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The Cistercian studium at Oxford
A cloister without literature is a grave for living
men
[Abbot Richard of Melrose]
(1)
St John's College, Oxford, formerly St Bernard's College
© St John's College
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The Cistercians were often at the forefront of
change and were the first to found a religious house at Oxford
to function as a college. This was at Rewley.
However,
the Cistercian studium faced difficulties from the outset. There
was a general lack of support for the college
from the Cistercian houses in England and Wales, and the relocation
to St Bernard’s, in the centre of Oxford, brought little improvement.
It was largely thanks to Abbot Marmaduke
Huby (1495-1526) of Fountains that building work was finally completed and the studium resourced.
St Bernard’s never flourished and numbers remained comparatively
low, but it continued to function until the Dissolution.
In the following
pages you can read more about the history of
the college.
You can also read about Cistercian scholars
of note who studied
here and what they studied, and view
samples of their books.
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