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This Quicksilver page talks about the Wren Library Cambridge and Sir Christopher Wren

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Wren went everywhere in the greater London area in the Baroque Era.

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Wikipedia: Trinity College

Trinity College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Trinity is the largest and richest of the colleges in Cambridge, and is now a home to around 600 undergraduates, 300 graduates, and over 160 Fellows. Trinity_CollegeMW.jpg
Trinity College's Great Court, with the students Dinner Hall on the very left, the Master's Lodge
(currently being renovated), the Fountain in the middle, and the Chapel on the right.
This picture was taken by Timwi in February 2004 and was released by him into the public domain

The college was founded by Henry VIII in 1546 and most of its major buildings date from the 16th and 17th centuries. Trinity was formed by combining Michaelhouse and King's Hall, two older colleges. Michaelhouse had existed since 1324; King's Hall had been established by Edward II in 1317 and refounded by Edward III in 1337.

Much of the college was re-designed and re-built by Thomas Nevile, who became Master of Trinity in 1593. This work included the construction of Nevile's Court between Great Court and the river Cam. The Court was completed in the late 17th century when the Wren Library, designed by Sir Christopher Wren, was built.

Its sister college is Christ Church, Oxford, which was founded by Henry VIII in the same year.

Trinity's rowing club is the First and Third Trinity Boat Club.

Trinity has a strong academic tradition and has provided four Fields Medallists, as well as 31 Nobel prize laureates since they were first awarded in 1901.

Wikipedia: Wren Library, Cambridge

The Wren Library is the library of Trinity College in Cambridge. It was designed by Christopher Wren in 1676 and completed in 1695. It is credited as being one of the first libraries to be built with large windows to give comfortable light levels to aid readers.

The library is a single large room built on the second floor over an open collonade on the ground floor of Nevile's Court. The book stacks are arranged in rows perpendicular to walls between each window. At the end of each stack is a fine limewood carving by Grinling Gibbons and above that a marble bust depicting a notable member of the college. The busts were primarily carved by Louis-François Roubiliac. A later addition is a full size statue of Lord Byron carved by Bertel Thorvaldsen, originally offered to Westminster Abbey for inclusion in Poets' Corner, but refused due to the poet's reputation for immorality.

On the east balustrade of the library's roof are four statues by Gabriel Cibber representing Divinity, Law, Physic, and Mathematics.

Notable Books

The library contains many notable rare books and manuscripts, many bequeathed by past members of the college.

Included in the collection are; * Isaac Newton's first edition copy of Principia Mathematica with hand written notes for the second edition. * An eighth century copy of the Epistles of St Paul * A. A. Milne's autograph copy of Winnie-the-Pooh * The Capell collection of early Shakespeare editions * A collection of autograph poems by John Milton * Several Caxton bibles * Several notebooks written by Ludwig Wittgenstein

Visiting

The library is open to the public, but opening times are very limited. Check the external link for current times. There is no admission charge, but there is usually a charge for tourists entering the college

Wikipedia: Christopher Wren

Sir Christopher Wren (October 20, 1632 - February 25, 1723) was an English architect of the seventeenth century, famous for his role in the re-building of London's churches after the Great Fire of London of 1666.

Life and Times

Wren is particularly known for his design for St Paul's Cathedral, one of very few cathedrals in England to have been built after the medieval period, and the only Renaissance cathedral in the country. An inscription inside the cathedral, dedicated to the architect, reads, “Lector, si monumentum requiris, circumspice” ("Reader, if you seek his memorial, look around you").

Born in 1632 in Wiltshire, Wren was the son of the dean of Windsor. His academic career was centered at Oxford, where he was a member of both Wadham and All Soul's Colleges. In 1657, he became professor of astronomy at Gresham College and four years later he became the Savilian Professor of astronomy at Oxford until his resignation in 1673. Wren was also one of the founding members of the Royal Society, of which he was president from 1680 to 1682.

His first serious architectural venture was the Sheldonian Theatre, which can still be seen at Oxford, and he designed various other university buildings in both Oxford and Cambridge.

After the Great Fire of London, he was selected as the architect of St Paul's, the previous building having been destroyed. The design and construction of the new cathedral took from 1675 to 1710, and in the interim Wren designed many other buildings, including over fifty London churches, many of which remain standing. These include St Bride's, St Mary le Bow, St Clement Danes, St Benet Paul's Wharf, and St Stephen Walbrook. In addition, he was involved in the design of the Monument to the Great Fire of London, Royal Greenwich Observatory, Chelsea Hospital, Greenwich Hospital, Marlborough House, the Ashmolean Museum, the Wren Library, and many other distinguished buildings.

Christopher Wren was Knighted in 1673 and also served as a member of Parliament in 1685-1688 and 1702-1705.

Wren died in 1723 and was buried at St Paul's.