St George's College, Perth

St George's College
University of Western Australia
The College, pictured in 2023
The current rendering of the College's coat of arms
Coordinates	31°58′26″S 115°49′18″E
Abbreviation	STGC
Nickname	George's
Motto	Nosse Deum Vivere (Latin)
Motto in English	To know God is to live
Established	1931
Named for	St George
Architect	Hobbs, Smith and Forbes (Original buildings) Hobbs Winning and Leighton (1962 and 1968 additions) Palaiss Architects (2010 additions) Whitehaus (2019 addition)
Architectural style	Interwar Gothic
Colours	Red   White
Gender	All
Warden	Ian Hardy
Chaplain	Ven. Peter Boyland[1]
Residents	c. 270
Website	Official website

St George's College is a residential college within the University of Western Australia. Created through a bequest of Sir John Winthrop Hackett and the subsequent collaboration of the university and the Anglican Diocese of Perth, it opened in 1931, making it the oldest college within the university. Initially male-only, the College became co-educational in 1981. It is recognised for its architectural significance and appears on several heritage listings.

History

The first chancellor of the University of Western Australia (UWA), Sir John Winthrop Hackett, died in 1916.^[2] In his will, Hackett made the Anglican Diocese of Perth a residuary legatee,^[2] for the purpose of establishing a church college at UWA, with a chapel if possible.^[2][3] Upon the sale of Hackett's shares in The West Australian and The Western Mail in 1926, they ultimately received A£138,285.^[2][4][5] These funds were used to establish the College,^[2] largely the result of efforts of Archbishop Charles Riley, who secured the land for the College from the UWA senate in 1923.^[3] However, the senate was found not to have the necessary powers to allocate the land, a situation which required the University Colleges Act 1926 (WA) to be passed.^[3][6] Aside from the provision of land, the university made no contribution to the initial construction of the College.^[7] The architectural firm of Sir Talbot Hobbs, E.H. Dean-Smith, and W.J. Forbes was engaged to design the College.^[8][9] Hobbs later became a member of the College Council, and donated its billiards table.^[10]

The foundation stones of the College and the College Chapel were each laid on 8 March 1928 by Sir William Campion (Governor of Western Australia) and Riley, respectively. The College was officially opened on 23 April 1931 (Saint George's Day), although the Chapel had not yet been completed.^[11] The Chief Justice of Western Australia, Sir Robert McMillan, died at the opening of the College having just delivered his speech.^[12][13][14] The College catered for 24 men in its first year of operation.^[15] It appears that both Riley and Archbishop Henry Le Fanu (who succeeded Riley upon his death in 1929) intended for St George's to serve as a theological college and host seminarians, although this was not possible under the conditions of the University Colleges Act, and St George's never taught theology classes.^[16][17] Despite its close relationship with the Anglican Church, the College was open to students of any denomination from its founding.^[18]

In one noted incident in 1949, all 74 residents of the College conspired to hoax the university by presenting a lecture on Modern Sculpture—is it a Hoax? from "M. Jean Leps", supposedly an avant-garde sculptor. Leps was, in fact, a resident of the College, and drew an audience of 450–500 people who largely praised his speech.^[19][20][21]

The south wing was opened in 1962, and the north wing in 1968; both were designed by Hobbs Winning and Leighton.^[8][22][23]

The College became co-educational in 1981 after 50 years of being male-only.^[22][23]

Memorial Wing opened in 2007, commemorating 14 members of the College who died in service in the Second World War and which replaced the memorial squash courts constructed in 1958. Newby Wing opened in 2010 alongside new maintenance and kitchen facilities,^[23][24] and that same year the College sustained significant damage in the 2010 Western Australian storms.^[23] The chapel was restored in 2012.^[23] Rodgers Wing opened in 2019, designed by Whitehaus.^[25]

The College drew some attention in 2019 over plans to host a summer school in collaboration with the controversial Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation, which did not eventuate.^[26]

In June 2023, the College commenced legal action against Kevin Palassis and his firm Palassis Architects, structural engineering firm Structerre and its CEO Gervase Purich, and hydraulic engineering firm PM White & Partners.^[27] Since its construction in 2010, Newby Wing had suffered from extreme subsidence causing cracks in the walls of the building.^[24][27] In its writ to the WA Supreme Court, the College claimed that the defendants had breached their duty of care by failing to carry out their services with "reasonable care and skill", and alleged that Structerre and Purich had provided "misleading or deceptive" representations.^[24]

Architecture, buildings, and gardens

The architecture of the original wing of the College and Chapel is described as Interwar Gothic,^[8] or alternatively Tudor Gothic.^[9] The College was constructed from red brick with Donnybrook stone dressings.^[11] The façade of the College is closely modelled on the façade of the Old Court at Selwyn College.^[11] The original wing encloses on three sides a grass quadrangle, which significantly differs from most Oxbridge-style quadrangles in that the three built sides feature deep cloisters at the ground and first floor levels to provide horizontal connection and reduce the impact of the summer heat.^[11]

Rodgers Wing won the 2020 Master Builders-Bankwest Excellence in Construction Award for projects in the range of A$10–20 million.^[28]

Chapel

The College Chapel, viewed from the north. Pictured during landscape renovation in 2021.

The College Chapel is aligned on a north-south axis and is entered from the south, rather than the traditional east-west axis.^[9] The seating in the nave is arranged in collegiate style with pews facing inwards to each other rather than towards the altar.^[29][30] A similar arrangement is commonly found in the chancel of Gothic churches to provide for a smaller collegial group of worshippers.^[31] The College Chapel expanded this format as the College population is collegial as a whole, removing the need for a separate congregation.^[32] The pipe organ in its southern loft was built as part of the original Chapel construction by Josiah Eustace Dodd with jarrah casings.^[29][33]

The south façade features the five blazons of the Anglican diocese in which Crawley has been located: (from left to right) Canterbury, Calcutta, Sydney, Adelaide, and Perth.^[9][34] The south windows feature (from left to right) Bishop William Broughton, Aidan of Lindisfarne, Augustine of Hippo, Saint Boniface, and Riley.^[29][35][36] The north windows above the altar feature (from left to right) Saint George, Jesus, and Paul the Apostle.^[29][37][36]

Heritage status

The College gardens were listed on the Register of the National Estate on 21 October 1980.^[38][39] The College was added to the National Trust on 2 April 1979, and the City of Perth Heritage List on 20 December 1985.^[8]

College crest

The College arms were granted by the Garter Principal King of Arms on 5 March 1964, confirming arms used from foundation. The arms include black swans (indicating its location and proximity to the Swan River), a double-headed eagle (drawn from the Hackett family crest in tribute to its founder), and the Cross of St George.^[40] The motto is drawn from the Second Collect at Morning Prayer.^[40]

Wardens

No.	Warden	Term start	Term end	Ref.
1	Rev. Can. Percy Henn	1931	1932	[41][42]
2	Rev. Can. Charles Law	1932	1940
3	John Heywood Reynolds MBE	1940	1971	[43]
4	Peter Simpson OAM	1971	1979
5	Ben Darbyshire	1980	2006
6	John Inverarity AM MBE	2006	2011
7	Ian Hardy	2012	incumbent

Notable alumni

Academia

• Ken Freeman AC FAA FRS – astronomer
• Bob Hodge – linguist

• Barry Ninham AO FAA – physicist and mathematician
• Richard Pestell AO FRACP – oncologist and endocrinologist

Arts

• Peter Bladen – poet
• Geoffrey Drake-Brockman – artist
• Irwin Lewis – artist^[44]
• Maxwell Newton – publisher^[45]
• Jarrad Seng – photographer and filmmaker^[46]
• Randolph Stow – author^[47][48]

Business

• Sir Rod Eddington AO FTSE – businessman
• Richard Goyder AO – businessman
• Kevin Cullen AM – doctor and winemaker

Law

• Sir Francis Burt AC KCMG QC – jurist
• David Malcolm AC QC – judge
• Christopher Pullin KC – judge

Politics and the public service

• Harvey Barnett AO – intelligence officer^[49]
• Holger Becker – politician
• Mel Bungey – politician
• Alan Carpenter – politician^[50]
• Arnold Cook – economist
• John Day – politician^[50]
• Peter Dowding SC – politician
• Alan Eggleston – politician
• Peter Foss KC – politician
• Sir Gordon Freeth KBE – politician and diplomat
• Philip Gardiner – politician
• Bruce Haigh – diplomat^[51]
• David Irvine AO – diplomat
• Graham Jacobs – politician
• Ern Manea AO – mayor and doctor
• Bill Marmion – politician^[52]
• Ian Medcalf AO ED QC – politician^[53]
• Ian Osborne – politician
• Eric Ripper AM – politician
• David Scaife – politician
• John Stone AO – public servant and politician^[54]
• Douglas Sturkey CVO AM – diplomat^[55]
• Daryl Williams AM KC – politician
• Sir John Yocklunn KCVO – public servant

Religion

• Bishop Bruce Rosier AM – Anglican bishop^[56]

Sports

• Simon Beasley – Australian rules footballer
• David Dickson – Australian swimmer
• Ken MacLeay – cricketer

References

1. "Clergy News" (PDF). Messenger. Anglican Diocese of Perth. April 2024. p. 34. Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 May 2024. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
2. Hunt, Lyall (1983). "Hackett, Sir John Winthrop (1848–1916)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 9. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press. ISBN 9780522842739. OCLC 418885. Archived from the original on 11 September 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
3. Wreford, Peter A. (1981). "The Founder And Planners". In Wills-Johnson, Brian (ed.). St George's College: The First Fifty Years. Nedlands: The Georgians. p. 4. ISBN 9780959411317. OCLC 27629436.
4. Alexander 1963, p. 512
5. Taylor, Robyn (2013). "Creating the campus: a century of building". In Gregory, Jenny; Chetkovich, Jean (eds.). Seeking Wisdom: A Centenary History of the University of Western Australia. Crawley: UWA Publishing. p. 41. ISBN 9781742584881. OCLC 809948499.
6. Alexander 1963, p. 513
7. Bolton, David John (1977). A comparative study of the educational roles of university colleges in England and Australia with particular reference to contemporary trends and their educational significance (PhD thesis). Sydney: University of New South Wales. p. 95. doi:10.26190/unsworks/6268. Archived from the original on 10 June 2024. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
8. "St George's College including Cork Oak Tree". Heritage Council of Western Australia. 5 April 1992. Archived from the original on 11 September 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
9. Melville-Jones 2012, p. 50
10. Craven, Herbert A. (1981). "Early Years". In Wills-Johnson, Brian (ed.). St George's College: The First Fifty Years. Nedlands: The Georgians. p. 10. ISBN 9780959411317. OCLC 27629436.
11. Melville-Jones 2012, p. 49
12. Edwards, Eric J. (1986). "McMillan, Sir Robert Furse (1858–1931)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 10. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press. ISBN 9780522843279. OCLC 418885. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
13. "Death of Chief Justice". The Western Mail. Vol. 2359, no. 46. Perth: West Australian Newspapers. 30 April 1931. p. 15. Archived from the original on 11 September 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023 – via Trove.
14. French, Robert (19 October 2016). The Changing Face of Judicial Leadership: A Western Australian Perspective (PDF) (Speech). David Malcolm Annual Memorial Lecture. Fremantle: High Court of Australia. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 December 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
15. Alexander 1963, p. 509
16. Strong, Rowan (27 May 2014). McGowan, Andrew (ed.). "Archbishop Charles Riley, Theological Education and the Foundation of the University of Western Australia, 1903–c.1929". Journal of Anglican Studies. 13 (1). Cambridge University Press (published May 2015): 63–65. doi:10.1017/S1740355314000084. ISSN 1740-3553. OCLC 915879734. Archived from the original on 9 June 2024. Retrieved 30 May 2024 – via Cambridge Core.
17. Kyme, Brian (2005). Six Archbishops and their ordinands: A study of the leadership provided by successive Archbishops of Perth in the recruitment and formation of clergy in Western Australia 1914-2005 (Masters thesis). Perth: Edith Cowan University. pp. 35–36, 38, 44–45, 50, 121–122, 127. Archived from the original on 18 February 2024. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
18. Alexander 1963, p. 517
19. "Many Uni. Faces Red Over "Jean Leps" Hoax". The Mirror. Vol. 26, no. 1415. Perth. 2 July 1949. p. 8. Archived from the original on 9 June 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2024 – via Trove.
20. Smith, Charles Patrick, ed. (29 June 1949). "Students' Hoax". The West Australian. Vol. 65, no. 19641. Perth: West Australian Newspapers. p. 5. Archived from the original on 9 June 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2024 – via Trove.
21. Wong, Jacqui (21 September 2009). Brophy, Lindy (ed.). "Hoax is part of our history". UWA News. Vol. 28, no. 14. Crawley: University of Western Australia. p. 10. Archived from the original on 9 June 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2024 – via Yumpu.
22. "Saint George's College". University of Western Australia. Archived from the original on 22 March 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
23. Wynne, Emma; Horsley, Lorraine (3 July 2015). "Perth's St George's College created to replicate Cambridge style". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 26 December 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
24. Vierira, Isabel (6 July 2023). "St George's College, architects in dispute". Business News. Perth. Archived from the original on 20 July 2023. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
25. "St Georges College". Whitehaus. Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
26. Hiatt, Bethany (3 July 2019). De Ceglie, Anthony (ed.). "UWA in a new western front". The West Australian. Perth: Seven West Media. p. 11. ISSN 0312-6323. Archived from the original on 25 May 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
27. Prior, Neale (7 July 2023). De Ceglie, Anthony (ed.). "St George's sues over Newby work". The West Australian. Perth: Seven West Media. p. 61. ISSN 0312-6323. Archived from the original on 20 July 2023. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
28. Gelavis, John (8 November 2020). "Choose from this year's best built apartments". The West Australian. Perth: Seven West Media. ISSN 0312-6323. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
29. Melville-Jones 2012, p. 51
30. Pierce 1985, p. 3
31. Pierce 1985, pp. 3–4
32. Pierce 1985, p. 4
33. "St George's College, Crawley". Organ Society of Western Australia. 1971. Archived from the original on 24 March 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
34. Pierce 1985, pp. 1–2
35. Pierce 1985, pp. 2–3
36. Lynch, Andrew (Autumn 2008). Arnold, John (ed.). "'Thingless names'? The St George Legend in Australia". The La Trobe Journal (81). Melbourne: State Library Victoria: 48–49. ISSN 1441-3760. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
37. Pierce 1985, p. 5
38. "St George's College Garden". Heritage Council of Western Australia. 10 February 2009. Archived from the original on 11 September 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
39. Lilleyman, Gillian (2013). "Creating a landscape". In Gregory, Jenny; Chetkovich, Jean (eds.). Seeking Wisdom: A Centenary History of the University of Western Australia. Crawley: UWA Publishing. p. 17. ISBN 9781742584881. OCLC 809948499.
40. Low, Charles, ed. (1971). A Roll of Australian Arms. Illustrated by Allan K. Chatto. Adelaide: Rigby Limited. p. 54. ISBN 9780851791494. OCLC 246821.
41. Cardell-Oliver, John (1983). "Henn, Percy Umfreville (1865–1955)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 9. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press. ISBN 9780522842739. OCLC 418885. Archived from the original on 11 September 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
42. Henn, Wilfrid E. (1982). A Life So Rich. Perth. pp. 65–66. OCLC 221766303.
43. Legge, J. D. (2012). "Reynolds, John Heywood (1905–1981)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press. ISBN 9780522861310. OCLC 418885. Archived from the original on 30 January 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
44. "First of his race at university". Pelican. Vol. 26, no. 1. Nedlands: University Publications Committee for the Guild of Undergraduates. 5 April 1957. p. 5. Archived from the original on 9 November 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2024 – via UWA Collected.
45. Packer, Clyde (1984). "Maxwell Newton". No Return Ticket. North Ryde: Angus & Robertson. pp. 100–129. ISBN 9780207150289. OCLC 27505894. Archived from the original on 12 March 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
46. Clarke, Connie (6 December 2016). "Perth photographer Jarrad Seng is 'up for anything'". PerthNow. Seven West Media. Archived from the original on 20 May 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
47. Falkiner, Suzanne (6 April 2016). "Randolph Stow: Pictures, Letters and Conversations". Westerly. ISSN 0043-342X. OCLC 1376935565. Archived from the original on 18 March 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
48. "Annual lecture honours Randolph Stow". UWA Impact. University of Western Australia. 13 September 2011. Archived from the original on 11 May 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
49. Blaxland, John (2021). "Barnett, Tudor Harvey (1925–1995)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 19. Acton, ACT, Australia: Australian National University Press. ISBN 9781760464127. OCLC 418885. Archived from the original on 28 November 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
50. John Day (7 November 2002). "Acts Amendment (Student Guilds and Associations) Bill 2002" (PDF). Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Western Australia: Legislative Assembly. Archived 22 April 2024 at the Wayback Machine
51. Kennedy, Peter (28 April 2023). De Ceglie, Anthony (ed.). "From diplomat to people smuggler". The West Australian. Perth: Seven West Media. p. 60. ISSN 0312-6323.
52. Wilkie, Dan (6 May 2010). "Into the breach". Business News. Perth. Archived from the original on 11 September 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
53. "Ian George Medcalf". Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Parliament of Western Australia. Archived from the original on 16 March 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
54. Heydon, J. D. (2010). "The Public Life of John and Nancy Stone". Upholding the Australian Constitution: The Samuel Griffith Society Proceedings. Samuel Griffith Society. ISSN 1327-1539. OCLC 37225230. Archived from the original on 11 September 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
55. Falkiner, Suzanne (2016). Mick: A Life of Randolph Stow. Perth: UWA Publishing. p. 62. ISBN 9781742588339. OCLC 952155629.
56. Smith, Charles Patrick, ed. (8 December 1949). "Rhodes Scholarship to Mr. S. B. Rosier". The West Australian. Vol. 65, no. 19780. Perth: West Australian Newspapers. p. 2. ISSN 0312-6323. Archived from the original on 11 September 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023 – via Trove.

Works cited

• Alexander, Fred (1963). Campus at Crawley. Melbourne: F.W. Cheshire for University of Western Australia Press. OCLC 18966862.
• Gregory, Jenny; Chetkovich, Jean, eds. (2013). Seeking Wisdom: A Centenary History of the University of Western Australia. Crawley: UWA Publishing. ISBN 9781742584881. OCLC 809948499.
• Melville-Jones, John (2012). The Hackett Memorial Buildings at the University of Western Australia. Carlisle: Hesperian Press. ISBN 9780859055437. OCLC 837257008.
• Pierce, Claude Anthony (1985) [1983]. St George's College Chapel. Compiled by Richard G. Borthwick, illustrated by Peter Harper (2nd ed.). Crawley: St George's College. OCLC 902745895.
• Wills-Johnson, Brian, ed. (1981). St George's College: The First Fifty Years. Nedlands: The Georgians. ISBN 9780959411317. OCLC 27629436.

External links

• Media related to St George's College at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website