The last post looked at the nearly 300 years during which bishops and archbishops served as Chancellors of the University. This post turns to the period following the abolition of Episcopacy in 1689.
The position of Chancellor lay vacant for many years. The absence was perhaps most notable in 1696-7 when the University was in dispute with the St Andrews Town Council over jurisdiction. The minutes of Senatus Academicus for the 16th of August 1697 reflect this situation:
The University met, and taking to their consideration the great losse the University hath sustained for some years past through the want of a Chancellor….after mature deliberation, putting it to the vote who might be fittest person for that office, The University considering the personal merit of the right honourable John Earle of Tullibardine….therefore uninamously by vote nominate to elect the said John Earle of Tullibardine Chancellor of the said University
John Murray, 1st Duke of Atholl (1697–1724) and 1st Earl of Tullibardine, studied at St Andrews from 1674 to 1677. A supporter of King William III, he held many political positions including, perhaps most importantly for the University, Secretary of State for Scotland (1696-1698). His position in society allowed him to act as advocate and ambassador for the University.
In the minutes of Senatus for 1703 the masters of the Colleges are instructed to gather their thoughts on what University matters to take to the chancellor in their meeting with him at Dunkeld. In the case of the dispute with the Town, when he was first appointed, Tullibardine suggested the University be moved to Perth. This proposal was seriously considered by the University in conjunction with the magistrates of Perth, though it ultimately did not come to pass.
In 1724, Chancellor James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos (1724–1744) was elected be Senatus. Having served in the House of Commons, he was made Duke of Chandos in 1719. His lasting impact on the University was the establishment of the Chandos Chair of Medicine in 1722. His original intention had been to create a Chair of Eloquence, but the University suggested that the endowment instead support medicine. More about the gift can be found on Legacies of Empire.
Following Chandos, a royal appointment was made with Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland (1746–1765). The youngest son of George II, the Duke of Cumberland is probably best known for his role in the Battle of Culloden in 1746. After many instances of students and staff demonstrating Jacobite loyalties in the 1710s, the University perhaps wished to make a clear demonstration of loyalty and thus sent out a delegation to Perth in 1746 to offer Cumberland the Chancellorship:
4 February 1746
The University appoints the Rector, Messrs D Young, Thomas Craigie and Dr Simson, or any two of them to wait on his Royal Highness the Duke of Cumberland, and in their name to congratulat him on his safe arrival in Scotland, and his success against the Rebels and to use their best endeavours to know if they may have his R. H’.s Leave to chose him their Chancellor.
Cumberland accepted, though there is little evidence of him taking a particularly active interest in the University.
Instruction was made to draw up the Instrument of Election (or diploma) with the University’s seal (copy text in above image). The seal was to be presented in a gold box, perhaps reflecting his royal status, as subsequent chancellors were awarded with a silver box. His birthday (the day before the Battle of Culloden) was also commemorated with bonfires at all the college gates and the ringing of bells.
In contrast to his predecessor, Thomas Hay, 9th Earl of Kinnoull (1765–1787) took a much more hands-on approach to his position as Chancellor. He served as MP for Cambridge (1741-1758) and took on the role of chancellor in his retirement.
There is evidence of him visiting the town on more than one occasion. In 1773 he donated money to the University for the repair of one of the halls after a recent visit to the University. He was a frequent donor to the University, including providing funds to set up a Chancellor’s prize, awarded for Latin and English compositions. In 1785, in order to combat the issue of students having others write their compositions for them, Kinnoull ordered that students also submit a solemn declaration that the work was their own. Examples of the prize books awarded to students can be found in the University’s Rare Book collections.
His advice was sought on a variety of matters relating to land and in cases in which his position could advance the interests of the University. For example, he was asked about the appropriateness of St Andrews applying to be included in the Perpetual Copyright Act of 1775. On his death in 1787, he was referred to by Senatus as ‘their late worthy Chancellor’.
Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville (1788–1811), an Edinburgh University graduate, served as Solicitor General for Scotland, Lord Advocate, and later Home Secretary. As a high-profile member of both Scottish and British politics, Dundas frequently acted as an ambassador for University concerns. Dundas took forward the College masters’ request for exemption for students billeted in their local parishes under the Scottish Militia Act in 1797 and gave assurance that ‘no real inconvenience will arise’. He also acted as a facilitator for the University’s gift of £200 to war preparations in the event of a French invasion in 1798.
He took a keen interest in University matters and in his visit to the University on the 27 November 1802, addressed the students as follows:
afterwards in a particular address to the students of classical literature of philosophy, and divinity, pointed out to them the advantages of their situation in this place and the importance whatever might be their pursuits in future life, of prosecuting their studies with diligence and ardour.
For more about Dundas involvement with the University see Legacies of Empire.
Prince Adolphus Frederick, Duke of Cambridge (1811–1814) was the son of King George III. In his acceptance of the position of chancellor he stated: “I shall do my utmost to contribute to the advantage and interests of the University”. His tenure was to be shorted lived however as following his departure to Hanover in 1813, he stepped down from the role.
Image of letter from Duke of Cambridge 8th March 1814 declining to give an opinion on the election of Robert Dundas.
In his place, Robert Dundas, 2nd Viscount Melville (1814-1851) was elected, though not without some controversy. The son of previous Chancellor, Henry Dundas, Robert served as MP for Hastings and held numerous political positions. At the point of his election there were many who dissented on the grounds that they saw no reason for the Duke of Cambridge to step down in favour of another due to what was to be a temporary absence from the country. The dissent was overruled, however, and Dundas was duly appointed.
The first mention of an ‘installation’ for the Chancellor in the minutes of Senatus is for Robert Dundas on the 20th of October 1826, twelve years into his tenure. The archives include draft papers with guest lists and the address made by staff (image below) including mention of the gift he was presented with, a copy of the library catalogue for ‘his attention to the Interests of their Library’. The 1826 catalogue was the first printed library catalogue, printed by Robert Tullis of Tullis Press. Dundas noted at his installation the ruinous state of some of the University buildings and subsequently assisted in negotiations with government to secure plans for repairs.
George Douglas Campbell, 8th Duke of Argyll (1851–1900) was to be the last chancellor appointed by Senatus. As a young man he attended the lectures of James David Forbes at Edinburgh in 1841, though he did not graduate with a degree.
In his installation address, one of the first such addresses to be published, he expressed his long-held desire to visit the town:
The interest I feel in this place, and in the welfare of these Colleges, is not a new one, though it be indeed strengthened by new ties… I had even then a great desire to see your ancient towers, your venerable halls, and the outward features and aspects of a place in which memorable events in the history of Scotland have taken place.
In his fifty-year tenure the University would undergo significant changes. The 1858 Act formed the new University Court and General Council. The 1889 Act, in addition to many changes to the curriculum, opened up the doors to women to study in Scottish universities. Campbell would also see the affiliation with University College Dundee in the 1890s.
Alexander Hugh Bruce, 6th Lord Balfour of Burleigh (1900–1922) was an MP, Secretary of State for Scotland and convenor of the Carnegie Trust. In reference to his installation, the St Andrews Citizen (16 November 1901) referred to him as:
a typical Scot who has always taken life seriously, and has won his way by sheer hard work from the status of a “sma’ Scotch laird” to an honourable position…a dignified man of two-and-fifty, tall, handsome, grave, and portly, and will be in all respects a dignified figure-head of the venerable university by the North Sea.
Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig of Bemersyde (1922–1928) was commander of the British Expeditionary Force during the First World War, and remains a controversial figure for some due to the large number of casualties on the Western Front under his command. He was elected as University Rector in 1916, and then as Chancellor in May 1922. His installation was perhaps one of the most memorable as the ceremony was combined with the installation of playwright J. M. Barrie as Rector.
Image of Earl Haig in front of University House before installation as Chancellor, 1922.
On the same day as the installation, Earl Haig, in a dedication ceremony, unveiled the War Memorial erected in front of the Cathedral at the East end of North Street.
Richard Burdon Haldane, 1st Viscount Haldane (1928), served as chancellor for a few months and was never installed. Elected on the 30th of June 1928, he died in August the same year. He had previous connections with the University having been the Gifford Lecturer in 1902-03. His lecture, The Pathway to Reality, was published in 1904.
Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley (1929–1947) served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom three times between 1923 and 1937. Baldwin was present at the installation of his cousin, Rudyard Kipling, as Rector in 1923, and during the same ceremony he was awarded an LLD.
He was installed as Chancellor on the 10th of May 1930 in the newly built Younger Hall. In his installation address he reflected on the horrors of the war and the importance of education:
And the years of stark horror through which we passed little more than ten years ago have created an ardent desire for learning through all classes of our people, as though they, too felt instinctively that “spreading the blessings of learning among their posterity may be the most effective means of preventing those dark and bloody times from recurring.”
On his death, Principal Irvine lamented the loss of a ‘distinguished public servant”, a chancellor who combined ‘purity of spirit’ and a ‘lofty idealism’.
Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, 14th Duke of Hamilton (1948–1973), served as a Member of Parliament and in the Royal Auxiliary Air Force. With a keen interest in aviation, he was known to fly his own aircraft into Leuchars, announcing his arrival to St Andrews by flying over St Salvator’s tower. He was the first man to fly over Mount Everest.
His connection with St Andrews started with his brother Lord David Douglas-Hamilton who graduated with an MA in 1933. David was killed in operations at Benson, Oxfordshire in 1944 while serving in the RAF.
Douglas received an LLD in 1946, two years before being elected as Chancellor. In his obituary in 1973, he is referred to as having a “natural shyness [which] made the formal duties of his office more of an ordeal than they would have been to a less conscientious man.”. In less formal gatherings ‘his warmth and enjoyment of life came bubbling through’. A keen amateur boxer he would engage with students by joining in with the University boxing team for training.
In his installation address, entitled Opportunity, he reflected on his fellow Hamiltons within the University’s history:
As I entered the University chapel this morning to join in the service of Dedication, I passed a symbol in the street which commemorates the pious life and heroic death of one of my early kinsmen, Patrick Hamilton, Within the chapel I recognised the armorial bearings of another member of my house Archbishop Hamilton, who was the final founder of the ancient College of St Mary…..
My mind turns, too, with happy recollection, to a closer and more recent tie, and I recall the years spent here as a student by my youngest brother, not long before the war in which he gave his life.’
Bernard Edward Fergusson, Brigadier Lord Ballantrae (1973–1980) was a British Army officer and former governor-general of New Zealand. Installed on 25th January 1974, Fergusson in his installation address, expressed bold claims about the National bard:
I quote from William Dunbar, who graduated from here in 1477, and whose works are not nearly so well known as they ought to be. Speaking as an Ayrshireman on the 215th birthday of Robert Burns, I herby proclaim my heretical belief that, while Burns was the best writer of lyrics (with the possible exception of Shakespeare) that ever lived, and that Tam O’Shanter was perhaps the finest narrative poem every written, Dunbar was the greatest poet.
Sir Kenneth Dover (1981–2005), the first Chancellor not from the peerage or the Church, Dover was an academic. An Oxford graduate, he first came to St Andrews as Chair of Greek in 1955. He continued in this role until 1976, when he became President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford. He was awarded an LLD in 1981, and in the laureation, given by the then Dean of Arts, Dr K M MacIver he is described thus:
Excellence, commitment, enthusiasm, comradeship, these attributes encapsulate the essence of our graduand but are the most outstanding jewels in a dazzling crown of abilities and activities.
Dover retired from the position in 2005, and in 2006 our late Chancellor was elected. Walter Menzies Campbell, The Right Honourable Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (2006–2025). Known to many as ‘Ming’, Lord Campbell was a mainstay in British politics. After an earlier career in athletics, he served as MP for North-East Fife from 1987 to 2015, holding his seat through six General Elections. A familiar face in St Andrews, he saw the University celebrate its 600th anniversary, and was able to present the University’s Loyal Address to His Majesty King Charles III in March 2023.
In the list of Chancellors: Bishops, Archbishops, Earls, Lords, Dukes, Princes, Viscounts, Brigadiers and Sirs, this year a Dame is now added. The 38th Chancellor, Dame Anne Pringle was elected earlier this year. A graduate of the University, Dame Anne has been appointed to a number of ambassadorial roles, including to Russia and the Czech Republic, and has been Senior Governor of University Court.
The installation of our new Chancellor will take place during the graduation ceremony of the 1st of July 2026.
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