If you look across the River Cam, you’ll spot a long red-brick building with tall, clustered chimneys, old windows, and a lush green lawn running right up to the water’s edge-welcome to Magdalene College, pronounced “Maudlin,” just to keep you on your toes.
Now, take a breath, and let’s travel through six centuries of drama, secrets, and a surprising amount of candlelight. Imagine it: the year is 1428. Monks in heavy robes are shuffling past you, trying their best to avoid the wild temptations of Cambridge by hiding out here, right by the river and at the foot of Castle Hill. This spot was their refuge, a place for whispers and study, chosen because it was far from the city’s lively chatter-although, honestly, some people will do anything to avoid noisy neighbours.
Back then, it was called Monk’s Hostel, and it wasn’t long before it got a rather fancier name, Buckingham College, thanks to the powerful Duke of Buckingham. But nothing at Cambridge was ever simple, and just as the monks settled in, the whole country went and changed religion-ahem, thanks Henry VIII! The abbey that looked after this place was dissolved, but unlike many others, this little college survived the storm, held together by faith, luck, and maybe a liberal dash of stubbornness.
Now comes Thomas Audley, a man with a mission (and some real estate on his hands). In 1542, he re-founded the college, dedicated it to Mary Magdalene, and, in a fit of poetic flair, gifted the motto “Garde Ta Foy”-keep your faith. If you’re ever having a rough day, you can always borrow that one. But here’s where things turn strange. Nearly every great benefactor who helped Magdalene seemed to meet an untimely and rather sharp ending-high treason, executions... you name it! Perhaps “keep your faith” was also a warning?
The college might be small-just a few hundred undergraduates even today-but don’t be fooled by its size. These walls have seen everything: lawsuits over lost property in London (traded for a pittance in rent by a banker named Spinola-don’t get the fellows started unless you have hours to spare), epic student protests when Magdalene finally admitted women in 1988, and dodgy deals worthy of a Netflix special. In fact, there’s a gargoyle of that tricky banker Spinola, still spitting water into the Cam as a sort of revenge, or maybe just to annoy the ducks.
And the history isn’t just about quarrels and catastrophes. Magdalene’s chapel, though smaller than most, holds vibrant stained glass telling Mary Magdalene’s story, and the hall is famously lit by candles-no gas, no electricity, only the shimmer of flame lighting up formal dinners, every night. The scent of wax and roast dinner must truly blend into the old woodwork here.
Madgalene is home to one of Cambridge’s greatest treasures: the Pepys Library, packed with the diaries and naval secrets of Samuel Pepys, that 17th-century chronicler who first wrote about the Great Fire of London with such dry wit and detail you can almost smell the smoke. His legacy-hundreds of rare books and manuscripts-remains in perfect order, just as he wished. And who could forget the garden’s Monk’s Walk, raised over long-vanished fishponds, where squirrels and woodpeckers now play among poplars and cherry trees.
Magdalene’s students have always been a little different, too. Here you’ll find every background, every belief, from thinkers like the abolitionist Peter Peckard who fought slavery with fiery sermons, to adventurous spirits like George Mallory, who would later climb Mount Everest “because it’s there.”
And yet, despite all this change, Magdalene has kept its quirky traditions-like the annual candlelit feasts, the quietly marvellous gardens, and even the odd Victorian pet cemetery for dearly departed college cats and dogs. The past and present mix here like the chimneys rising into Cambridge’s bright blue sky.
So, as you stand here listening to the gentle plop of a punt in the river and the timeless hush of bricks that have seen everything from monks to mischief, remember: at Magdalene, history whispers from every corner, still keeping its faith.
Intrigued by the buildings and grounds, events and traditions or the people associated with magdalene? Make your way to the chat section and I'll be happy to provide further details.
