# Rector of the University of Glasgow

The (Lord) Rector of the University of Glasgow is one of the most senior posts within the institution, elected every three years by students. The theoretical role of the rector is to represent students to the senior management of the university and raise issues which concern them. In order to achieve this, the rector is the statutory chair of the Court, the governing body of the university.
The position's place in the university was enshrined by statute in the Universities (Scotland) Act 1889, which provided for the election of a rector at all of the universities in existence at the time in Scotland (being St Andrews, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh). Students of the University of Dundee also elect a rector.
The latest rectorial election was concluded on 26 March 2024, and featured four candidates: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah, Susan McCabe, Paul Sweeney MSP, and Lady Rita Rae, who was seeking re-election. Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah, who received over 80% of the votes, was consequently installed as rector on the 11th of April 2024.

## Former rectors

Students have not always voted for working rectors; anti-apartheid activists Winnie Mandela (1987–1990) and Albert Lutuli (1962–1965) were elected on the understanding that they would be unable to undertake the position's responsibilities, while Mordechai Vanunu (2005–2008) was unable to fulfil his duties as he was not allowed to leave Israel and Edward Snowden (2014–2017) was not expected to fulfill his duties due to an ongoing self-imposed exile in Russia. However, other recent Rectors have been elected on the presumption they will be working rectors, e.g. Ross Kemp (1999–2000), who resigned from the post after the Students' Representative Council voted to request his resignation, such was the extent of student dissatisfaction with his performance. At the Rectorial election in February 2004, no nominations for the post of rector had been received. Upon the end of Greg Hemphill's term, the university was left without a rector for the first time in the position's history. The University Senate set another election date for December, when Mordechai Vanunu was elected. The post was left vacant for a second time at the end of Aamer Anwar's term in March 2020, with the scheduled Rectorial election postponed until March 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The previous rector was Lady Rita Rae, who was the first woman to hold the position in a standing capacity in the University's history. However, during her term she faced heavy criticism from the student body due to her alleged absenteeism, which she denied.

## Nations

Until 1977, for Rectorial election purposes, the university was divided into four 'nations' based on the students' birthplace, originally called Clidisdaliae, Thevidaliae, Albaniae and Rosay, and later as Glottiana, Loudoniana, Transforthana and Rothseiana. Three of the 'nations' consisted of defined areas in Scotland, with Loudoniana consisting of students from all other places.

## List of rectors

17th-century University of Glasgow rectors :
| Years | Name | Nationality | Biography |
| 1648–1650 | Robert Ramsay | Scotland | Clergyman |
| 1690–1691 | David Boyle | Scotland | Lord Clerk Register |
| 1691–1718 | Sir John Maxwell of Nether Park | Scotland | Commissioner for Renfrewshire in the Scottish Parliament |
18th-century University of Glasgow rectors :
| Years | Name | Nationality | Biography |
| 1691–1718 | Sir John Maxwell of Nether Park | Scotland | Commissioner for Renfrewshire in the Scottish Parliament |
| 1718–1720 | Mungo Graham of Gorthie | Scotland | Commr. justiciary for Highlands |
| 1720–1723 | Robert Dundas, of Arniston, the elder | Scotland | Lord President of the Court of Session |
| 1723–1725 | James Hamilton of Aikenhead | Scotland | |
| 1725–1726 | Sir Hugh Montgomerie of Hartfield | Scotland | |
| 1726–1729 | George Ross | Scotland | Master of Ross, 13th Lord Ross |
| 1729–1731 | Francis Dunlop of Dunlop | Scotland | |
| 1731–1733 | John Orr of Barrowfield | Scotland | |
| 1733–1738 | Colin Campbell of Blythswood | Scotland | |
| 1738–1740 | George Bogle of Daldowie, | Scotland | Glasgow Tobacco Lord |
| 1740–1742 | John Graham of Dugalston | Scotland | |
| 1742–1743 | John Orr of Barrowfield | Scotland | |
| 1743–1746 | George Bogle of Daldowie | Scotland | |
| 1746–1748 | Sir John Maxwell of Pollock | Scotland | |
| 1748–1750 | George Bogle of Daldowie | Scotland | |
| 1750–1753 | Sir John Maxwell of Pollock | Scotland | |
| 1753–1755 | William Mure of Caldwell | Scotland | |
| 1755–1757 | John Boyle | Scotland | The 3rd Earl of Glasgow |
| 1757–1759 | Patrick Boyle, Lord Shewalton | Scotland | |
| 1759–1761 | James Milliken of Milliken | Scotland | |
| 1761–1763 | The 15th Earl of Erroll | Scotland | Grand Master Mason of the Grand Lodge of Scotland |
| 1763–1764 | Thomas Miller | Scotland | Lord Glenlee, Lord Advocate |
| 1764–1767 | William Mure of Caldwell | Scotland | |
| 1767–1768 | Dunbar Douglas | Scotland | The 4th Earl of Selkirk |
| 1768–1770 | Sir Adam Ferguson of Kilkerran | Scotland | |
| 1770–1772 | Robert Ord | Scotland | |
| 1772–1773 | Lord Frederick Campbell | Scotland | Parliamentarian, Lord Clerk Register |
| 1773–1775 | Charles Schaw Cathcart, | Scotland | 9th Lord Cathcart, General (British Army), Ambassador to Russia |
| 1775–1777 | Sir James William Montgomery | Scotland | Lord Advocate, Chief Baron of Exchequer |
| 1777–1779 | Andrew Stewart of Torrance | Scotland | |
| 1779–1781 | The 7th Earl of Lauderdale | Scotland | Scottish representative peer |
| 1781–1783 | Henry Dundas | Scotland | Lord Advocate |
| 1783–1785 | Edmund Burke | Ireland | Philosopher |
| 1785–1787 | Robert Graham of Gartmore | Scotland | Parliamentarian, former student |
| 1787–1789 | Prof. Adam Smith | Scotland | Professor of Moral Philosophy, author of The Wealth of Nations, former student |
| 1789–1791 | Walter Campbell of Shawfield | Scotland | |
| 1791–1793 | Thomas Kennedy of Dunure | Scotland | |
| 1793–1795 | William Mure of Caldwell | Scotland | |
| 1795–1797 | William McDowell of Garthland | Scotland | |
| 1797–1799 | George Oswald of Auchencruive | Scotland | |
| 1799–1801 | Lord Succoth | Scotland | Lord Justice General |
19th-century University of Glasgow rectors :
| Years | Name | Nationality | Biography |
| 1799–1801 | Lord Succoth | Scotland | Lord Justice General |
| 1801–1803 | Lord Craig | Scotland | |
| 1803–1805 | Robert Dundas of Arniston | Scotland | Lord Advocate, Chief Baron of Exchequer |
| 1805–1807 | Henry Glassford of Dugalston | Scotland | |
| 1807–1809 | Archibald Colquhoun of Killermont | Scotland | Lord Advocate |
| 1809–1811 | Archibald Campbell of Blythswood | Scotland | |
| 1811–1813 | Lord Archibald Hamilton | Scotland | parliamentarian |
| 1813–1815 | General The 1st Baron Lynedoch | Scotland | Previously styled, up until May 1814, as General Sir Thomas Graham |
| 1815–1817 | Lord Boyle | Scotland | Lord Justice Clerk |
| 1817–1819 | The 4th Earl of Glasgow | Scotland | Prominent Scottish peer |
| 1819–1820 | Kirkman Finlay | Scotland | Lord Provost of Glasgow |
| 1820–1822 | Francis Jeffrey | Scotland | Senator of the College of Justice, former student |
| 1822–1824 | Sir James Mackintosh | Scotland | Jurist |
| 1824–1826 | Henry Brougham | Scotland | Lord Chancellor 1830–1834 |
| 1826–1829 | Thomas Campbell | Scotland | Poet, former student |
| 1829–1831 | The 3rd Marquess of Lansdowne | England | Chancellor of the Exchequer |
| 1831–1834 | Henry Thomas Cockburn | Scotland | Senator of the College of Justice |
| 1834–1836 | Lord Stanley | England | a later Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
| 1836–1838 | Sir Robert Peel | England | 2nd Bt., the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
| 1838–1840 | Sir James Graham | Scotland | 2nd Bt., Home Secretary |
| 1840–1842 | The 2nd Marquess of Breadalbane | Scotland | parliamentarian, former Grand Master Mason of the Grand Lodge of Scotland |
| 1842–1844 | Fox Maule | Scotland | parliamentarian and a later Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Scotland |
| 1844–1846 | Andrew Rutherfurd | Scotland | Lord Advocate |
| 1846–1847 | Lord John Russell | England | Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
| 1847–1848 | William Mure of Caldwell | Scotland | classical scholar, parliamentarian |
| 1848–1850 | Thomas Babington Macaulay | England | Parliamentarian |
| 1850–1852 | Sir Archibald Alison, 1st Bt. | Scotland | Institutional legal writer |
| 1852–1854 | The 13th Earl of Eglinton | Scotland | a former (and a later) Lord Lieutenant of Ireland |
| 1854–1856 | The 8th Duke of Argyll | Scotland | parliamentarian |
| 1856–1859 | Sir Edward Bulwer-Lytton | England | writer and politician |
| 1859–1862 | The 8th Earl of Elgin | Scotland | Viceroy of India 1862–1863 |
| 1862–1865 | The 3rd Viscount Palmerston | England | Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
| 1865–1868 | Lord Glencorse | Scotland | Lord President of the Court of Session |
| 1868–1871 | The 15th Earl of Derby | England | a former (and a later) Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs |
| 1871–1877 | Benjamin Disraeli (1st Earl of Beaconsfield from 1876) | England | Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
| 1877–1880 | William Ewart Gladstone | England | Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
| 1880–1883 | John Bright | England | Quaker, activist |
| 1883–1884 | Henry Fawcett | England | economist and parliamentarian |
| 1884–1887 | Edmund Law Lushington | England | Professor of Greek |
| 1887–1890 | The 1st Earl of Lytton | England | former Viceroy of India |
| 1890–1893 | A.J. Balfour | Scotland | former Chief Secretary for Ireland and a later Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
| 1893–1896 | Sir John Eldon Gorst | England | Solicitor-General for England and Wales |
| 1896–1899 | Joseph Chamberlain | England | statesman, father of Sir Austen Chamberlain (Rector 1925–1928) |
| 1899–1902 | The 5th Earl of Rosebery | Scotland | former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
20th-century University of Glasgow rectors :
| 1899–1902 | The 5th Earl of Rosebery | Scotland | former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
| 1902–1905 | George Wyndham | England | Chief Secretary for Ireland |
| 1905–1908 | H.H. Asquith | England | Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
| 1908–1911 | The 1st Earl Curzon of Kedleston | England | former Viceroy of India, Foreign Secretary |
| 1911–1914 | Augustine Birrell | England | Chief Secretary for Ireland and poet |
| 1914–1919 | Raymond Poincaré | France | President of the French Republic and a former (and later) Prime Minister of France |
| 1919–1922 | Bonar Law | Scotland | Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, former student |
| 1922–1925 | The 1st Earl of Birkenhead | England | Lord Chancellor |
| 1925–1928 | Sir Austen Chamberlain | England | parliamentarian and statesman |
| 1928–1931 | Stanley Baldwin | England | Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
| 1931–1934 | Compton Mackenzie | Scotland | novelist |
| 1934–1937 | Sir Iain Colquhoun | Scotland | 7th Bt. |
| 1937–1938 | Dick Sheppard | England | pacifist |
| 1938–1945 | Sir Archibald Sinclair | Scotland | 4th Bt., Leader of the British Liberal Party |
| 1945–1947 | Sir John Boyd-Orr | Scotland | physician, nutritionist and Nobel laureate (former student) |
| 1947–1950 | Walter Elliot | Scotland | politician (former student) |
| 1950–1953 | John MacCormick | Scotland | lawyer and famed nationalist (former student) |
| 1953–1956 | Tom Honeyman | Scotland | physician, director of Kelvingrove Art Gallery (former student) |
| 1956–1959 | Rab Butler | England | became Home Secretary while rector and a former Chancellor of the Exchequer (and a later Foreign Secretary) |
| 1959–1962 | Quintin Hogg | England | The 2nd Viscount Hailsham, Lord President of the Council (and a later Lord Chancellor) |
| 1962–1965 | Albert Lutuli | South Africa | President of the African National Congress and Nobel Peace Prize laureate (Absentee) |
| 1965–1968 | The 1st Baron Reith | Scotland | formerly the first Director-General of the BBC |
| 1968–1971 | George MacLeod | Scotland | The Baron MacLeod of Fuinary; Founder of the radical Christian organisation, the Iona Community; Past Moderator of the Church of Scotland |
| 1971–1974 | Jimmy Reid | Scotland | Trade union activist, his inaugural speech on social alienation was famous for its reference to the rat race |
| 1974–1977 | Arthur Montford | Scotland | sports journalist |
| 1977–1980 | John L. Bell | Scotland | Elected while a student at the university |
| 1980–1984 | Reginald Bosanquet | England | TV newsreader |
| 1984–1987 | Michael Kelly | Scotland | Lord Provost of Glasgow |
| 1987–1990 | Winnie Madikizela-Mandela | South Africa | South African activist and politician |
| 1990–1993 | Pat Kane | Scotland | musician, alumnus. |
| 1993–1996 | Johnny Ball | England | TV presenter |
| 1996–1999 | Richard Wilson | Scotland | actor |
| 1999–2000 | Ross Kemp | England | actor |
21st-century University of Glasgow rectors :
| 2001–2004 | Greg Hemphill | Scotland | actor and alumnus |
| 2004–2005 | Position vacant | | |
| 2005–2008 | Mordechai Vanunu | Israel | Israeli nuclear technician and whistle-blower (Absentee) |
| 2008–2014 | Charles Kennedy | Scotland | former Leader of the Liberal Democrats and alumnus. |
| 2014–2017 | Edward Snowden | United States | computer professional/intelligence whistleblower (Absentee) |
| 2017–2020 | Aamer Anwar | Scotland | Lawyer, human rights campaigner and alumnus |
| 2019–2020 | Position vacant | | The 2020 election was postponed for a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2021–2024 | Rita Rae, Lady Rae | Scotland | Former Senator of the College of Justice |
| 2024-present | Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah | Palestine | War surgeon who operated in Gaza during the Israel–Hamas war |