Harris Manchester College, Oxford

Harris Manchester College (HMC), officially Manchester Academy and Harris College, is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It was founded in Warrington in 1757 as the Warrington Academy, a college for Unitarian students and moved to Oxford in 1893. It became a full college of the university in 1996, taking its current name after its predecessor, the Manchester Academy, and donor Lord Harris of Peckham. History Foundation and relocation The college started as the Warrington Academy in 1757 where its teachers included Joseph Priestley, before being refounded as the Manchester Academy in Manchester in 1786. Originally run by English Presbyterians, it was one of several dissenting academies that provided religious nonconformists with higher education, as at the time the only universities in England – Oxford and Cambridge – were restricted to Anglicans. It taught theology, science, modern languages, language, history and classics. Its most famous professor was John Dalton, developer of atomic theory. The college changed its location five times before settling in Oxford. It was located in Manchester between 1786 and 1803, York until 1840, Manchester again between 1840 and 1853, and University Hall, Gordon Square, London, until 1889. In York, it was located at 38 Monkgate, just outside Monkbar; later this was the first building of the College of Ripon and York St John (now York St John University). The key person in York was Charles Wellbeloved, a Unitarian minister. In 1840, when he retired, the college moved back to Manchester, where it stayed until 1853. In 1840, the college started an association with the University of London, and gained the right to present students for degrees from London. Between 1853 and 1889 the college was located in University Hall, Gordon Square. In 1901, Gertrude von Petzold graduated from her training at Manchester College to become a minister in the Unitarian church, the first woman to be qualified as a minister in England. This was possible as the University of London became the first UK university to award degrees to women in 1878. From London it moved to Oxford, opening its new buildings in 1893. In Oxford, the Unitarian Manchester College was viewed with alarm by orthodox Anglicans. William Sanday was warned that his presence at the official opening of 'an institution which professedly allows such fundamental Christian truths as the Holy Trinity and the Incarnation to be treated as open questions' would 'tend to the severance of the friendly relation subsisting between the university and the Church'. World War II The Ministry of Works and Buildings requisitioned most of the college's buildings on 17 October 1941 to facilitate the Naval Intelligence and the Inter-Services Topographic Department (ISTD). ISTD operations focussed on gathering of topographical intelligence for the day when the Allies would return to continental Europe. The ISTD section housed in Manchester College played a role in the planning of the D-Day landings on 6 June 1944. The college's Arlosh Hall served as the main centre of operations, with Nissen huts and tents put up in the quads. Modern day Manchester College became a permanent private hall of Oxford University in 1990 and subsequently a full constituent college, being granted a royal charter in 1996. At the same time, it changed its name to Harris Manchester College in recognition of a donation by Philip Harris, Baron Harris of Peckham. The college houses several research centres, including the Commercial Law Centre, directed by Kristin van Zwieten; and the Wellbeing Research Centre, directed by Jan-Emmanuel De Neve. Principal Since October 2025 the principal of the college has been the sociologist Beth Breeze. Buildings The main quad was designed by architect Thomas Worthington, and built between 1889 and 1893. It houses the Tate Library and the chapel. The chapel contains stained-glass windows by the Pre-Raphaelite artists Sir Edward Burne-Jones and William Morris, as well as an organ painted by Morris and Co. The Arlosh hall, designed by Percy Worthington, was added in 1913. In 2013–2014 the Siew-Sngiem Clock Tower & Sukum Navapan Gate were added to the Arlosh quad. The inscription on the tower "It is later than you think, but it is never too late", refers to the role of the college in educating mature students. Gallery Notable people People associated with Harris Manchester Alumni Controversies 2017 racial discrimination allegations In 2017, the college warned students to be "vigilant" after a man who was not a student of Harris Manchester was spotted on the college grounds and circulated CCTV images of the person. After the college email was leaked to the public, he accused the college, in a Guardian op-ed, of sharing a "criminalised image" of him, because of his skin colour. 2020 sex offender incident In 2020, a PhD student of the college was convicted and sentenced to prison after attempting to solicit sex from a 14-year old boy in his accommodation. See also List of dissenting academies (19th century) References Further reading Davis, V.D. (1932). A History of Manchester College: From Its Foundation in Manchester to Its Establishment in Oxford. London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd. Schulman, Frank (1999). A Fine Victorian Gentleman: The Life and Times of Charles Wellbeloved. Oxford: Harris Manchester College. ISBN 0953484912. External links Harris Manchester College official website Virtual tour