Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth I to establish a Protestant way of thinking about
God, Trinity has long been Ireland's most prestigious college. Originally, the student body
waslimitedtorichProtestantmen.Womenwereadmittedin1903,andCatholics—though
allowed entrance by the school much earlier—were only given formal permission by the
Catholic Church to study at Trinity in the 1970s. Today, half of Trinity's 12,500 students
are women, and 70 percent are culturally Catholic (although only about 20 percent of Irish
youth are churchgoing).
Trinity students organize and lead 30-minute
tours
of their campus (look just inside the
gate for posted departure times and a ticket seller on a stool). You'll get a rundown of the
mostly Georgian architecture; a peek at student life past and present; and the enjoyable
company of your guide, a witty Irish college kid.
