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The Historical Evolution of William and Mary College
1607, the merchant ships of Virginia Company in London arrived in the United States and established Jamestown and Virginia colonies, which were the first permanent colonies of British colonists in the United States. 1530, King Henry VIII of England (Henry VIII, 149 1- 1547) established the Church of England through the Supreme Act and officially left the Holy See. The relationship between Protestantism and the British royal family was quickly established in Virginia colony, which officially became the British royal colony in 1624. The leaders of the colonies also believed that they had the responsibility to pass on the Anglican Church to the native Americans in North America. However, due to many differences in beliefs and cultures between local aborigines and colonies, the colonists concluded that teaching English would spread religion and bring it to the British people.

1618165438+10. In October, Virginia Company ordered to set aside a piece of land of 10000 acres (about 40 square kilometers) in Henrico, which is 0/2 miles away from Richmond/kloc-0. 1665438+On May 26th, 2009, Sir Edwin Sandys, the chief financial officer of the company, reported that the funds for establishing the school had been put in place. On July 30th of the same year, Virginia Congress called on Virginia companies to hire workers from Britain to participate in the school construction on July 3rd1. 1620 may 10, the company appointed George Thorpe (1576- 1622) to manage the university land. And in Sir Thomas Dale (? -16 19) In the plan of establishing Henricus, there is the idea of establishing a university. 1622 In March, the Jamestown Massacre broke out, Thorpe was killed and Henry Coase was destroyed. A series of accidents delayed the preparation for the university.

1624, the company contract in Virginia was withdrawn. After Virginia became a royal colony, the plan to build a university was abandoned. 16 1 year, the Virginia legislature passed a bill authorizing the government to buy land for the construction of colleges and universities, but it was later revoked. 1690 In June, the plan to establish a university was raised again. Francis Nicholson, then the deputy governor, approved the proposal and asked local businessmen to raise funds. 169 1 may, Rev. James Blair (1656- 1743), then the representative of the archbishop of London, was ordered to visit William III and Mary Ⅱ, England, and made a request for establishing a power of attorney. 1693 On February 8th, William and Mary College was appointed by the British royal family. William III allocated 1.885, 1.4 shilling and 1 penny from quitrent, Virginia, for university construction. At the same time, the profits of the Bureau of Surveying and Mapping and a piece of land covering an area of 1 10,000 mu (about 40 square kilometers) were also generously donated to the university. According to the royal power of attorney, "... a college providing general education, a permanent college teaching theology, philosophy, linguistics and other arts and sciences will be established in the future, which will be strongly supported and maintained ..." The College of William and Mary was approved by the Virginia Parliament in June 1693+ 10/6, when the Virginia government decided to use tobacco.

William and Mary College was named after William III and Mary Ⅱ, then kings of England. The school site was not built south of the York River as required by the royal order, but near the church in the central plantation. It is worth noting that it was not until 1699 that the capital of Virginia moved from Jamestown that the central plantation was renamed Williamsburg. So the history of William and Mary College is even earlier than that of Williamsburg.

1693, William and Mary College won a parliamentary seat in Virginia. 170 On February 20th, the school bought a piece of 330 mu (about1630/1-1689/90) which is 3 km away from Jamestown. 1694, the college opened in the building we saw today. 1694 On May 14, William and Mary College was awarded the school emblem by London Military Academy. 1695 On August 8th, the then colonial governor Edmund Andrews (1637-1714) and the senator from Virginia attended the groundbreaking ceremony of the Sir Christopher Wren Building, which was later renamed the College Building. Raine Building, built in 1700, is also the oldest college building in the United States. Pastor james blair was appointed by the royal family and became the first president of William and Mary College. He stayed in the college until his death in 1743. The college was originally established as an Anglican school, so all students who entered the school were required to join the Anglican Church, and professors were also required to be loyal to Article 39.

1699, Virginia Senator or Governor Nicholson was invited to attend the May Day celebration organized by William and Mary College. At the meeting, the House of Commons was praised for supporting the establishment of schools, and five students also gave speeches. One of them praised Williamsburg's important position as the capital of Virginia.

1700 65438+On February 5th, the college building of William and Mary College temporarily became the office of the Governor of Virginia. The first meeting of the colonial parliament in Williamsburg was also held here, and continued to meet here until the fall of the parliament building in 1704. 1702 July, the school ushered in the first drama performance. 1705 129 October, an unexplained fire broke out in the college building between 1 1 and12 in the afternoon, and the building, the library and all facilities were quickly burned down. But the thick brick wall of the building was not damaged. 1709, Queen Anne allocated 1000 to rebuild the college building. Later, on the basis of the original brick wall structure, with the assistance of Vice President Alexander Spotswood (1740), the reconstruction work from 17 1740 to 17 16 was completed. During the period from 1705 to 17 16, all students attend classes outside the school. 1765438+On May 30th, 2008, Virginia Parliament allocated 1000 to schools to meet the educational needs of colonists and aborigines. 1723, the Braverton building built by Robert Boyle (1627- 169 1) was completed and became the site of Indian College. The college was established in 1700. Braverton invested in Yorkshire according to Boyle's will. Real estate rents supported Indian colleges until the American Revolution. February 27th 1729, completed by all departments of the college. At that time, there were/kloc-0 principals and 6 professors. According to the Royal Power of Attorney, the management right of the college was handed over to the president and professor on August 5th of that year by the living appointees Reverend james blair and Reverend Stephen Fues. On June 28th, 1732, the chapel in the south wing of the college building was completed and opened. Several Virginia celebrities are buried under the church, such as Sir John John Randolph, Speaker of Virginia House of Commons (1693- 1737), and his son Peyton Randolph (1721-kloc-0/775), President of the First Continental Congress. On July 3,1,1732, the presidential palace broke ground. 1736, the first school regulation of William and Mary College was printed and promulgated by William Parks of Virginia Gazette. 1740 On September 25th, Vice Governor Spotswood donated all his books, maps and mathematical instruments to this university according to his will. 1747 65438+1On October 20th, after the Virginia Parliament Building caught fire, the Parliament moved to the College Building for another meeting. I didn't move out until 1754. 1749 On July 29th, 17-year-old George Washington presented his surveyor qualification certificate obtained from William and Mary College in the court in Culpeper County.

1772, Williamsburg was appointed by the royal family and upgraded to a town. From 1699 to 1780, Williamsburg is the state capital of Virginia colony. During this period, the college once became the legislative center, and many buildings were often occupied by legislators. Future American presidents Thomas Jefferson, james monroe and john tyler all studied at William and Mary College, so they are called "the alma mater of a nation".

The College of William and Mary is the first college in the United States to obtain a royal charter, the first college with a fraternity (founded in 1776), and the first college to establish an honor system and a law school. During the American Revolution, Virginia passed the Virginia Religious Freedom Act, which promoted religious freedom extensively. James madison, the future president of the United States, played a great role in this transformation. With the help of Madison's cousin Bishop james madison (right reverence james madison 1749- 18 12) and Thomas Jefferson, a member of the school's supervisory board, William and Mary College successfully completed the transition to religious freedom. At the same time, the college has become the first university in the United States with a graduate school of law and medicine. Pastor Madison, as the principal, cooperated with the new Virginia government after the independence of the United States and devoted himself to the reorganization of the college model and the reform of the education system. Theological seminary and Indian college were abolished, and the college added the first elective course and honor course system in the United States.

The College of William and Mary has the first secret university organization in the United States-the Flat Hat Club (F.H.C.Society), which was established in June 1750 and June 65438+ 10/01. 177665438+February 5th, college students John Heath (John Heath1758-1810) and William Short (William Short1759-/kloc-0).

1842, William and Mary College Alumni Association was founded by its alumni, and it is the sixth oldest alumni association in the United States. 1859, a fire destroyed the college, making the Alumni Association Building one of the few remaining pre-civil war buildings in William and Mary College. Other buildings include Rennes Building, President's House and Buffton Building. At the beginning of the American Civil War, in response to the call of the Confederate army, the number of students in the school decreased. 1861may 10, the teachers' meeting decided to close the school during the next war. The college building was requisitioned as the barracks of the Confederate army and later became the field hospital of the Confederate army and the federal army. 1On May 5, 862, the Battle of Williamsburg, one of the Peninsula battles, started, and the Union Army captured Williamsburg the next day. The Braverton building was requisitioned by the troops stationed in the building, and the door panels and most of the floors in the building were removed for firewood; The window frames were transported to the command post in Fort magruder. The only thing that survived was the brick wall facade of the building. On September 9, 1862, drunken soldiers of the Fifth Pennsylvania Cavalry set fire to the college building, allegedly to prevent snipers from using it as a cover. During the occupation of the union army, the college was repeatedly destroyed. This situation even lasted until September 1865, a few months after the end of the war.

After the war, Virginia was in financial trouble because of the war. Benjamin Stoddert ewell, president of the College of William and Mary 16 (Stodd Ertwell1810/894) did not reopen the school at his own expense until 1869. However, in 1882, the college was closed for lack of funds. 1888, Virginia passed a bill to allocate 10000 dollars to William and Mary College, and renewed its new articles of association, making it a state-owned normal college. Leon Gardner Taylor (1853- 1935) is the alumnus and son of President john tyler. He took over the post of retired Ewell and became the 17 president of the school. Taylor and his successor, Julius Alvin Carolson Chandler (1872- 1934) * * will build the college into a modern institution of higher learning. 1906 in March, the state legislature passed a bill to take over the former colonial college. William and Mary College has since become a public university and continues to this day. 19 18, William and Mary College became the first university in Virginia to admit female students and implement mixed education. Since then, the school has experienced a long-term enrollment growth, from 104 in 889 to 1269 in 932. 1926, john D Rockefeller (Jr. 1874- 1960) established the colonial Williamsburg foundation, which rebuilt Williamsburg, Jamestown and Yorktown in the18th century. The restored "Colonial Williamsburg" historic block includes the main street of 1 mile, 88 buildings, more than 400 facilities and 90 acres of garden green space. 1930, William and Mary College established a branch school in Norfolk, Virginia, thus expanding the school area. Later, the school was renamed today's old dominion university, and became a state school independently from William and Mary College.

During the term of 19 president john stuart Bryan (187 1- 1944), the school completed a large-scale expansion (1934- 1942). 1934101On October 20th, President franklin delano roosevelt accepted the honorary degree awarded by William and Mary College. 1935, the sunken garden on the west side of Rennes Building was built. The design of the garden imitated the similar landscape built by Sir Rennes for Chelsea, the Royal London Hospital.

At least since 1940s, the College of William and Mary has supported freedom of the press. 1945, the school administration decided to punish Marilyn Kaemmerle, a student, because she published an article in the Flat Hat calling for an end to apartheid, anti-racial mixing and white supremacy. According to Time magazine, more than 65,438+0,000 college students staged a protest, claiming that Thomas Jefferson (an alumnus of William and Mary College) had violated the principle of freedom inherited. Decades later, Marilyn was pardoned by the University Supervisory Committee.

195 1 The Graduate School of William and Mary College admitted Hulon Willis, a black student, because the Virginia State University to which the student applied at that time did not offer relevant postgraduate courses. However, it was not until 1970 that the college enrolled African-Americans.

1960, William and Mary College Alliance was established. This short five-school system includes William and Mary College, Richmond Vocational College, William and Mary College Norfolk, Christopher Newport College and Richard Brand College. 1962 alliance dissolved.

1974, Jay Winston Johns made a will and gave his 535-acre property, Ash Lawn-Highland, to the school. This highland, located in historic Albemarle County, Virginia, was once the property of President james monroe. To this end, William and Mary College specially restored the former residence of the President near Charlottesville and opened it to the public.

1983, G7 heads of government held a summit in Williamsburg. At that time, Italian President Fanfani, British Prime Minister Thatcher, Japanese Prime Minister Nakasone Yasuhiro, American President Reagan, French President Mitterrand, German Chancellor Cole, Luxembourg Prime Minister Thorne and Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau all attended the summit and visited the college.

65438-0993, retired former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher became honorary president of William and Mary College.

20 12 on July 25th, East Virginia Medical College (EVMS) and William and Mary College in Norfolk issued a joint statement announcing their intention to merge. However, this merger needs to be approved by the Virginia legislature and the governor. In this regard, the state government decided to temporarily allocate $200,000 to these two schools. East Virginia Medical College and William and Mary College reached an agreement to study the possibility of future merger.