Central · Founded 1505
Christ's College
The college of both John Milton and Charles Darwin, with one of the prettiest sequences of courts and gardens in central Cambridge behind an unassuming Tudor gate.
The college
A closer
look.
Central — St Andrew's Street
Founded 1505. Founded as God's House by William Byngham in 1437, and refounded as Christ's College in 1505 under a royal charter obtained by Lady Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII, who has been honoured ever since as the Foundress.
Tudor at the front and modernist at the back: the Great Gate on St Andrew's Street carries Lady Margaret Beaufort's arms with their yale supporters, First Court leads through to a mid-seventeenth-century classical Fellows' Building, and Denys Lasdun's stepped New Court of 1970 — nicknamed the Typewriter — closes the site towards King Street.
On a visit
Don’t miss.
- 01Great Gate with Beaufort heraldry
- 02First Court
- 03The Fellows' Building
- 04Fellows' Garden and Milton's mulberry tree
- 05Denys Lasdun's New Court (the Typewriter)
Connected to
Notable
names.
- John Milton, undergraduate
- Charles Darwin, undergraduate
- Lady Margaret Beaufort, Foundress
- Jan Smuts, undergraduate
- C. P. Snow, Fellow
- Sacha Baron Cohen, undergraduate
Before you go
Visiting Christ's College
The grounds are normally open to visitors daily from 09:00 to 16:00, with buildings closed to the public and the Fellows' Garden usually open on weekday mornings only. There are dates when the college closes, including between Christmas and New Year, so check its website before visiting.
Opening hours, admission and access change often — check the official site before you travel.
- Founded
- 1505
- Area
- Central — St Andrew's Street
- Type
- College
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