King's College, Aberdeen, United Kingdom

King's College in Old Aberdeen is a formerly independent university founded in 1495 and now an integral part of the University of Aberdeen. Its historic buildings are the centrepiece of the University of Aberdeen's Old Aberdeen campus, often known as the King's or King's College campus.

The focal point of the college, as well as its oldest building, is the late 15th century King's College Chapel. A number of other historic buildings remain, with others being subject to renovation and rebuilding in the 18th and 19th centuries. In the early 20th century, a great deal of expansion saw the university buildings increase around the historic college buildings. In the later 20th century, the university expanded dramatically in size, dominating Old Aberdeen and expanding out from the High Street with a number of modern buildings.

Construction of the King's College Chapel began in 1498 and ended with the consecration of the building in 1509. The most notable architectural feature of the Chapel is its Crown Tower, which has become an icon of the university as a whole.

Particularly notable within the chapel are the choir stalls and rood screen, which date back to around 1509. These form the most complete mediaeval church interior in Scotland. Since 1928, the antechapel has been used as the university's war memorial: five hundred and twenty-four students of the university are commemorated on its walls, having fallen in the First and Second World Wars.

References:

Wikipedia

Miscellaneous historic sites in United Kingdom

User Reviews

lilykartofel (3 years ago)
Beautiful place on campus

Wahyu Hidayat (4 years ago)
Beautiful and amazing building in Old Aberdeen

Alpha Barrie (4 years ago)
Very good experience

Paul C (4 years ago)
Nice grounds. Good photo opportunity.

Alistair Milton (5 years ago)
Lovely building which I had the privelage of studying. For a whole academic year I had maths lectures here 9am, 5 days a week. Not so easy to appreciate the beauty and history of the building in dreich winters morning. It is set in the most beautiful area of Old Aberdeen with narrow cobbled streets and manicured lawns. Summer is a great time to visit but there is something special about late autumn with the fallen leaves sparkling with frost.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright R. Van Wallendael

Historic Site of the week

St. Martin Rotunda

The Chapel of St. Martin is the only completely preserved Romanesque building in Vyšehrad and one of the oldest in Prague. In was built around 1100 in the eastern part of the fortified outer ward. Between 1100 and 1300, the Rotrunda was surrounded by a cemetery. The building survived the Hussite Wars and was used as the municipal prison of the Town of the Vyšehrad Hill.

During the Thirty Years’ War, it was used as gunpowder storage, from 1700 to 1750, it was renovated and reconsecrated. In 1784, the chapel was closed passed to the military management which kept using it as a warehouseand a cannon-amunition manufacturing facility. In 1841, it was meant to be demolished to give way to the construction of a new road through Vyšehrad. Eventually, only the original western entrance was walled up and replaced with a new one in the sountren side. The dilapidating Rotunda subsequently served as a shelter for the poor.

King's College

Address

Details

More Information

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Finest Norman castles in Italy

Exploring the History of Northern Poland

Discovering Slovenia's Historic Wonders

Historic Site of the week

St. Martin Rotunda