Brasenose College was founded in 1509 by a Bishop (William Smith) and a lawyer (Richard Sutton). Both came from the North West of England, and the college has always been proud of its links with Lancashire and Cheshire. But over the centuries Brasenose or 'B.N.C.' as it is usually known has expanded its reputation worldwide. This is the first full-scale history of Brasenose, timed to coincide with its Quincentenary. The setting is broad: it relates the college to the university, and the university to the wider world of politics. Using archives, letters and diaries, it aims to recreate something of the variety and texture of academic life over a period of five centuries: the learning, the conversation, the sport; the intellectual milieu and financial context; the architecture inside and out; the food and drink, the quirks of personality, the little dramas, and absurdities that make up the small change of corporate living.
ReviewsMore than 100 illustrations...do much to bring life and clarity to an absorbing narrative. Professor Crook writes with panache. * Judith Bumpus, The Art Newspaper *
...an interesting story, well told in a volme that deserves a readership well beyond its immediate circle. * Alan Bell, Times Literary Supplement *
A story that the author tells with relish, with obviour affection for his college but also detachment and objectivity, so that here is Brasenose, and indeed Oxford, warts and all... The book is a tour de force. * F.M.L. Thompson, Oxoniensia. *
the writing is exceptional, often inspiring. * Sheldon Rothblatt, The European Legacy *
Book InformationISBN 9780199544868
Author J. Mordaunt CrookFormat Hardback
Page Count 574
Imprint Oxford University PressPublisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 1324g
Dimensions(mm) 241mm * 164mm * 34mm