Caius (pronounced Kees) was founded in 1384, and enlarged in 1557 by Dr. Caius, physician to Queen Mary. Rebuilt lately, it is now one of the best.
Corpus Christi (1351) contains curious portraits, especially those of Sir Thomas More, Wolsey, Erasmus, and Foxe, the author of the Book of Martyrs.
Kings College (1441), founded by Henry VI., is the finest building in the University. The chapel is the finest specimen of perpendicular Gothic existing. The roof, unsupported by pillars, contains twelve divisions of exquisite lace-work tracery in stone. The twenty-four stained-glass windows, each fifty feet high, are beautiful.
The Fitzwilliam Museum, and some of the churches, especially the round chapel of St. Sepulchre, are of considerable interest. All Saints contains a monument, by Chantrey, to Henry Kirke White. Girton College, for women, founded in 1869, is about two miles northwest of the town. The walk along the Cam behind the colleges, with the view of the “Backs” and bridges, is the pride of Cambridge.
ENGLISH HISTORY
The island of Great Britain in the remotest times bore the name of Albion. From a very early period it was visited by Phœnicians, Carthaginians, and Greeks, for the purpose of obtaining tin.
Roman Period.—Cæsar’s two expeditions, 55 and 54 B. C., made it known to the Romans, by whom it was generally called Britannia; but it was not till the time of Claudius, nearly a hundred years after, that the Romans made a serious attempt to convert Britain into a Roman province. Some forty years later, under Agricola, the ablest of the Roman generals in Britain, they had extended the limits of the Provincia Romana as far as the line of the Forth and the Clyde.
Here the Roman armies came into contact with the Caledonians of the interior, described by Tacitus as large-limbed, red-haired men. After defeating the Caledonians, Agricola marched victoriously northward as far as the Moray Firth, establishing stations and camps, remains of which are still to be seen. But the Romans were unable to retain their conquests in the northern part of the island, and were finally forced to abandon their northern wall and forts between the Clyde and the Forth and retire behind their second wall, built in 120 A. D. by Hadrian, between the Solway and the Tyne. Thus the southern part of the island alone remained Roman, and became specially known as Britannia, while the northern portion was distinctly called Caledonia.
The capital of Roman Britain was York (Eboracum). Under the rule of the Romans many flourishing towns arose. Great roads were made, traversing the whole country and helping very much to develop its industries. Christianity was also introduced, and took the place of the Druidism of the native British. Under the tuition of the Romans the useful arts and even many of the refinements of life found their way into the southern part of the island.
Creation of England and Scotland.—From the time of the Roman conquest, and still more decidedly after the Saxon invasions in the fifth century, the history of Britain branches off into a history of the southern part of the island, afterwards known as England, and a history of the northern part of the island, afterwards named Scotland. It was not till the union of the crowns in 1603 that the destinies of England and Scotland began again to unite; and it was not till the final union of the parliaments in 1707 that the histories of the two countries may be said to merge into one.