If you are visiting Belfast City, your visit will not be complete if you do not attend Queen’s University. It was founded in 1845 and survived and flourished as an institution of study with a great reputation all over the world.
The University Queen has a coat of arms that contains a crown in its center after its founder, Queen Victoria. Above, this is a book of instruction, on the left a red hand, which symbolizes the province of Ulster, to the right is the sea horse representing the city of Belfast, and in the lower quadrant is the harp representing Ireland.
He was known as:
- Queen's College 1845-1881
- Queen's University 1881-1908
- Queen's University 1908 and Beyond
Queen’s University is just ten minutes ’walk from Belfast’s city center on University Road and very close to the botanical gardens. This is a good sign, located in the City Center, so it is easy to find. If you prefer a taxi, then it is only a few minutes to get there. When you arrive at the front of the university, which I showed in the picture above. To the right, you will see a small terrace of brown brick houses, which, as far back as 1845, marked the end of the border of Belfast.
Still looking to the right, you will see the terrace of the University Square, which was built in Georgian style as a speculative edition between 1849 and 1872. The staff could not afford these houses, with the exception of one person, the first college of Bursar, Alexander Dickey, which, as it happened, was also green. The university owns all these now and, in my opinion, is the best example of housing on the terrace from Georgian Belfast.
If you go from here and see the road, you will see the Students Union, which was opened in 1966, just three years before the Troubles begin, and it has all the architectural features (or absence) from this era. To the left of this is Elmwood Hall which was once a church, and on its front is a war memorial to the men and women of Queens who died in both world wars. It was represented by the Duke and Duchess of York in 1924.
On the left is the hall of Sir William Whitla, designed by John McCraig, which began construction in 1939 and was completed in 1946. It breaks with the tradition of Tudor Gothic, on which the rest of the university is based. It is time to go back and look at the front of the university again. Look straight through the gate and you will see the original college, designed by Sir Charles Lannion in 1849. Lannion is probably the most famous architect in Belfast, and also designed 38 churches, House to Order, Queen Bridge and the coastline of Antrim. Pretty pedigree!
He was a real estate speculator and also became Lord Mayor of Belfast. In my opinion, the Queen’s University is his crowning glory, and if you look closely, you will notice studs, gargoyles, flattened arches made in red brick. It was a popular style in the mid-19th century, and it became popular with Barry and Pugin, who completed the parliament building in Westminster, London. Lannion allegedly used the Founder Tower at Magdalen College, Oxford as his inspiration for the creation of Queens. Initially, there were classes on the left, the president’s office was in the actual tower, the Great Hall was on your right, and the tower behind it was the home of the vice-president of the college.
Go through the gate and go to the university where the lobby will meet you. You should now stand on the mosaic floor, which shows the hands of Ulster Province, quartered with Queen Victoria’s Royal Arms. This red hand, a symbol of the province of Ulster, is a trend that persists in the university. Go through the doors and right in front of you, you will see the statue of Galilee, designed by Pio Fedi. Sir William Whitla welcomed this statue from Italy and sent her to the university.
In the picture on the left, look at the statue of Galileo, and you will see a beautiful stained-glass window. It was developed in 1939 by JENuttgens, but was not released until World War II. And again the red hand is present here, as well as other symbols of the queen.
To the left of you, where you just entered, is the Queen’s Visitor Center and at the entrance you will find a sign in honor of Edwin Godkin. He left Queens without a diploma and became a war correspondent in the Crimean War. He historically emigrated to the United States and founded the "Nation", which is edited for 35 years. Go through this door and turn right and follow the landing stairs. On the right is the Canadian Room, which was once used for lectures and as a museum of zoology, before becoming an office, and then was remade by Robert McKinstry in 1986. The room is lined with Canadian maple and decorated with the emblems of Canada.
Now you can go through the double doors to the Cabinet of Academic Councils and into what was once a lecture room. This gives you an idea of the full height of the building, and you can see the famous Lanyon roof trusses. Return to the landing now and through the double doors that should be in front of you. This is the Art Gallery, where the curator must be present in order to explain the latest exhibition. Go down and back to the Lobby. Follow the signs now in the Great Hall.
Watch the video that gives you interesting information about the Great Hall. This room was used as a refectory and examination room. Before leaving, pay attention to the portrait of a man in an overcoat, a red scarf and a hat, which is known as “Dicky Hunter”. He was an anatomy teacher and secretary to the University, and his passion was to arrange Christmas circuses in Belfast and play the role of the ringmaster. His strange posture is probably best explained when he studied art in Paris. Now go back through the entrance doors and turn left, going out into the quadrangle. Here you can see the back of the original college with some later additions.
You are standing in the monasteries and right behind you, on the chimney, you can see the cipher “VR” (Victoria Regina) with the date of 1848. On the contrary, you can see the famous window in the chimney where Thomas Andrews is located and the prominent chemist had his own smoke box. In the middle of the closed facade is a clock. There was no intention of Lannion to create a quadrilateral, and this happened only during the restoration program from 1910 to 1912. Look to the right and you will see the school of physics, and another beautiful tower designed by William Henry Lynn in 1911. Directly opposite is the Library Tower, erected in 1952, and next to it is the Peter Froggatt Training Center. If you now pass through the quadrangle and through the arch of 1952, right in front of you is the university library, also designed by Lynn. You will notice changes in the architectural style here, and this influence depends on John Ruskin and the style of the “Ruskin gothic”.
The library was expanded in 1911, and it was actually re-modeled several times. Once the open spaces of the library have now given way to book stacks. The library you can imagine is constantly being used, and if you want to visit, you will need a guide. Pass through the arch between the library buildings, and you will see the full scale of the University Square with its huge bay windows. Go back through the arches, and when you turn left, you will come to the Music School. Return in 1895 was a medical school with a university. Then, the medical students raised money and built the original male student union, which is the central part of this magnificent quarter. It was expanded twice in 1911, and then in 1933. It is now known as the Harty Room and, in my opinion, has the best-of-its-kind hammer-beam roof in Ireland.
Go inside and enjoy turning to the right and approach the McMordie hall, which was once a discussion chamber with stained glass windows. This is not always open, and you may have to ask the front desk for access. Once you're done, go down the ramp, and then you can visit the library of Seamus Heaney, which stands in the old drilling hall. Turn right and go up the stairs, and you can visit the old Physics tower on your left. This is the unofficial part of the architecture, and you will see above the arch the royal old coat of arms of the Royal University, which was carved by Morris Harding in 1948, as well as shamrocks, leeks and thistles carved on crypts. You will also see the hands of Lord Kelvin and Count Rosse, and on the opposite side of the arch are the hands of Sir Isaac Newton and the Counts of Cork and Orry.
Your tour ends here when you return to the university entrance. I hope this tour will give you the feeling of those who went through its halls, and the sense of knowledge that has been created and studied over the years. We are on Belfast Blog , carefully recommend this tour.
