In 1965, the University founded Iffley College in order to provide for members of its academic staff who held no college fellowship. In 1966, Sir Isaiah Berlin, then Fellow of All Souls and Chichele Professor of Social and Political Theory, was invited to be the College's first President. Through his efforts, generous benefactions were received from the Wolfson Foundation and the Ford Foundation, which enabled the College, now renamed as Wolfson, to make provision for graduate students also. The first of these were admitted in October 1968. The College's buildings, designed by architects Powell and Moya, were ready for occupation in 1974. The College received its Royal Charter in 1981.

The College's democratic structure, egalitarian ethos and general friendliness owe much to the inspiration and leadership of Sir Isaiah Berlin. The College houses the office of the Isaiah Berlin Literary Trust, which is responsible for all aspects of Berlin's literary estate, especially the publication of his academic writings and letters, under the editorship of one of the Trustees, Dr Henry Hardy. The College also hosts the Isaiah Berlin Virtual Library, curated by Dr Hardy, which provides all manner of information on Berlin.

A Short History by Frank Jessup, revised by Stuart McKerrow and Jane Potter, gives a detailed account of the College's foundation and its early years and is available from jan [dot] scriven [at] wolfson [dot] ox [dot] ac [dot] uk (The College Secretary).

Topping out the new buildings on 15 December 1972 (photo: Shepherd Construction Ltd)

We will be adding new material sourced from the College archives as soon as we can. In the meantime, any specific enquiries may be emailed to the Assistant Archivist, archives [at] wolfson [dot] ox [dot] ac [dot] uk (Liz Baird).