The history of governance at the University

Queen Mary University of London has a long, proud and distinctive history built on four historic institutions stretching back to 1785 and beyond. What follows is a summary of how our four historical institutions were formally governed and how they came together.

• The Medical College of St. Bartholomew’s Hospital in the City of London was granted a Charter by King George V in 1921, having been a constituent body under the University of London since 1900.
• Westfield College was granted a Charter by King George V in 1933, having been a School of the University of London since 1902. The Charter was amended in 1964 to allow the admission of male students, and a Supplemental Charter was granted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1976 to redesignate the governing body as a Council.
• Queen Mary College was granted a Charter by King George V in 1934, having been a School of the University of London since 1907, when it was known as East London College.
• The London Hospital Medical College became a corporate body under the National Health Service Act 1946, having been an unincorporated general medical school of the University of London since 1900.
• In 1989, Queen Mary College and Westfield College merged by virtue of the Queen Mary and Westfield College Act 1989 and were incorporated as Queen Mary and Westfield College, University of London by a Charter granted by Queen Elizabeth II.
• In 1995, The Medical College of St. Bartholomew’s Hospital and The London Hospital Medical College were united with Queen Mary and Westfield College, University of London by virtue of the Queen Mary and Westfield College Act 1995.
• The Queen Mary and Westfield College Charter of 1989 remained in force following the merger in 1995, but was amended in 2008 to provide for the College to award its own degrees, in 2010 to reflect the outcomes from a governance review, and again in 2013 to change the name of the College to Queen Mary University of London. Our current Charter [PDF 49KB] was granted by King Charles III in 2023 to recognise our status as a university whilst remaining as a member institution of the University of London.

The records of The Medical College of St. Bartholomew’s Hospital and The London Hospital Medical College are held in the Barts Health NHS Trust Archives. The records of Queen Mary University of London, Queen Mary College and Westfield College are held in the University archives.