![[Christ's College]](../images/g/gb_cuchr.jpg)
image located by Jan Mertens, 8 April 2009Last modified: 2009-05-24 by rob raeside
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We have two sheets of drawing of Oxford and Cambridge club flags amongst a donation at the Library, but there is no source. Further, they have all been redrawn in coloured pencil, so the precise shades are not always apparent. I have corrected some using more general sources on the colleges. The flags are all drawn as 3:2.
image located by Jan Mertens, 8 April 2009
Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/robep/2247523223/
Christ’s College of Cambridge University shows the arms on its website at
http://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/. These
are the same as St John's. God’s House,
founded in 1448, was refounded in 1505 by Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry
VII – a bequest of hers was to establish St John’s six years later. A
Christ College banner of arms, not square this time (I think) appears on this
Flickr photo by “robep”,
uploaded on 6 Feb 2008.
Jan Mertens, 8 April 2009
Flag is quartered, first and fourth azure, three fleur de lys or, second and third gules, three lions passant or; a bordure azure and argent.
![[Clare College]](../images/g/gb_cucla.jpg)
image located by Jan Mertens, 16 April 2009
The banner of arms of Clare College, University of Cambridge (GB) may be seen at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/davidalderson/2447792187/, a Flickr photo made
by David Alderson, uploaded on 27 Apr 2008. Another sighting is at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/descensus_in_cuniculi_cavum/2221040706/, a
Flickr photo made by “london_emigre”, uploaded on 26 Jan 2008.
The blazon
was found here (grateful quote follows):
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=66644, “Or three
chevrons gules (for Clare) impaling or a cross gules (for de Burgh) all within a
border sable with golden drops.”
An old rendition of the arms can be
found at
http://www.ngw.nl/catalogue/tobaccocards/wills/willsoxcam_clip_image003.jpg.
According to the college’s official website, Clare is the oldest but one
of the Cambridge University colleges (http://www.clare.cam.ac.uk/index.html):
“(…) founded in 1326, and generously endowed a few years later by Lady Elizabeth
de Clare (Lady de Burgh), a granddaughter of King Edward I (…). In 1336 King
Edward III (…) granted licence ‘to his cousin Elizabeth de Burgo’ to establish a
collegium (the word originally meant ‘a corporation of scholars’…) although it
was in the first instance referred to nonspecifically as ‘the House of the
University of Cambridge’, it became known as Clare Hall as early as 1339 (the
present simplified title, ‘Clare’, dates from 1856).”
Jan Mertens, 16
April 2009
![[Corpus Christi College]](../images/g/gb_cacch.gif)
image located by Jan Mertens, 2 July 2008
Source:
http://www.corpus.cam.ac.uk/mcr/flag
The flag is a Banner of Arms of Corpus Christi College. It is divided into
quarters with the upper left and lower right quarters being red with a white
pelican-in-her-piety, representing the Body of Christ, and the upper right and
lower left quarters being bluer with three white lily flowers representing the
Virgin Mary. By tradition, the flag flown at Leckhampton [a graduate student
residence] also has the addition of a green border. Green is the traditional
colour associated with Leckhampton and which serves to distinguish it from the
rest of the College, so the green bordered 'banner of arms' flag is often simply
referred to as the 'Leckhampton Flag'.
Source:
http://www.corpus.cam.ac.uk/mcr/flag
contributed by Jan Mertens, 2 July 2008
![[Girton College]](../images/g/gb_cugir.jpg)
image located by Jan Mertens, 30 April 2009
Girton College is – or was, rather –
unusual in that it provided a home for women studying at Cambridge University
(GB):
“Established in 1869 as the first residential College for women, Girton
occupies spacious grounds to the northwest of the centre of Cambridge. It became
mixed in 1977 with the arrival of the first male Fellows, and male
undergraduates have been admitted since 1979. The equal balance between the
numbers of men and women, amongst both the Fellowship and the students, is
matched by no other College.”
Direct links to photos showing the banner
of arms (the arms itself are shown on above page):
http://www.localsecrets.com/images/dynamicimages/girton250.jpg
http://www.twu.edu/dsc/girton_college.jpg
The image above is taken
from this Girton page:
http://www.girton.cam.ac.uk/alumni-roll/development-campaign/girtons-annual-fund.
These are composite arms, fully explained at
http://www.girton.cam.ac.uk/about/college-history/college-crest/. They
represent Emily Davies (ideal or ascribed arms: green/sinople and white/argent
colours), Barbara Bodichon (ermines), Henry Tomkinson (cross), and Henrietta
Maria, Lady Stanley (crescents). Blazon, gratefully lifted from
this source: “Quarterly Vert and Argent a cross flory countercharged a
Roundel Ermine and in the second and third quarters a Crescent Gules.”
Jan
Mertens, 30 April 2009
![[Gonville and Caius College]](../images/g/gb_cagvc.jpg)
image by Jonathan Dixon, 9 July 2007
This very large banner of arms was flying at Gonville and Caius College on one
occasion (13 April 2007). The arms of Gonville and Caius College were formed in
1575 by impaling the arms of the founders, Edmund Gonville and John Caius (http://www.cai.cam.ac.uk/rota.php?count=3).
A blazon can be found at
http://www.netsoc.tcd.ie/~peterh/armscantab.html, a page with blazons for
all the Cambridge colleges:
"Argent, on a chevron between two couple closes indented sable three escallops
or impaling, Or semy of flowers gentle, in the middle of the chief a sengrene
resting upon the heads of two serpents in pale, their tails knit together, all
in proper colour, resting upon a square marble stone vert, between their breasts
a book sable garnished gules, buckles or; all within a bordure compony argent
and sable."
Jonathan Dixon, 9 July 2007
A Flickr photo shows additional details:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnlinwood/3163751034/, put up by John Linwood
on 3 Jan 2009. Caius arms, 1561:
http://www.cai.cam.ac.uk/rota.php?count=3. Gonville and Caius large arms
(clickable, too):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caius_Boat_Club. For a special case see the
sledging flag on the page linked to, 20 Nov. 2008.
Jan Mertens, 26
January 2009
[Antarctic explorer] "Wilson's flag hangs in Gloucester Cathedral (…). I thought
it was at his Cambridge college, Gonville & Caius, but going there last October
and seeing the flag in the dining hall, it was clear that this was the college
flag which Wilson took south with him (…) and not his
sledging flag. It's mounted on the wall beside the high table, protected by
a covering."
See the flag in all its beauty here (tiny shield on a blue
field):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9494577@N04/2068815457/ for which we have to
thank mffitzgerald (photo uploaded 27 Nov 2007). Caption: "From the dining hall
at Caius and Gonville".
Jan Mertens, 4 February 2009
![[Jesus College]](../images/g/gb_cujesus.jpg)
image located by Jan Mertens, 28 February 2009
Source:
http://www.jesus.cam.ac.uk/alumni/gifts/flag.html
Jesus College of Cambridge University uses a banner of arms, as described at the
college website.
Jan Mertens,
12 July 2008
Blazon (my attempt at modernizing the original one, at the
college website):
“Silver a fess between three cock’s heads razed sable combed and wattled a
border gules semy of crowns or.”
In the current version, eight crowns are
shown. An old rendering can be found at
http://www.heraldryshop.biz/catalogue/tobaccocards/wills/willsoxcam_clip_image008.jpg
Jan Mertens, 21 July 2008
![[Jesus College]](../images/g/gb_cumag.jpg)
image located by Jan Mertens, 2 April 2009
A black and white photo shows the square banner of arms of Magdalene College,
Cambridge Unversity (GB):
http://mcr.magd.cam.ac.uk/gallery/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=3715&g2_serialNumber=2.
I was not lucky enough to find a good colour picture. The arms however are shown
here in their splendour:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/beery_pix/524954785/.
Quoting
(gratefully) the blazon from this site
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=66655:
“Quarterly per
pale indented or and azure a bend azure and two eagles or with a fret and two
martlets or on the bend.”
Magdelene College was founded 1542 by Thomas,
Lord Audley, Lord Chancellor (hence the arms) who in fact refounded Buckingham
College (established between 1472 and 1483). Not to be confused with Magdalen
College, Oxford.
Jan Mertens, 2 April 2009
![[Flag of Queen's College]](../images/g/gb_cuqueens.jpg)
image located by Jan Mertens, 22 July 2008
Source:
http://flickr.com/photos/sgrice/2287241316/
Queen's College, Cambridge University (GB), photos by Sarah Grice and "robep",
respectively show the flag is a banner of arms
http://flickr.com/photos/sgrice/2287241316/
and
http://flickr.com/photos/robep/2247523229/. The official site at
http://www.queens.cam.ac.uk/default.asp?MIS=2 includes a blazon of the arms
at
http://www.queens.cam.ac.uk/Queens/Misc/arms.html:
"These arms are those
of the first foundress Queen, Margaret of Anjou, which she derived from those of
her father René, Duke of Anjou, with the addition of a green border for the
College. The six quarters of these arms represent the six lordships (either
actual or titular) which he claimed. Quarterly of six:
![[St. Catherines College]](../images/g/gb_custcath.jpg)
image located by Jan Mertens, 12 July 2008
Source:
http://www.oxyworldwide.com/issueArticles?articleId=7&issueId=1
St Catharine's College of Cambridge University uses a flag with a red field,
yellow St Catherine's wheel. The
college website
shows the arms. A large picture is provided by
biannual newsletter, named after the symbol. An
old depiction of arms shows the wheel as merely the crest.
Jan Mertens,
12 July 2008
![[St. John's College]](../images/g/gb_cajohn.jpg)
image located by Jan Mertens, 24 February 2009
The arms of St John's College, Cambridge University, are seen on a flag at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsysco/2391120282/ (Flickr photo by "Jsysco"
uploaded 5 Apr 2008). An old rendition of these arms can be seen at
http://www.heraldryshop.biz/catalogue/tobaccocards/wills/willsoxcam_clip_image017.jpg.
A college website shows the full arms with supporters, but not the badges
(portcullis and rose):
http://www.joh.cam.ac.uk/.
The college was founded 1511, executing
the will of Henry VII's mother, Margaret Beaufort. More on the supporters can be
found at
http://www.joh.cam.ac.uk/about/tour/front_gate/:
"The curious beasts on
either side are yales, mythical animals having elephants' tails, antelopes'
bodies and goats' heads, with horns which can supposedly swivel from back to
front!" The eagle recalls St John the Evangelist. A large image of Beaufort arms
can be seen at
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Thomas_Beaufort_Arms.svg. Borne after
their legitimation, the royal arms (indicating descent from John of Gaunt) were
differenced by a bordure compony argent and azure.
Jan Mertens, 21
December 2008
The image above is a variant, and while elaborate and beautiful, it is not
the banner of arms.
Jan Mertens, 24 February 2009
