Exeter receives royal tribute for 60 years of success

The message is an integral part of the celebrations to commemorate the Diamond Jubilee of Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth II presenting the Royal Charter to the University - marking the official recognition of university status for Exeter, on Monday, 21 December.

Her Majesty said: “I would like to congratulate staff and students, both past and present, on what you have achieved together in the sixty years since the Royal Charter was awarded. Looking forward, I wish the University of Exeter continued success in the way that it challenges, innovates and informs future generations”.

Professor Sir Steve Smith, Vice Chancellor and Chief Executive of the University of Exeter said: “Since 1955, the University has grown to become a dynamic and successful institution, now ranked 93^rd in the most influential  global league table, placing it among the very best institutions in the world.

“I am personally extremely proud of what we have achieved so far together and to have this receive royal recognition is a real testament to the hard work, dedication and energy of everyone associated with the University of Exeter. The Diamond Jubilee is a celebration of the past, but it is also an opportunity to look to the future. We are a ‘forever’ institution and I am positive that in the last 60 years we have laid the foundations for our future success”.

The history of the University can be traced back to the 1850s, when the schools of Arts and Sciences were opened in Exeter. From these humble beginnings came the University College, which moved to the Streatham Estate – now the site of the University’s Streatham Campus in the 1920s.

From this time, the ambition for university status was clear. In 1925, a fundraising drive was established across the South West to raise £100,000, or around £30 million by today’s equivalent, for a university that would, according to a poster from the time, “give your children as good a chance in life as children elsewhere in England”. In fact, the fundraising effort raised £250,000 – more than £60 million today.

In 1955, Her Majesty the Queen first visited the University to formally present the Charter to the then Vice-Chancellor, Sir James Wilfred Cooke. At this time, the University had just 1,000 students studying in just four faculties of arts, science, social studies and law.

Post-war expansion, investment and research success has seen the University grow over the decades to cover multiple campuses in Exeter and Cornwall, and the number of students rise to over 21,000.

2012 saw the second visit to the University by Her Majesty the Queen to officially open the Forum. In the same year, the University was also invited to join the Russell Group of leading research-led universities and the University’s research reputation went from strength to strength with outstanding results achieved in the 2014 Research Excellence Framework. This year, for the first time the University broke into the top 100 universities in the world in the most influential global league table, the Times Higher Education World University Rankings.

In further celebration of this milestone, the University’s development over the six decades is subject of a new book entitled ‘The City on the Hill’, written by Professor Jeremy Black.

This is the history of the institution drawn from a range of sources including archive material and personal recollections of staff and students, past and present. More information on this book is available on the website.

More information on the University’s history, achievements and expansion over the last 60 years as well as best wishes from our notable alumni can also be found on the University Diamond Jubilee website.