OPENING OXFORD 1871

Faculty Members mark the 150th Anniversary of the Universities Tests Act

In 1871 an act of parliament finally opened Oxford to all faiths and none. For centuries, the University had been closed to those who were not members of the established Church. The Universities Tests Act changed all that. It was an incomplete process, not least because women remained excluded. But the result was, in many ways, the beginning of the modern global university, with students and staff of diverse faiths, sexualities, genders, nationalities, and races.

The project Opening Oxford 1871 marks the 150th anniversary of the Act with the launch of a website supported by series of events celebrating diversity as well as asking which voices are still missing from Oxford. It will explore Oxford’s transformational change over the past century and a half and discuss ongoing barriers to study and employment, and to map the University’s commitment to opening up further in the post-Covid future.

Find out more about Opening Oxford 1871 by visiting the website and blog, which features contributions from members of the Faculty of Theology and Religion, including Professor Diarmaid MacCulloch and Professor Anthony Reddie.