on 26 March 2009. Retrieved 8 March 2009.
  4. ^ a b "College History, Tudor Times". Madgalene College website. Archived from the original on 27 March 2009. Retrieved 8 March 2009.
  5. ^ "Magdalene College Accounts Year End June 2022" (PDF). Magdalene College, Cambridge. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference magd-cam-statutes was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ "The History of Magdalene College". Magdalene College. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  8. ^ Walker, Timea (20 January 2022). "Magdalene College". www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  9. ^ "Magdalene College, Cambridge". Cambridge Online. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2011.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference lonelyplanet was invoked but never defined (see the help page).