Vincent's Club
51°45′08″N 1°15′18″W / 51.7522°N 1.2549°W / 51.7522; -1.2549
Vincent's Club, popularly known as Vinnie's, is a private members' club in Oxford. The club's membership consists predominantly, but not exclusively, of sporting blues of the University of Oxford.[1]
History
Vincent's Club was founded in 1863 by oarsman Walter Bradford Woodgate[2] of Brasenose College, Oxford, who became the first president of the club.[3] Dissatisfied with the permissive admission policies and lack of refreshments at the Oxford Union,[3][4] Woodgate established his own club and stated that it "should consist of the picked hundred of the University, selected for all-round qualities; social, physical and intellectual qualities being duly considered."[5]
Vincent's Club quickly gained considerable prestige, which it enjoys to this day.[6] J.S.G. Pemberton regarded it as "the premier Social Club of the University",[7] while in 1894 The Isis could describe Vincent's as "a sacred Temple ... to those whom, by virtue of themselves, their athletic powers, and their social and general good-fellowship, a grateful University delighteth to honour", with membership considered to be "the diploma which the University of Undergraduates grants in due season to her most successful and deserving sons".[8]
Roger Bannister, president of the club in 1950, celebrated at Vincent's after running the world's first sub-four-minute mile at the Iffley Road track in 1954.[9] The Beatles visited the club in 1964.[10][11]
Membership
From the club's foundation, influenced by Woodgate's own sporting interests, the membership has been dominated by sportspeople. However, there has never been a sporting qualification for membership and membership does not accompany a Blue.[12] The club was originally limited to only 100 resident members, but as the university has expanded, so too has the club.[13]
Members must be enrolled at the University of Oxford at the time of their election, but remain members for life.[13] The club's constitution was amended to enable the admission of women as members on 9 March 2016.[14]
Clubhouse
The club was originally located in the old reading rooms which J. H. Vincent, a printer, had previously kept at 90 High Street.[15] Between 1894 and 1931, the club occupied premises at 6-7 High Street.[16]
Since 1931, the club has been located at 1A King Edward Street, in upstairs premises above Shepherd & Woodward on the High Street in central Oxford. Completely refurbished in 2014,[17] the club's facilities include a bar, lounge area, dining room, conference room, kitchen and administrative offices.[18]
Club regalia
Vincent’s members are entitled to wear the club tie, which is dark blue with a white crown motif, or a silver crown lapel pin. The club tie, adopted in 1926,[4] is particularly renowned and was regarded by J.C. Masterman as "a sort of passport all over the English-speaking world".[13]
Notable members[19]
Royalty:
- King Edward VII of the United Kingdom
- King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom
- King Harald V of Norway, world champion sailor
- King Olav V of Norway, Olympic Gold 1928
- Nawab Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, Indian prince, India cricket captain and England cricket international
Politics & Law:
- Tony Abbott, Prime Minister of Australia
- Sir George Abell, civil servant
- Sir Anthony Acland, British diplomat and Provost of Eton College
- Michael Beloff KC, barrister and President of Trinity College, Oxford
- Bill Bradley, NBA player and US Senator, Olympic Gold 1964
- Sir Robin Butler, Cabinet Secretary and Master of University College, Oxford
- Bill Cash, MP
- Randolph Churchill, MP and son of Winston Churchill
- Lord Desborough, MP, President of the Amateur Fencing Association, President of Marylebone Cricket Club and President of the Lawn Tennis Association
- Lord Curzon, Viceroy of India, Foreign Secretary and Chancellor of Oxford University
- Alec Douglas-Home, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
- Bob Hawke, Prime Minister of Australia
- John Gorton, Prime Minister of Australia
- Roger Gifford, Lord Mayor of London
- Sir Jeremy Greenstock, diplomat
- Sir Edward Grey, UK Foreign Secretary and Chancellor of Oxford University
- Melville Guest, diplomat
- Sir John Masterman, spymaster, Provost of Worcester College, Oxford and Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University
- Lord Milligan, Scottish judge and politician
- Colin Moynihan, Olympic Silver 1980, MP and Olympic administrator
- Viscount Monckton, lawyer and Defence Secretary
- Philip Moore, Private Secretary to Queen Elizabeth II and England rugby international
- Airey Neave, MP and soldier
- Ossie Newton-Thompson, member of the South African parliament, England rugby international and winner of the Distinguished Flying Cross
- Lord Oaksey, main British judge at the Nuremberg trials
- Katsuhiko Oku, diplomat
- Lord Porritt, Olympic Bronze 1924, military surgeon and Governor-General of New Zealand
- Cecil Rhodes, Prime Minister of the Cape Colony and mining magnate
- Sir Ivor Roberts, UK Ambassador to Yugoslavia, Ireland, and Italy and President of Trinity College, Oxford
- Earl of Roseberry, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
- Sir Mark Sedwill, Cabinet Secretary and United Kingdom National Security Adviser
- Edwyn Scudamore-Stanhope, peer and courtier
- Montague Shearman, judge and co-founder of the Amateur Athletics Association
- Whitney Shepardson, head of the Secret Intelligence Branch of the Office of Strategic Services
- William Stevenson, Olympic Gold 1924, founding partner of Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, president of Oberlin College and US ambassador to the Philippines
- Frederic Thesiger, Viceroy of India, Governor of New South Wales, Governor of Queensland, First Lord of the Admiralty and Warden of All Souls College, Oxford
- Sir John Weston, diplomat
Military:
- Sir Brian Burnett, Royal Air Force air chief marshal and Chairman of the All England Lawn Tennis Club
- Robin Bourne-Taylor, British Olympic rower, Life Guards officer and winner of the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross
- Noel Chavasse VC, Olympic athlete and twice winner of the Victoria Cross
- David Craig, Marshal of the Royal Air Force and Chief of the Defence Staff
- Pete Dawkins, Rhodes Scholar, Heisman Trophy winner, US Army brigadier general and business executive
- James Glancy, Royal Marines and Special Boat Service (SBS) officer, winner of the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross, wildlife conservationist, film maker and Member of the European Parliament
- Sir Edmund Herring, senior Australian Army officer, Lieutenant Governor of Victoria and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria
- Roger Kimpton, winner of the Distinguished Flying Cross
- Jock Lewes, co-founder of the Special Air Service (SAS) and Welsh Guards officer
- Sir Tommy Macpherson, winner of three Military Crosses
- Robert Nairac, Grenadier Guards and military intelligence officer
- Sir John Rawlins, Royal Navy Surgeon Vice Admiral
- Arnold Strode-Jackson, Olympic Gold 1912 and British Army general officer
- Wilfred Thesiger, military officer, explorer and writer
- Richard Wakeford VC, winner of the Victoria Cross
- Geoffrey Woolley VC, infantry officer, military chaplain and winner of the Victoria Cross
- Melvin "Dinghy" Young, twice winner of the Distinguished Flying Cross
Academic:
- Sir John Bell, Regius Professor of Medicine at the University of Oxford
- Lord Blake, historian and Provost of The Queen's College, Oxford
- Lord Butterfield, Regius Professor of Physic at the University of Cambridge, Master of Downing College, Cambridge and Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University
- John Dossetor, pioneering physician and bioethicist
- Sir Keith Feiling, Chichele Professor of Modern History at All Souls College, Oxford
- Robin Fletcher, Olympic Bronze 1952, Fellow of Trinity College, Oxford and Warden of Rhodes House, Oxford
- Gathorne Robert Girdlestone, pioneering orthopaedic surgeon
- Sir John Hood, businessman and Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University
- Frederick L. Hovde, president of Purdue University
- Arthur Johnson, Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford and FA Cup winner
- Sir Colin Lucas, Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University and Chair of the Board of the British Library
- Sir Terence Morrison-Scott, zoologist, Director of the Science Museum and the British Museum (Natural History)
- Francis Pember, Warden of All Souls College, Oxford and Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University
- Professor Graham Richards, head of the Department of Chemistry at Oxford University
- Felix Stephens, Benedictine monk and Master of St Benet's Hall, Oxford
- Sir Harold Thompson, Fellow of St John's College, Oxford and chairman of The FA
- Alan Valentine, Olympic Gold 1924, academic, president of the University of Rochester and Marshall Plan official
- Hugh Ward, bacteriologist and winner of the Military Cross
- Sir Francis Wylie, the first Warden of Rhodes House, Oxford
Religion:
- Walter Carey, international rugby player and Bishop of Bloemfontein
- Edward Carr Glyn, Bishop of Peterborough
- Hartwell de la Garde Grissell, papal chamberlain and founder of the Oxford University Newman Society
- William Heard, cardinal
- Cosmo Lang, Archbishop of Canterbury
- Nicholas Stacey, priest and social activist
- Andrew Wingfield Digby, sports chaplain
Business:
- Etienne de Villiers, investor and business executive
- Sir Rod Eddington, business executive
- Ivan Gazidis, former CEO of Arsenal F.C. and AC Milan
- Jason Gissing, founder of Ocado
- Sir Christopher Hogg, business executive
- Jim Rogers, investor and financial commentator
- Julian Ogilvie Thompson, chairman of De Beers and Anglo American
- Lord Charles Williams, business executive and life peer
Arts:
- Lord Jeffrey Archer, novelist and politician
- John Buchan, author and Governor General of Canada
- John Galsworthy, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature
- Lord Palumbo, chairman of the Arts Council of Great Britain
Media:
- James Allen, Formula 1 journalist
- Sir Christopher Bland, businessman and Chairman of the Board of Governors of the BBC
- John Bryant, editor of The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph
- Tim Hetherington, photojournalist
- Marmaduke Hussey, Chairman of the Board of Governors of the BBC
- Walter Isaacson, author, professor, CEO of the Aspen Institute, chair of CNN and editor of Time
- Norris McWhirter, co-founder of Guinness World Records and The Freedom Association
- Ross McWhirter, co-founder of Guinness World Records
- Dan Snow, historian and broadcaster
- John Woodcock, cricket writer
Sportspeople:
- A. G. G. Asher, Scottish rugby and cricket international
- Jimmy Allan, Scottish cricket international
- David McLaren Bain, Scotland rugby captain
- Sir Roger Bannister, first to run the sub-4-minute mile, neurologist and Master of Pembroke College, Oxford
- Stuart Barnes, England rugby international and commentator
- Tommy Bedford, South Africa rugby captain
- Robin Benson, FA Cup winner, merchant banker and art collector
- Bernard Bosanquet, international cricketer and inventor of the googly
- Marshall Brooks, England rugby international and world record holder for the high jump
- Charles Burnell, Olympic Gold 1908
- Richard Burnell, Olympic Gold 1948
- Donald Carr, England cricket international and cricket administrator
- Herbert Hayton Castens, captained South Africa at both rugby and cricket
- Christopher Chataway, athlete and politician
- Troy Coker, Australian rugby international and winner of the 1991 Rugby World Cup
- Oliver Cook, world champion rower
- Jerry Cornes, Olympic Silver 1932
- Colin Cowdrey, England cricket international
- Phillip Crowe, Australian rugby international
- Phil de Glanville, England rugby captain
- Barnabé Delarze, Swiss Olympic rower
- Peter Dixon, England rugby international
- Sandy Duncan, Olympic administrator
- Hugh "Jumbo" Edwards, two Olympic Golds 1932 and Royal Air Force group captain
- Mark Evans, Olympic Gold 1984
- Mike Evans, Olympic Gold 1984
- Jonathan Fellows-Smith, South African cricket international
- R. E. Foster, England cricket and football captain
- C. B. Fry, England cricket and football international, world record holder for the long jump
- Angus Groom, Olympic Silver 2020
- Simon Halliday, England rugby international
- David Hemery, Olympic Gold 1968
- Bob Hiller, England rugby international
- Ewart Horsfall, Olympic Gold 1912, winner of the Military Cross and Distinguished Flying Cross
- Malcolm Howard, Olympic Gold 2008
- Andrew "Sandy" Irvine, mountaineer
- Douglas Jardine, England cricket captain
- Manon Johnes, Wales women's rugby international
- Derek Johnson, Olympic Silver 1956
- Abdul Kardar, first Pakistan cricket captain
- F. S. Kelly, Olympic Gold 1908, musician and composer
- Alister Kirby, Olympic Gold 1912
- David Kirk, All Blacks captain and winner of the 1987 Rugby World Cup
- Ronald Lagden, England rugby international
- Chris Laidlaw, All Blacks international and politician
- H. D. G. Leveson Gower, England cricket captain
- Constantine Louloudis, Olympic Gold 2016
- Jack Lovelock, Olympic Gold 1936
- Donald MacDonald, Scottish rugby international
- Dugald MacDonald, Springboks rugby international
- Hugo MacNeill, Irish rugby international
- Phil Macpherson, Scottish rugby international
- Selwyn Maister, Olympic Gold 1976
- Nick Mallett, South African rugby international and coach
- Craig Masback, American middle distance runner, commentator and business executive
- Alan Melville, South African cricket international
- Adrian Metcalfe, Olympic Silver 1964 and commentator
- Brendan Mullin, Irish rugby international
- Patrick Munro, Scottish rugby international and politician
- Thomas Nelson, Scottish rugby international
- Charles Nepean, FA Cup winner
- Guy Nickalls, Olympic Gold 1908
- Prince Alexander Obolensky, England rugby international
- Anton Oliver, All Blacks international
- Tiger Pataudi, India cricket captain
- Tony Pawson, cricketer, football and leading fly fisherman
- Malcolm Phillips, England rugby international and President of the Rugby Football Union
- Sir Matthew Pinsent, Olympic Golds 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004
- Rosemary Popa, Olympic Gold 2020
- William Rawson, England football international and FA Cup winner
- Pete Reed, Olympic Golds 2008, 2012, 2016 and Royal Navy officer
- Joe Roff, Australian rugby international and 1991 Rugby World Cup winner
- Alan Rotherham, England rugby captain and member of the IRB Hall of Fame
- Bevil Rudd, Olympic Gold 1920 and winner of the Military Cross
- Richard Sharp, England rugby captain
- G. O. Smith, England football captain
- Brian Smith, Australia and Ireland rugby international
- M. J. K. Smith, England cricket captain and rugby international
- Peter Stagg, Scotland and Zambia rugby international
- Nigel Starmer-Smith, England rugby international
- Davis Tarwater, Olympic Gold 2012
- Cyril Tolley, British amateur golf champion
- Daniel Topolski, rowing world champion, coach and commentator
- Victor Ubogu, England rugby international
- Pieter van der Bijl, South African cricket international
- Clive van Ryneveld, South Africa cricket and England rugby international
- Harry Vassall, England rugby international
- Walpole Vidal, England football international, played in the first ever international football match and FA Cup winner
- Michael Walford, Olympic Silver 1948
- Frank Willan, rower and co-founder of the Royal Yachting Association
- John Young, England rugby international
See also
- Hawks' Club, the closest equivalent members' club for sportsmen at the University of Cambridge
- The Gridiron Club, private members' club open to students at the University of Oxford
- University Pitt Club, private members' club open to students at the University of Cambridge
References
- ^ Lack, Alastair. "'Once a member, always a member'". Oxford Mail, 11th December 2009
- ^ Michael G. Brock and M. C. Curthoys, The History of the University of Oxford, Volume 7, Part 2. Oxford University Press, 2000. ISBN 978-0-19-951017-7. Page 536.
- ^ a b W. B. Woodgate, Reminiscences of an old sportsman, Vincent's Club, Oxford, UK.
- ^ a b A Happy Breed of Men, Oxford Mail
- ^ Hibbert, Christopher (1988). "Vincent's Club". The Encyclopaedia of Oxford. London: Macmillan. pp. 483−484. ISBN 978-0-333-39917-0.
- ^ Lack, Alastair. "'Once a member, always a member'". Oxford Mail, 11th December 2009
- ^ J. S. G. Pemberton, 'The social life', in J. Wells (ed.), Oxford and Oxford Life (1892), 91
- ^ M. C. Curthoys, M. G. Brock (eds.). The History of the University of Oxford: Volume VII: Nineteenth-Century Oxford, Part 2. (2000). United Kingdom: Clarendon Press. 536.
- ^ Bannister, Roger (2015). Twin Tracks: The Autobiography. The Robson Press. ISBN 9781849548366.
- ^ Razzall, Tim (2014). Chance Encounters: Tales from a Varied Life. Biteback Publishing. ISBN 9781849548205.
- ^ "BBC - Oxford Features - Secret Oxford". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
- ^ E. W. Swanton, An Oxford Institution, Vincent's Club, Oxford, UK.
- ^ a b c J. C. Masterman, Vincent's Club, Vincent's Club, Oxford, UK.
- ^ Kodsi, Daniel (18 March 2016). "Vincent's Club ends gender exclusivity". Cherwell. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "The High, Oxford: No 90". www.oxfordhistory.org.uk. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
- ^ "The High, Oxford: 6-7". www.oxfordhistory.org.uk. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
- ^ "Club Refurbishments". Vincent's Club. 30 September 2021. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
- ^ "Vincent's Club | Conference Oxford". conference-oxford.com. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
- ^ Lee, Simon (2014). Vincent's 1863-2013. London: Third Millennium Information. ISBN 978 1 908990 33 4.
External links
- Vincent's Club website
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