View source for St Hilda's College, Oxford

{{Short description|College of the University of Oxford}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2019}}
{{Infobox residential college
| name           = St Hilda's College
| university     = [[University of Oxford]]
| photo          = Sthildas south building.JPG
| caption        = South Building
| scarf          = {{scarf|{{cell|navy}}{{cell|white}}{{cells|2|navy}}{{cell|white}}{{cells|2|navy}}{{cell|white}}{{cell|navy}}}}
| named_for      = [[Hilda of Whitby]]
| motto          = ''{{lang|LA|non frustra vixi}}'' (I lived not in vain)
| latin_name     = Collegium Sanctae Hildae
| established    = 1893
| principal      = [[Sarah Springman]]
| undergraduates = 420 (2024–25)<ref name=students>{{cite web|title = Graduate and Undergraduate Admission Statistics |publisher = University of Oxford|url = https://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/graduate/colleges/st-hildas-college}}</ref>
| graduates      = 290 (2024–25)<ref name=students/>
| location       = [[Cowley Place]]
| coordinates    = {{coord|51.749162|-1.245334|display=inline,title}}
| location_map   = Oxford (central)
| homepage       = {{URL|http://www.st-hildas.ox.ac.uk/}}
| boat_club      = [[St Hilda's College Boat Club]]
| shield         = Arms of St Hilda's College.svg
| blazon         = Azure, on a fess or three estoiles gules in chief two unicorns' heads couped, in base a coiled serpent argent.
| endowment      = £56.6 million (2020)<ref name="sthildas"/>
}}
'''St Hilda's College''' is a [[Colleges of the University of Oxford|constituent college]] of the [[University of Oxford]] in England. The college is named after the [[Anglo-Saxons|Anglo-Saxon]] saint [[Hilda of Whitby]] and was founded in 1893 as a hall for women; it remained a [[women's college]] until 2008.<ref name="BBC">{{cite web| url= https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/oxfordshire/5054126.stm| title= St Hilda's College to admit men | date=7 June 2006| website= news.bbc.co.uk |language=en|access-date=10 October 2018}}</ref> St Hilda's was the last single-sex college in the university as [[Somerville College, Oxford|Somerville College]] had admitted men in 1994.<ref name="BBC"/> The college now has almost equal numbers of men and women at both undergraduate and postgraduate level.

The principal of the college is [[Sarah Springman]], who took office in 2022.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2021-03-05-st-hilda-s-college-announce-election-new-principal|title=St Hilda's College announce election of a new Principal|date=5 March 2021|website=Oxford University|access-date=20 August 2021}}</ref>

As of 2020, the college had an [[financial endowment|endowment]] of £56.6 million and total assets of £119.7 million.<ref name="sthildas">{{cite web|url=http://d307gmaoxpdmsg.cloudfront.net/collegeaccounts1920/St_Hildas.pdf|title=St Hilda's College : Annual Report and Financial Statements : Year ended 31 July 2020|website=ox.ac.uk|page=25|access-date=26 March 2021|archive-date=13 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221113140823/http://d307gmaoxpdmsg.cloudfront.net/collegeaccounts1920/St_Hildas.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

==History==
St Hilda's was founded by [[Dorothea Beale]] (who was also a headmistress at [[Cheltenham Ladies' College]]) in 1893, as '''St Hilda's Hall''' and recognised by the [[Association for the Education of Women]] as a women's hall in 1896.<ref name=VCH>{{cite web |url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/oxon/vol3/pp348-350 |title=St. Hilda's College |website=British History Online |access-date=20 August 2020}}</ref> It was founded  as a women's college, a status it retained until 2008. Whilst other Oxford colleges gradually became co-educational, no serious debate at St Hilda's occurred until 1997, according to a former vice-principal, and then the debate solely applied to the issue of staff appointments.<ref>Hilda Brown [http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storyCode=175202&sectioncode=26 "Sex and the Hildabeast"], ''Times Higher Education [Supplement]'', 7 March 2003</ref> After a vote on 7 June 2006 by the Governing Body,<ref name="BBC"/> men and women can be admitted as [[Oxford fellow|fellows]] and students. This vote was pushed through with a narrow margin and followed previous unsuccessful votes. This led to protests from students because of the "high-handed" manner in which they were held.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1448435/St-Hildas-college-votes-to-remain-women-only.html|title=St Hilda's college votes to remain women-only|author=Peter Foster|date=4 December 2003|work=Telegraph.co.uk}}</ref>

In October 2007 a supplemental charter was granted and in 2008 male students were admitted to St Hilda's for the first time. The college now has almost equal numbers of men and women at both undergraduate and postgraduate level. In August 2018, the interim Norrington Table showed that 98 per cent of St Hilda's finalist undergraduates obtained at least a 2.i in their degree.<ref name="2017/18 Interim Norrington Table">{{cite web|url=https://www.ox.ac.uk/about/facts-and-figures/undergraduate-degree-classifications?wssl=1|title=2017/18 Interim Norrington Table|publisher=ox.ac.uk|access-date=22 February 2019|quote = St Hilda's 1st 37 2.1 69 2.2 2 3rd 0 Other 0 Total 108}}</ref>

===Women's rowing===
{{Main|St Hilda's College Boat Club}}
St Hilda's was the first women's college in Oxford and Cambridge to create a women's VIII in 1911. It was St Hilda's student H.G. Wanklyn who formed [[OUWBC]] and coxed in the inaugural [[Women's Boat Race 1927|Women's Boat Race of 1927]], with five Hilda's rowers.
In 1969, the St Hilda's Eight made Oxford history when they became the first ever female crew to row in the [[Summer Eights]]. They placed 12th.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sites.google.com/a/shcbc.org.uk/home/history-of-shcbc/1969---st-hildas-make-rowing-history |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140525214528/https://sites.google.com/a/shcbc.org.uk/home/history-of-shcbc/1969---st-hildas-make-rowing-history |url-status=dead |archive-date=2014-05-25 |title=1969 - St Hilda's Make Rowing History - St. Hilda's College Boat Club |access-date=2014-05-25}}</ref>

===Documentary===
St Hilda's students were the subject of the [[Channel 4]] documentary series ''[[College Girls]]'', broadcast in 2002.<ref>Anthea Milnes [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/sep/05/gender.uk1 "No men please, we're studying"] ''The Guardian'', 5 September 2002</ref>

==Buildings and grounds==
[[File:Sthildas milhamford by cherwell.JPG|thumb|200px|Milham Ford Building by the River Cherwell]] 
The college is located at the eastern end of the [[High Street, Oxford]], over [[Magdalen Bridge]], in [[Cowley Place]], making it the only University of Oxford college lying east of the [[River Cherwell]].  It is the most conveniently situated Oxford college for the Iffley Road Sports Complex, a focus for Oxford University Sport.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}

===Buildings===
Its grounds include six major buildings, which contain student accommodation, teaching areas, dining hall, the library and administration blocks. The first building occupied by the hall was Cowley House built by [[Humphry Sibthorp (botanist)|Humphrey Sibthorp]]. Together with later extensions it is now known as Hall. In 1921 the hall acquired the lease of Cherwell Hall, now known as South, which was originally Cowley Grange, a house built by [[A. G. Vernon Harcourt]].<ref name=VCH/> The lease of Milham Ford, a [[Milham Ford School|former school]] between Hall and South, was acquired in 1958.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sthildas.ox.ac.uk/content/pictorial-timeline |title=Pictorial Timeline |author=<!--Not stated--> |website=St Hilda's College, Oxford |date=29 January 2016 |access-date=20 August 2020 |quote=1958 Milham Ford Building was leased}}</ref> More recent additions are Wolfson (opened in 1964), Garden (by [[Alison and Peter Smithson]], opened in 1971), and the Christina Barratt Building (opened in 2001).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sthildas.ox.ac.uk/content/buildings |title=The Buildings |author=<!--Not stated--> |website=St Hilda's College, Oxford |access-date=10 February 2020 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190702025841/https://www.sthildas.ox.ac.uk/content/buildings |archive-date=2 July 2019}}</ref> In autumn 2020, a new Boundary Building replaced some of the older buildings, while Milham Ford, which was demolished in 2018, was replaced by a new riverside "Pavilion".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sthildas.ox.ac.uk/content/transforming-our-site-1|title=Transforming our Site |author=<!--Not stated--> |website=St Hilda's College, Oxford |date=20 November 2018 |access-date=9 February 2020 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://solid-engineering.co.uk/our-work/st-hildas-college|title=St. Hilda's College is creating a new public entrance sequence of spaces with the new Boundary Building and Riverside Pavilion at its riverside location|website=Solid Engineering|date=25 January 2021 |access-date=2 February 2021}}</ref> The college also owns a number of properties on [[Iffley Road]], and in the Cowley area.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-05-19 |title=Accommodation: Undergraduates |url=https://www.st-hildas.ox.ac.uk/live/undergraduate-accommodation |access-date=2023-02-05 |website=St Hilda's College Oxford |language=en}}</ref>

===The Jacqueline du Pré Music Building===
[[File:Jacqueline Du Pré Music Building, Oxford.jpg|thumb|The Jacqueline du Pré Music Building]] 
The [[Jacqueline du Pré]] Music Building (JdP) is a concert venue named after the famous cellist who was an honorary fellow of the college. The JdP was the first purpose-built concert hall to be built in Oxford since the [[Holywell Music Room]] in 1742. Built in 1995 by [[van Heyningen and Haward Architects]], it houses the [[Steinway & Sons|Steinway]]-equipped Edward Boyle Auditorium and a number of music practice rooms. In 2000 the [[van Heyningen and Haward Architects|architects]] designed a new, enlarged foyer space; a lean-to glass structure along the front elevation to the existing music building. In addition to frequent recitals presented by the St Hilda's Music Society, the JdP also hosts concerts by a number of world-renowned performers. Musicians who have performed in the JdP in recent years include [[Steven Isserlis]], the [[Jerusalem Quartet]], the [[Chilingirian Quartet]] and the [[Belcea Quartet]]. The building has also been used for amateur dramatic performances; since 2008, St Hilda's College Drama Society have been producing several plays a year in the Edward Boyle Auditorium.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}

===The Kathleen Major Library===
The original library was held within Hall Building but was limited in space and offerings. In 1909, a new basement wing was opened, and more resources began to be added to collections. The college's second principal, [[Christine Mary Elizabeth Burrows]], known as Miss Burrows, is credited with compiling the first catalogue for the library; thus, St. Hilda's first library was named for her. The building saw two more expansions and was completed in 1935, though renovations and expansions would continue through to today. The library was renamed in 2005 for [[Kathleen Major]], former librarian and president of the college, and pioneer of the archive profession.<ref>{{cite web |title=St Hilda's College: A History by St Hilda's College - Issuu |url=https://issuu.com/sthildascollege8/docs/st_hilda_s_history |website=issuu.com | date=14 February 2020 |language=en}}</ref>

The library currently holds approximately 70,000 books covering all undergraduate subjects. The library offers specialised collections intended for use by research students, including medieval history and literature and women's studies. The library holds the St. Hilda's College Archives in physical and digital formats. Notable items in the archive include letters from the college founder, [[Dorothea Beale]], and other artifacts pertaining to early women's education at the university.<ref>{{cite web |title=Archives |url=https://www.st-hildas.ox.ac.uk/content/archives |website=St Hilda's College Oxford |language=en |date=18 December 2015}}</ref> The library also holds a rare books collection of approximately 700 items with content ranging from the 15th century to today. Many of the items in the rare books collection were donated by Dorothea Beale. College archives and rare books collections are held in a secure, temperature- and humidity-controlled facility.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Library |url=https://www.st-hildas.ox.ac.uk/content/library |website=St Hilda's College Oxford |language=en |date=18 December 2015}}</ref> Other collections offered at the library include popular fiction, culinary books, and travel books.

The library has three floors, seven reading rooms, and 150 study spaces, and has desktop computers as well as a printer, scanner, and photocopier. The main reading room has an art gallery, as well as views of the [[River Cherwell]] and the Oxford spires.

===Grounds===
The college grounds stretch along the banks of the [[River Cherwell]], with many college rooms overlooking the river and playing fields beyond. The college has its own fleet of [[punt (boat)|punts]], which students of the college may use free of charge in summer months. Unfortunately, this location at times led to problems with flooding in the former Milham Ford building.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}

==People associated with the college==

===Principals===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Name !! Birth !! Death !! Principal Between !! Notes
|-
|[[Esther Elizabeth Burrows]] ||18 October 1847 || 20 February 1935||1893–1910||<ref name="AddisonO'Grady1999">{{cite book|author1=Margaret Addison|author2=Jean O'Grady|title=Diary of a European Tour, 1900|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ow9me3KtjJ4C&pg=PA189|date=30 November 1999|publisher=McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP|isbn=978-0-7735-6800-6|page=189}}</ref>
|-
|[[Christine Mary Elizabeth Burrows]] || 4 January 1872||10 September 1959||1910–1919||<ref name="AddisonO'Grady1999" />
|-
|[[Winifred Moberly]]||1 April 1875 ||6 April 1928 ||1919–1928 ||<ref>[[Margaret Rayner|Margaret E. Rayner]], ‘Moberly, Winifred Horsbrugh (1875–1928)’, ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/48456 accessed 16 Sept 2015]'</ref>
|-
|[[Julia de Lacy Mann]] ||22 August 1891||23 May 1985 ||1928–1955||<ref name="Aston1994">{{cite book|last=Aston|first=T. H. |title=The History of the University of Oxford: Volume VIII: The Twentieth Century|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OP5ePl7i5EIC&pg=PR16|date=7 April 1994|publisher=Clarendon Press|isbn=978-0-19-822974-2|page=xvi}}</ref>
|-
|[[Kathleen Major]] ||10 April 1906||19 December 2000 ||1955–1965||<ref name="Aston1994" />
|-
|[[Mary Bennett (academic)|Mary Bennett]] ||9 January 1913 ||1 November 2005  ||1965–1980||
|-
|[[Mary Moore (author)|Mary Moore]] ||8 April 1930 ||6 October 2017 ||1980–1990||<ref name="Aston1994" />
|-
|[[Elizabeth Llewellyn-Smith]]|| 17 August 1934 || ||1990–2001||<ref name=Principals>{{cite web|title=College History - Founder and Principals|url=http://www.sthildas.ox.ac.uk/our-history/college-history-founder-and-principals|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120523135244/http://www.sthildas.ox.ac.uk/our-history/college-history-founder-and-principals|url-status=dead|archive-date=23 May 2012|website=St Hilda's College|publisher=University of Oxford|access-date=16 September 2015}}</ref>
|-
|[[Judith English]]|| 1 March 1940 || ||2001–2007 ||<ref name=Principals />
|-
|[[Sheila Forbes]]||31 December 1946 || ||2007–2014||
|-
|[[Gordon Duff]]||27 December 1947 || ||2014–2021||
|-
|Georgina Paul (acting)|| || ||2021–2022||<ref>{{cite web |title=Dr Georgina Paul will be Acting Principal of St Hilda's College 1 April 2021 - 31 January 2022 |url=https://www.st-hildas.ox.ac.uk/content/dr-georgina-paul-will-be-acting-principal-st-hildas-college-1-april-2021-31-january-2022 |website=St Hilda's College, Oxford |date=29 March 2021 |access-date=3 October 2021}}</ref>
|-
|[[Sarah Springman]]||26 December 1956 || ||2022–date||
|}

===Former students===
{{category see also|Alumni of St Hilda's College, Oxford}}
<gallery align="center">
Susanna Clarke March 2006.jpg|[[Susanna Clarke]], author
Baronesssusangre1.jpeg|[[Susan Greenfield, Baroness Greenfield]]
Susan Kramer 01.jpg|[[Susan Kramer]], Liberal Democrat politician
Zanny Minton Beddoes World Economic Forum 2013 cropped.jpg| [[Zanny Minton Beddoes]], editor of [[The Economist]]
Zeinab Badawi 02.jpg|[[Zeinab Badawi]], BBC journalist
</gallery>

{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* [[Gaynor Arnold]], novelist
* [[Elizabeth Aston]], author
* [[Maudy Ayunda]], Indonesian singer-songwriter and actress<ref>{{cite web|title="Bangun Pemuda Pemudi" Bangkitkan Semangat Pelajar Indonesia|url=https://atdikbudlondon.com/2014/10/28/bangun-pemuda-pemudi-bangkitkan-semangat-pelajar-indonesia/|publisher=Indonesian Education and Culture Attaché in London|date=28 October 2015|access-date=23 April 2020}}</ref>
* [[Zeinab Badawi]], BBC journalist
* [[Kate Barker]], economist
* [[Sarah Baxter]], journalist
* [[Zanny Minton Beddoes]], editor of [[The Economist]]
* [[Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein]], royalty
* [[Susan Blackmore]], parapsychologist, writer and broadcaster
* [[Julia Briggs]], academic, literary critic and biographer<ref>{{cite news| last=Light | first=Alison | title=Obituary: Julia Briggs | work=The Guardian | date=30 August 2007 | url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2007/aug/30/guardianobituaries.booksobituaries | access-date=7 October 2025}}</ref>
* [[D. K. Broster]], historical novelist
* [[Mikita Brottman]], author, psychoanalyst
* [[Marilyn Butler|Marilyn Butler, Lady Butler]], academic
* [[Fiona Caldicott]], psychiatrist, academic, chair of the [[Caldicott Report]] Committee
* [[Susanna Clarke]], author
* [[Lisa Cook]], economist
* [[Wendy Cope]], poet
* [[Lettice Curtis]], aviator
* [[Miriam Defensor Santiago]], Philippine senator, [[Ramon Magsaysay Award]]ee
* [[Violet Mary Doudney]], militant suffragette
* [[Daisy Dunn]], author and classicist
* [[Barbara Everett]], academic
* [[Susan Garden, Baroness Garden of Frognal]], politician
* [[Helen Gardner (critic)|Helen Gardner]], critic
* [[Margaret Gelling]], toponymist
* [[Adele Geras]], writer
* [[Roma Gill]], academic and literary scholar
* [[Christina Gough]], cricketer and statistician
* [[Karina Gould]], Canadian minister
* [[Anna Grear]], academic, Law and Theory professor, company founder and director
* [[Susan Greenfield, Baroness Greenfield]], academic
* [[Susan Gritton]], soprano
* [[Catherine Heath]], novelist
* [[Rosalind Hill]], historian
* [[Meg Hillier]], politician
* [[Victoria Hislop]], writer
* [[Bettany Hughes]], historian
* [[Ruth Hunt]], CEO of Stonewall
* [[Helen Jackson (politician)|Helen Jackson]], politician
* [[Hilda Jennings]], author, academic and community activist
* [[Jenny Joseph]], poet
* [[Susan Kramer, Baroness Kramer]], British Liberal Democrat politician
* [[Angela Lambert]], author and journalist
* [[Hermione Lee]], critic and biographer
* [[Nicola LeFanu]], composer
* [[A. E. Levett|Elizabeth Levett]], historian
* [[Sue Lloyd-Roberts]], Special Correspondent for the [[BBC]] (formerly at [[ITN]])
* [[Margaret MacMillan]], historian and Warden of [[St Antony's College, Oxford|St Antony's College]]
* [[Anita Mason]], novelist
* [[Val McDermid]], novelist
* [[Rosalind Miles (author)|Rosalind Miles]], writer
* [[Kate Millett]], feminist author
* [[Anne Mills]] [[Royal Society|FRS]], [[health economics|health economist]]
* [[Brenda Moon]], librarian
* [[Laura Mulvey]], feminist film theorist
* [[Elizabeth Neville (police officer)|Elizabeth Neville]], police officer
* [[Katherine Parkinson]], actress
* [[Rachel Parris]], comedian
* [[Lavender Patten]], barrister
* [[Barbara Pym]], novelist
* [[Pooky Quesnel]], actor and screenwriter
* [[Betty Radice]], translator and editor
* [[Celine Rattray]], film producer<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sthildas.ox.ac.uk/content/congratulations-our-alumna-celine-rattray-fifth-anniversary-maven-pictures|title=Congratulations to our alumna Celine Rattray on the fifth anniversary of Maven Pictures|publisher=St Hilda's College, Oxford|date=17 June 2016|access-date=5 March 2018}}</ref>
* [[Gillian Rose]], philosopher
* [[Jacqueline Rose]], academic and writer
* Hon. [[Hannah Rothschild (film maker)|Hannah Rothschild]], author, film maker and philanthropist
* [[Sheila Rowbotham]], feminist theorist and historian
* [[Gillian Shephard]], Baroness Shephard of Northwold, politician
* [[Helen Simpson (author)|Helen Simpson]], short story writer
* [[Ann Thwaite]], biographer
* [[Tsuda Umeko]], educator
* [[Cecil Woodham-Smith]], historian
*[[Hou Yifan]], chess grandmaster and professor
{{div col end}}

===Fellows===
{{further|Category:Fellows of St Hilda's College, Oxford}}

* [[Mary Bennett (academic)|Mary Bennett]]
* [[William Boyd (writer)|William Boyd]], author
* [[Gordon Duff]]
* [[Helen Gardner (critic)|Helen Gardner]]
* [[Angelica Goodden]]
* [[Elspeth Kennedy]]
* [[Barbara Levick]]
* [[Beryl Smalley]]
* [[Helen Waddell]]
* [[Kathy Wilkes]]
* [[Dev Gangjee]]

===Honorary fellows===
{{further|List of honorary fellows of St Hilda's College, Oxford}}

* [[Jacqueline du Pré]]
* [[Doris Odlum]]
* [[Rosalyn Tureck]]

==Gallery==
<gallery mode="packed">
File:Garden Building, St. Hilda's College, Oxford.jpg|Garden Building
File:Hall building and Porter's Lodge, St. Hilda's College, Oxford.jpg|Hall building and Porters' Lodge (now demolished)
File:St Hilda's College Library.jpg|College library
File:St Hilda's South Building.jpg|South Building as seen from the croquet lawn
File:Jacqueline Du Pré Music Building, St Hilda's College.jpg|The exterior of the JdP
File:View_from_the_roof_of_the_Anniversary_Building.jpg|Anniversary building and Pavilion
</gallery>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|St Hilda's College, Oxford}}
* [http://www.st-hildas.ox.ac.uk/ St Hilda's College] (official website)
* [https://www.sthildasjcr.com/ Junior Common Room] (undergraduates)
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100613050845/http://www.sthildasmcr.org/ Middle Common Room] (graduates)

{{University of Oxford}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Hilda's College Oxford}}
[[Category:St Hilda's College, Oxford| ]]
[[Category:Colleges of the University of Oxford]]
[[Category:Universities and colleges established in 1893]]
[[Category:Former women's universities and colleges in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:1893 establishments in England]]