Senate House

The Senate House stands in the heart of Cambridge between King’s and Gonville and Caius Colleges. Designed by James Gibbs in the 1720s, it is built of Portland stone in a neo-classical style. The first stone was laid in 1722 and the main part completed by 1730, though the western end took until 1768. It was intended as one side of a quadrangle that was never finished, yet it remains part of the Old Schools Site. The building is Grade I listed and has served the university for three centuries. Its importance lies in the graduation ceremonies held within its walls. Each year the colleges process in order of their foundation to present graduands to the vice-chancellor. The Praelector leads each student forward and recites a Latin formula attesting to their character and learning. After kneeling and receiving the degree, graduates leave through the Doctor’s door and collect their certificates in the passage beyond. The Mathematical Tripos results for Part II and Part III are read aloud from the balcony, followed by the ceremonial dropping of class-lists to the cheering crowd below. Visitors find a grand hall with high ceilings and classical columns. The walls bear the names of past scholars and the floor is worn by generations of feet. Outside, the lawns of the Old Schools Site stretch toward the colleges. The western façade still shows the incomplete section from the 18th century. Above, the roof has hosted student pranks such as an Austin Seven van in 1958 and a Christmas tree in 2022. The building’s light show during the university’s 800th anniversary turned its stone into a canvas of colour.