St Salvator's College of the University of St Andrews

University of St Andrews

The University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...

 was founded in 1450 by Bishop

Bishop

A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...

 James Kennedy on North Street, St Andrews

St Andrews

St Andrews is a university town and former royal burgh on the east coast of Fife in Scotland. The town is named after Saint Andrew the Apostle.St Andrews has a population of 16,680, making this the fifth largest settlement in Fife....

. Several of these original medieval buildings survive, including the college chapel, tower, tenement building (adjoining to the west of tower, actually older than the adjoining tower, but much restored) and the Hebdomodar's building. The college chapel http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/about/UniversityChapels/ChapelofStSalvator/ is unusual in that the main entrance faces out into the town and not like those in Oxford or Cambridge, closed into the college itself. It is indeed the only collegiate chapel in Scotland with this arrangement. The chapel was used as a parish church after the St Leonard's college chapel was unroofed in the 1750s until this arrangement was withdrawn by the university. The 1450 college had cloister buildings to the north of the college chapel - the two doors to the north side of the chapel show the alignment of the cloister.

In 1528, the protestant martyr, Patrick Hamilton Patrick Hamilton (martyr)

Patrick Hamilton (martyr)

Patrick Hamilton was a Scottish churchman and an early Protestant Reformer in Scotland. He travelled to Europe, where he met several of the leading reforming thinkers, before returning to Scotland to preach...

, was burned alive outside the college, though Patrick himself was a member of St Leonard's college.

Initially a college

College

A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...

 of Theology

Theology

Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...

 and the Arts

Humanities

The humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....

, St Salvator's was created to revitalize and focus the university after its somewhat disorderly foundation.

Due to financial considerations, fall in student numbers and general decline of the university, St Salvator's and St Leonard's Colleges amalgamated into the The United College of Saint Salvator and Saint Leonard

United College, St Andrews

The United College is one of the two statutory colleges of the University of St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland...

 in 1747. Shortly after this, the initial site of St Leonard's College was sold, though the university retained ownership of St Leonard's College Chapel. Although the buildings of St Salvator's College (including the college chapel) were grand by medieval standards, they eventually fell into disrepair. From 1837 the quadrangle was rebuilt and extended into its current form, with a north and a west wing in Jacobean style (in similar style to Madras College on South Street built at the same time). To the south is the Chapel

St Salvator's Chapel

St Salvator's Chapel is one of two collegiate chapels belonging to the University of St Andrews, the other being St Leonard's Chapel. It was founded in 1450, built in the Late Gothic architectural style, and refurbished in the 1680s, 1860s and throughout the 20th century...

, where many university services are held.

St Salvator's College was residential until the unification with St Leonard's. The current St Salvator's Hall (built from the 1930s), which lies east of the college, is one of the halls of residence for students.

Today, with the university

University of St Andrews

The University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...

having abandoned the Collegiate system in all but name, the St Salvator’s/United College site houses various lecture theatres, and the departments of Spanish, Russian, and social anthropology. It is commonly referred to as “the quad”, and is the setting of Raisin Monday festivities, the finish point of the post-Graduation processions, and occasionally hosts student events.