New College, Edinburgh
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New College, Edinburgh was founded in 1846 as a college of the Free Church of Scotland, later of the United Free Church of Scotland, and currently the School of Divinity of the University of Edinburgh and a Divinity college of the Church of Scotland. It is located in the city centre at Mound Place (off The Mound), overlooking Princes Street Gardens. The building was designed by William Henry Playfair.
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[edit] School of Divinity
Prior to the 1929 reunion of the Church of Scotland, candidates for the ministry in the United Free Church studied at New College, whilst candidates for the old Church of Scotland studied in the Divinity Faculty of the University of Edinburgh. During the 1930s the two institutions came together, sharing the New College site on The Mound. Technically, New College remains a Church of Scotland institution; the Principal is appointed by the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.
Following a recent reorganisation, the University's Faculty of Divinity was renamed the School of Divinity. The Head of the School of Divinity is appointed by the University. In practice, the University's School of Divinity and New College are now barely distinguishable as institutions, sharing the same buildings and staff. Not all the students are candidates for the ministry in the Church of Scotland; some are studying for ministry in other churches and others may be aiming for very different careers.
[edit] Library
The New College library is the largest theological library in the United Kingdom. The main hall of the library was originally built as the sanctuary of the Free High Kirk, a congregation which broke from St Giles' Cathedral (the High Kirk) during the Disruption of 1843. Following the reunion of the Church in 1929, this congregation was "transported" to the south side of the city in the 1930s, becoming the Reid Memorial Church.
[edit] General Assembly Hall
As well as the teaching facilities and the library, the New College complex also includes the General Assembly Hall of the Church of Scotland. This was used as a temporary home for the debating chamber of the Scottish Parliament, from its establishment in 1999 until the completion of the new Scottish Parliament Building at Holyrood in 2004. When the annual General Assembly of the Church of Scotland was held, the Parliament was required to move out.
