Fitzwilliam College Architecture

College & Architecture

Fitzwilliam College was founded in 1869 to widen access to the University. It is a thriving community of around 430 undergraduates, 320 graduates, 60 Fellows and more than 100 staff.

The College sits in the grounds of The Grove, a lovely Regency house, which once belonged to Emma Darwin. The Hall Building including the Dining Hall and the first residential buildings (Tree Court and Fellows' Court) were designed by Sir Denys Lasdun and have won many architecture awards. Other buildings of note include the Auditorium, the Olisa Library and the Chapel, whose interior woodwork is designed to suggest a floating ship.  The entrance area and the crypt are planked to recall the hull of a boat, as does the first-floor woodwork.