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The interior of a hall with wood-panelled walls, long rows of chairs, and a dark, beamed ceiling with patterned panels.

Selwyn College Cambridge hall

Selwyn College, Cambridge

History of Selwyn College

A large brick college building with tall chimneys sits behind a thick hedge, viewed from a path lined with bare trees.

Museum of Cambridge collection

General information about Selwyn College can be found on Wikipedia.

Aerial view of Cambridge buildings set amongst green spaces, with a long straight road running along the left edge.

Newnham, Selwyn colleges and Military Hospital circa WWI

Cambridge Inscriptions Explained by Nancy Gregory (2006) looks at the background to the inscription over the main gateway:

STEKETE EN TE PISTEI ANDRIZESTHE

Stand firm in the faith. Act like men (I Corinthains, 16:13)

It can be explained in the context of then college charter, which stated that provision should be made for those who intended to serve as missionaries at home and abroad, and also for the sons of clergyman.

Very simple living it was too in the early days: baths were simply tin baths in the rooms, and toilets were earth closets. Lighting consisted of oil lamps for undergraduates and gas for dons.

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  • college
  • Rattee & Kett

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  • Newnham Cambridge

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