New College, Edinburgh

New College originally opened its doors in 1846 as a college of the Free Church of Scotland, later of the United Free Church of Scotland, and since 1935 has been the home of the School of Divinity (formerly the Faculty of Divinity) of the University of Edinburgh.

[4] The founding of New College came as a result of a religious conflict that emerged from the Disruption of 1843 in which clergy and laity left the established Church of Scotland to establish the Free Church of Scotland – free from state connections and submitting only to the authority of Christ.

New College opened its doors to 168 students in November 1843 and, under the guidance of its first principal Thomas Chalmers, oversaw the construction of the current building.

As the "School of Divinity," however, it is a unit in the University of Edinburgh with a much wider remit, and is led by the Head of the School of Divinity (currently Professor Helen Bond), who is appointed by the university, and who oversees the larger academic and financial operation.

[7] Over the years, a number of notable figures have been among its academic staff, including Robert Rainy, Thomas Chalmers, Hugh Ross Mackintosh, James Barr, Thomas F. Torrance, James S. Stewart, John Baillie, John McIntyre, Ruth Page, Norman Porteous, Marcella Althaus-Reid, Andrew F. Walls, David Fergusson and others.

[8] Members of academic staff are all employees of the University of Edinburgh, and are today an international body of scholars of various persuasions in religious matters.

The neo-gothic building was designed by the respected 19th century architect William Henry Playfair.

It is the largest single-site theological library in the United Kingdom, holding a large collection of manuscripts, including the papers of Thomas Chalmers, John Baillie, J. H. Oldham and James S.

[13][14] The library is situated in the eastern wing of New College, and its splendid reading hall was originally built as the sanctuary of the Free High Kirk.