Oxford - St John's College

In St Giles, the wide handsome street which runs north from the Martyrs' Memorial, is St John's College, founded in 1555 by Sir Thomas White, a wealthy merchant who was Lord Mayor of London in 1553. Part of the buildings actually consists of the remains of St Bernard's College, a Cistercian establishment built in 1437. The chapel contains the tomb of Archbishop Laud (beheaded 1645), who was member and later master of the college. A fan-vaulted passage leads into Canterbury Quadrangle, mainly built by Laud (1631-36), with attractive colonnades. The gardens are among the most beautiful in Oxford.

Famous members of St John's College include the U.S. foreign minister Dean Rusk and the writer Robert Graves.