University of Oxford

University of Oxford, English autonomous institution of higher learning at Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, one of the world’s great universities. It lies along the upper course of the River Thames (called the Isis by Oxonians), 50 miles (80 km) north-northwest of London.

History of Oxford University

Sketchy evidence indicates that by the early 12th century, schools existed at Oxford. By the end of that century a university was well established, perhaps resulting from Henry II’s decision about 1167 to bar English students from attending the University of Paris. Oxford was modeled on that university, with initial faculties of theology, law, medicine, and the liberal arts.

In the 13th century the university gained added strength, particularly in theology, with the establishment of several religious orders, principally Dominicans and Franciscans, in the town of Oxford. The university had no buildings in its early years; lectures were given in hired halls or churches. The various colleges of Oxford were originally endowed boardinghouses for impoverished scholars. They were intended primarily for students pursuing a master’s or bachelor’s degree in arts who needed financial assistance to continue higher studies. The earliest of these colleges, University College, was founded in 1249. Balliol College was founded about 1263, and Merton College in 1264.

Discover how ordinary objects work, and expand your understanding of the familiar.

SIGN UP

" height="20" alt="HEW Logo">

Thank you for signing up!"

Back to homepage

By clicking "Sign Up", you consent to the Britannica Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Oxford’s early reputation was based on theology and the liberal arts, but the university also gave more-serious treatment to the physical sciences than did the University of Paris. Roger Bacon, after leaving Paris, conducted his scientific experiments and lectured at Oxford from 1247 to 1257. Bacon was one of several influential Franciscans at the university during the 13th and 14th centuries. Among the others were Duns Scotus and William of Ockham. John Wycliffe (c. 1330–84) spent most of his life as a resident Oxford doctor.

Beginning in the 13th century the university gained charters from the crown, but the religious foundations in Oxford town were suppressed during the Protestant Reformation. In 1571 an act of Parliament led to the incorporation of the university. The university’s statutes were codified by its chancellor, Archbishop William Laud, in 1636. In the early 16th century professorships began to be endowed, and in the latter part of the 17th century, interest in scientific studies increased substantially. During the Renaissance, Desiderius Erasmus carried the new learning to Oxford, and such scholars as William Grocyn, John Colet, and Thomas More enhanced the university’s reputation. Since that time Oxford has traditionally held the highest reputation for scholarship and instruction in the classics, theology, and political science.

In the 19th century the university’s enrollment and its professorial staff were greatly expanded. The first women’s college at Oxford, Lady Margaret Hall, was founded in 1878, and women were first admitted to full membership in the university in 1920. In the 20th century Oxford’s curriculum was modernized. Science came to be taken much more seriously and professionally, and many new faculties were added, including ones for modern languages and economics. Postgraduate studies also expanded greatly in the 20th century.

In the 21st century Oxford was at the forefront of the global response to the COVID-19 crisis, partnering with pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca to develop a vaccine that was supplied to more than 180 countries by 2022. About 3 billion doses were delivered, largely to low- and middle-income countries. AstraZeneca has since announced the withdrawal of the vaccine, based on commercial considerations and the belief that the vaccine may have outlived its usefulness.

Explore Britannica Premium!

The trusted destination for professionals, college students, and lifelong learners.

SUBSCRIBE

Oxford houses two renowned scholarly institutions, the Bodleian Library and the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology, as well as the Museum of the History of Science (established 1924). The Oxford University Press, established in 1478, is one of the largest and most prestigious university publishers in the world.

Notable alumni

Oxford has been associated with many of the greatest names in British history, including John Wesley, Cardinal Wolsey, Oscar Wilde, Richard Burton, Cecil Rhodes and Walter Raleigh. The astronomer Edmond Halley studied at Oxford, and the physicist Robert Boyle performed his most important research there. Thirty-one British prime ministers studied at Oxford, including William Pitt the Elder, George Canning, Robert Peel, William Gladstone, Lord Salisbury, H.H. Asquith, Clement Atlee, Anthony Eden, Harold Macmillan, Edward Heath, Harold Wilson, Margaret Thatcher, Tony Blair, David Cameron and, most recently, Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer. Among the many notable writers associated with the university are Lewis Carroll, C.S. Lewis, and J.R.R. Tolkien; the latter two were members of the Inklings, an informal Oxford literary group in the mid-20th century. Other prominent poets and authors include W.H. Auden, John Betjeman, T.S. Eliot, Cecil Day-Lewis, William Golding, Graham Greene, Philip Larkin, Aldous Huxley, V.S. Naipaul, and Joseph Heller.

List of Oxford colleges

The colleges and collegial institutions of the University of Oxford include:

• All Souls (1438)
• Balliol (1263–68)
• Brasenose (1509)
• Christ Church (1546)
• Corpus Christi (1517)
• Exeter (1314)
• Green (1979)
• Harris Manchester (founded 1786; inc. 1996)
• Hertford (founded 1740; inc. 1874)
• Jesus (1571)
• Keble (founded 1868; inc. 1870)
• Kellogg (1990)
• Lady Margaret Hall (founded 1878; inc. 1926)
• Linacre (1962)
• Lincoln (1427)
• Magdalen (1458)
• Mansfield (founded 1886; inc. 1995)
• Merton (1264)
• New (1379)
• Nuffield (founded 1937; inc. 1958)
• Oriel (1326)
• Pembroke (1624)
• Queen’s (1341)
• St. Anne’s (founded 1879; inc. 1952)
• St. Antony’s (1950)
• St. Catherine’s (1962)
• St. Cross (1965)
• St. Edmund Hall (1278)
• St. Hilda’s (founded 1893; inc. 1926)
• St. Hugh’s (founded 1886; inc. 1926)
• St. John’s (1555)
• St. Peter’s (founded 1929; inc. 1961)
• Somerville (founded 1879; inc. 1926)
• Templeton (founded 1965; inc. 1995)
• Trinity (1554–55)
• University (1249)
• Wadham (1612)
• Wolfson (founded 1966; inc. 1981)
• Worcester (founded 1283; inc. 1714)

Among the university’s private halls are Blackfriars (founded 1921; inc. 1994), Campion (founded 1896; inc. 1918), Regent’s Park College (founded 1810; inc. 1957), and Wycliffe (founded 1877; inc. 1996).

Contemporary Oxford is committed to globalization and sustainability. Almost half of the university’s students and academic staff hail from countries other than the United Kingdom. It also has several international research collaborations and partnerships. The university’s efforts in social, economic, and environmental sustainability include expanding outreach initiatives, closing the gender pay gap, investing in energy-efficient technology, recycling waste, and increasing biodiversity.