Tit hall

College of Scholars of the Holy Trinity of Norwich. Named after The Holy Trinity. Founded 1350 by William Bateman Bishop of Norwich. Sisters College – All Souls College Oxford. Men and Women – Undergraduate 370 Postgraduates 270.

The Black Death plague that hit England in the 1340’s had a devastating effect, wiping out almost half of the population. The clergy, despite their godliness, were not immune. William Bateman Bishop of Norwich, found he had lost close to 700 parish priests and, in order to address this problem, set about founding Trinity Hall in 1350. The institution was designed to replenish the priesthood, promoting divine worship and the civil sciences, which the bishop hoped, would benefit the diocese of Norwich and the surrounding areas.

Pressing need for lawyers

As medieval England became more bureaucratic, the need for lawyers who understood both the laws of God and the laws of the crown increased. The training of priests and lawyers in the 14th century was similar and Trinity Hall soon established a reputation and tradition for law, which continues to this day.

Trinity Hall backs on to the river Cam, in a central location sandwiched between Clare, to the south and Trinity College (which it predates by nearly 200 years) to the north. It is part of the collection that form ‘The Backs’. The compact rough lozenge shape site squeezes in several courts along with the spacious Latham Lawn that sits by the River Cam. To the east of the lawn three connecting courts adjoin Trinity Street – Avery Court, Front Court and North Court. Henry James remarked, ‘If I were called upon to mention the prettiest corner of the world, I should draw a thoughtful sigh and point the way to the gardens of Trinity Hall’. Traditionally the ear...

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...atham Building in 1910, followed by the Thornton Building. Both face the Lawn, adopting a gorgeous red brick Victorian Elizabethan revival style with classical trim. North Court has some surviving original fabric but is now dominated by Gothic work from Sir Giles Gilbert Scott.

Idyllic setting

The award winning Jerwood Library, built in 1999, sits in an idyllic setting overhanging the River Cam and manages to look both modern and ancient at the same time. Traditional materials and methods have been used by Freeland Rees Roberts, to create a lovely building that rests perfectly in scale with its neighbours. The fragmented forms created with red brick and glass give it a gentle contemporary appearance. Students can often be seen sitting and reading on a large ledge pressed against the glass, picturesque river one side, 30,000 books the other – it can’t get any better!