If you are visiting the city of Belfast, your visit will not be complete unless you visit Queen’s University. It was founded in 1845 and has survived and thrived as an institution of learning, with a high reputation throughout the world.
Queen’s University has a coat of arms that contains a crown in the center in honor of its founder, Queen Victoria. On top is the book of learning, on the left is the red hand that symbolizes the province of Ulster, on the right is the seahorse that represents the city of Belfast and in the lower quadrant is the harp that represents Ireland.
It has been known as:
- Queen’s College 1845-1881
- Royal University 1881-1908
- Queen’s University 1908 onwards
Queen’s University is situated just a 10-minute walk from Belfast city center on University Road and is close to the Botanic Gardens. It is well signposted from the city center so it should be easy to find. If you prefer a taxi, it will only take a few minutes to get there. When you arrive, go to the front of the university that I have shown in the image above. To your right you will see a small terrace of brown brick houses which, in 1845, marked the end of Belfast’s city limits.
Still looking to your right, you will see University Square Terrace, which was built in the Georgian style as a speculative enterprise between 1849 and 1872. The staff could not afford these houses except for one person, the first university treasurer, Alexander Dickey, who gave the It just so happened that he was also a greengrocer. The University owns all of these now and is, in my opinion, the best example of Georgian Belfast terrace housing.
If you turn around from here and look across the street, you’ll see the Student Union which opened in 1966, just three years before The Troubles began, and has all the architectural features (or lack thereof) of that epoch. To the left of that is Elmwood Hall, once a church and on its front is a War Memorial to the men and women of Queens who died in both world wars. This was revealed by the Duke and Duchess of York in 1924.
Again to the left is Sir William Whitla Hall, designed by John McCreagh which began construction in 1939 and was completed in 1946. It breaks with the Tudor Gothic tradition on which the rest of the University is based. It is time to turn around now and once again see the front of the University. Look straight through the gates and you’ll see the original college, designed by Sir Charles Lanyon in 1849. Lanyon is probably Belfast’s most famous architect and also designed 38 churches, Custom’s House, Queen’s Bridge and Antrim Coast Road. What a pedigree!
He was a property speculator and also became Mayor of Belfast. In my opinion, Queen’s University is its crowning glory and if you look closely you will notice the towers, the gargoyles, the flattened arches, all done in red brick. This was a popular style in the mid-19th century and was made popular by Barry and Pugin who completed the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, London. Lanyon reportedly used the Founder’s Tower at Magdalen College in Oxford as his inspiration for building Queens. There were originally classrooms to the left, the president’s office was in the royal tower, the Great Hall is to his right, and the tower beyond was the home of the college’s vice president.
Walk through the doors and now head to the University where you will be greeted by the Entrance Hall. You should now be standing on a mosaic floor showing the arms of the Province of Ulster, quartered with the Royal Arms of Queen Victoria. This theme of the red hand, the symbol of the Province of Ulster, is a trend that persists throughout the University. Go through the gates and right in front of you will see a statue of Galileo designed by Pio Fedi. Sir William Whitla brought this statue back from Italy and gave it to the University.
In the image on the left, look above the Galileo statue and you will see a beautiful stained glass window. This was designed in 1939 by JENuttgens but was not erected until after the second world war. Once again, the red hand is present here, as are the other symbols of Queen’s University.
To your left where you just entered is the Queen’s Visitor Center and at its entrance you will find a plaque honoring Edwin Godkin. He left Queens without a degree and became a war correspondent in the Crimean War. He eventually emigrated to the United States and founded “The Nation,” which he edited for 35 years. Go through this door, turn right and follow the stairs to the landing. To your right is the Canada Room, once used for lectures and as a zoology museum, before being converted to offices and then redesigned by Robert McKinstry in 1986. The room is paneled in Canadian maple and decorated with the coats of arms of guns of canada
You can now go through the double doors into the Academic Council Chamber and into what was once a conference room. This gives you an idea of the full height of the building and you can see the famous Lanyon roof beams. Go back to the landing now and go through the double doors that should be in front of you. This is the Art Gallery, where there should be a curator present to explain the latest exhibition. Go back downstairs and once more into the entrance hall. Follow the signs to the Great Hall.
Please watch the video above which gives you interesting information about the Great Hall. This room was used as a refectory and examination room. Before you leave, check out the portrait of the man in the coat, red scarf, and hat known as “Dickie Hunter.” He was a professor of anatomy and secretary of the University and his hobby was organizing Christmas circuses in the city of Belfast and acting as ringmaster. The strange pose of him is probably best explained when he studied art in Paris. He now he goes back through the front doors and turns left out and into a ring. Here you can see the back of the original school with some later additions.
You are standing in the cloisters and just behind you, above the fireplace, you can see the cipher “VR” (Victoria Regina) with the date 1848. Opposite you can see the famous window in the fireplace, which is where Thomas Andrews and a distinguished chemist had his fume cupboard. In the middle of the cloistered façade is the clock. It was not Lanyon’s intention to create a quadrangle and this only occurred during a rebuilding program from 1910-1912. Look to your right and you will see the School of Physics, with another beautiful tower which was designed by William Henry Lynn in 1911 Directly opposite is the Library Tower erected in 1952 and next door is the Peter Froggatt Teaching Centre. If you now cross the quadrangle and through the 1952 Arch, directly in front of you is the University Library, also designed by Lynn. You will notice a change in the architectural style here and this influence is due to John Ruskin and the “Ruskinesque Gothic” style.
The library was enlarged in 1911 and, in fact, has been remodeled several times. The once open spaces of the library have now given way to stacks of books. The library, as you can imagine, is constantly in use and a guide is required if you wish to visit. Go through the archway between the library buildings and you’ll see the full scale of University Square with its huge windows. Go back through the arches and when you turn left you will come to the School of Music. Going back to 1895 there was a medical school with a bolt-on university. The then medical students raised money and built the original Men’s Student Union, which is the centerpiece of this magnificent block. It was extended twice in 1911 and then in 1933. It is now known as the Harty Room and has, in my opinion, the finest hammer beam ceiling in Ireland.
Head inside and enjoy turning right and walking up to McMordie Hall, once a stained glass discussion hall. It is not always open and you may have to ask at reception to gain access. Once you’re done, walk up the ramp and you can then visit the Seamus Heaney Library, which stands on the site of the former Instruction Room. Turn right there and go up the steps and you can visit the old Physic’s Tower on your left. It’s an unusual piece of architecture and you’ll see above the arch the old Royal College coat of arms, which was carved by Morris Harding in 1948, along with the carved shamrocks, leeks, roses and thistles on the vaults. You will also see the arms of Lord Kelvin and the Earl of Rosse and on the opposite side of the arch the arms of Sir Isaac Newton and the Earls of Cork and Orrey.
Your turn ends here when you return to the University entrance. Hopefully this tour will have given you a taste of those who have passed through its halls, and a taste of the knowledge that has been created and learned over the years. we in the Belfast City BlogI would highly recommend this tour.
