Americans -- England -- Oxford; Education -- United States; Education, Higher -- England -- Oxford; University of Oxford
The oldest of these is the Bullingdon, which is not quite as old, I
gathered, as the Institute of 1770 at Harvard, and, considered as a
university organization, it is of course much younger. It was
originally the Christ Church wine club, and to-day it is dominated by
the sporting element of Christ Church, which is the most aristocratic
of Oxford colleges. In former years, it is said, the club had kennels
at Bullingdon, and held periodic hunts there; and it is still largely
composed of hunting men. To-day it justifies its name mainly by having
an annual dinner beneath the heavy rafters of a mediæval barn at
Bullingdon. On these, as on other state occasions, the members wear a
distinctive costume--no doubt a tradition from the time when men
generally wore colors--which consists of a blue evening coat with
white facings and brass buttons, a canary waistcoat, and a blue tie.
This uniform is no doubt found in more aristocratic wardrobes than any
other Oxford trophy. The influence of the Bullingdon is indirectly to
discourage athletics, which it regards as unaristocratic and
incompatible with conviviality; so that Christ Church, though the
largest of Oxford colleges and one of the wealthiest, is of secondary
importance in sports. For this reason the Bullingdon has suffered a
partial eclipse, for the middle-class spirit which is invading Oxford
has given athletic sports the precedence over hunting, while expensive
living and mere social exclusiveness are less the vogue. By a curious
analogy, one of the oldest and most exclusive of the clubs at Harvard
is similarly out of sympathy with the athletic spirit.
Another old and prominent college wine club that has come to elect
members from without is the Phoenix of Brazenose, the uniform of
which is perhaps more beautiful than the Bullingdon uniform,
consisting of a peculiar dark wine-colored coat, brass buttons, and a
light buff waistcoat. In general, the college wine clubs are more or
less taking on a university character. The Annandale Club of Balliol,
for instance, has frequent guests from outside, and often elects them
to membership out of compliment. At the formal wines the members have
the privilege of inviting outside guests.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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