page_title: Queen's College, London
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Queen's College, London / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Waiting Room, Queen's College
context_page_description: Queen's College is an independent school for girls aged 11–18 with an adjoining prep school for girls aged 4–11 located in the City of Westminster, London. Founded in 1848 by theologian and social reformer Frederick Denison Maurice along with a committee of patrons, the College was the first institution in the world to award academic qualifications to women. In 1853, it also became the first girls' school to be granted a Royal Charter for the furtherance of women's education. Ever since, the College patron has been a British queen; the current patron is Queen Elizabeth II.
  The College has a distinctly liberal ethos based upon the principles of F. D. Maurice.
context_section_description: In 1845 David Laing, chaplain of the Middlesex Hospital raised funds with a committee of patrons to acquire a building at 47 Harley Street with the intention of creating a home for unemployed governesses. 
  Laing was keen to develop the institution to provide governesses with an education and certification. In 1847 he acquired the agreement of professors from King's College London to give lectures in the Home. Queen Victoria gave her assent, promise of funds and patronage. In 1847 the first lectures took place, the Committee of Education was established under the chair of F. D. Maurice, and number 45 was purchased. In December of the same year, the first certificates were issued. Meanwhile, it was decided to extend the reach of the education on offer to women who were not governesses.
  The establishment of the College was met with criticism by the press, F. D. Maurice was forced to defend the intention of teaching mathematics to women against claims of its 'dangerous' consequences.
  William Sterndale Bennett and John Pyke Hullah were among the founding directors.
  In the early days of the College, lectures were given to a single classroom of girls ranging from 12 to 20 years of age. The younger pupils were soon to be given their own school at the back of the buildings, which was also open to boys. The Waiting Room became the place where girls would gather and be introduced by the Lady Resident to their chaperones who remained with them throughout their classes and were known as the 'Lady Visitors' (one of them being Henrietta Stanley, Baroness Stanley of Alderley). When the College was separated from the Governesses' Benevolent Institution in 1853, a new Governing Council was established, with the 'Visitor', the Bishop of London as its figurehead, an arrangement which continues to this day. Following the resignation of Maurice in 1853, Richard Chenevix Trench became the first Principal and took over as Chair of the Committee of Education.
  The college had resisted attempts to become, or merge with, a college of London University. The Lady Resident Eleanor Grove and linguist Rosa Morison had left together in the 1880s because of this and they returned to lead College Hall, London. 
  The practice of offering lectures from visitors throughout the year is a tradition of the College.
  During the Second World War, the College escaped destruction when a bomb exploded on the opposite side of Harley Street. The windows at the front of the building were smashed and plaster work damaged. The College continued to function during the war with classes held in bomb shelters constructed in the main corridor. Evacuation of the pupils to the Lake District and then to Northamptonshire was short-lived.
  The College ceased to offer boarding accommodation in the 1980s and Kynaston House was re-modelled from the accommodation to offices, a senior common room and a library.
  In 2002, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother opened Queen's College Preparatory School at 61 Portland Place.
caption: The Waiting Room
exif: {"Image Make": "HTC", "Image Model": "HTC_HD2", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "QuickTime 7.6.4", "Image DateTime": "2011:08:02 01:26:43", "Image HostComputer": "Mac OS X 10.4.9", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "234", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "650", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "4584", "Thumbnail YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "EXIF ExposureTime": "81/1024", "EXIF FNumber": "819/256", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2011:07:08 11:54:34", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2011:07:08 11:54:34", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "819/256", "EXIF LightSource": "Daylight", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2592", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1552", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Manual", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF Contrast": "Normal", "EXIF Saturation": "Normal", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal", "EXIF SubjectDistanceRange": "1"}