Famous Members

Emmanuel has featured in the lives of many distinguished scholars, scientists and politicians. In this section we have put together pages for some of those no longer alive.

Unless noted, the following biographies have been taken from Dr Frank Stubbings's book, 49 Lives, which was published on the College's quatercentenary in 1984.

Sir Walter Mildmay (1520-1589)

Emmanuel College was founded by Sir Walter Mildmay in 1584 on the site of a former priory of the Dominican Order, also known as the Black Friars or Preachers.

Laurence Chaderton (1536-1640)

First Master of Emmanuel and one of those responsible for producing the 'King James' Authorised Version of the Bible

John Harvard (1607-1638)

Bequeathed funds that led to the foundation of the University that bears his name

John Wallis (1616-1703)

Mathematician who developed calculus and who introduced the symbol for 'infinity', ∞

William Sancroft (1617-1693)

Successively seventh Master of Emmanuel, Dean of St Paul's and 79th Archbishop of Canterbury

Sir William Temple (1628-1699)

Restoration diplomat, statesman and essayist

Richard Farmer (1735-1797)

Thirteenth Master of Emmanuel, Shakespearean scholar and celebrated 18th century don

Thomas Young (1773-1829)

A genuine polymath. A physician who developed the wave theory of light, devised Young's modulus and deciphered Egyptian hieroglyphs using the Rosetta stone

Fenton John Anthony Hort (1828-1892)

Fellow of the College who produced a revised version of the New Testament

Frederick Gowland Hopkins (1861-1947)

Fellow of the College and winner of the Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine in 1929 for the discovery of vitamins

William Norman Birkett (1883-1962)

Barrister and judge who served as one of the three British judges during the Nuremberg trials

Edward Welbourne (1894-1966)

Historian and immensely influential 20th Master of Emmanuel during the 1950s and early 1960s

Ronald George Wreyford Norrish (1897-1978)

Fellow of the College who won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry (with George Porter) in 1967

George Porter (1920-2002)

Winner of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry (with Ronald Norrish) in 1967