St Aldate's, Oxford

Tom Tower is a bell tower in Oxford, England, named after its bell, Great Tom. It is over Tom Gate, on St Aldates, the main entrance of Christ Church, Oxford, which leads into Tom Quad. This square tower with an octagonal lantern and facetted ogee dome was designed by Christopher Wren and built 1681–82. The strength of Oxford architectural tradition and Christ Church's connection to its founder, Henry VIII, motivated the decision to complete the gatehouse structure, left unfinished by Cardinal Wolsey at the date of his fall from power in 1529, and which had remained roofless since. Wren made a case for working in a Late Gothic style—that it "ought to be Gothick to agree with the Founders worke"—a style that had not been seen in a prominent building for a hundred and fifty years, making Tom Tower a lonely precursor of the Gothic Revival that got underway in the mid-18th century. Wren never came to supervise the structure as it was being erected by the stonemason he had recommended, Christopher Kempster of Burford. In 1732–34, when William Kent was called upon to make sympathetic reconstruction of the east range of Clock Court in Wolsey's Tudor Hampton Court Palace, he naturally turned to the precedent of Tom Tower for his "central ogee dome with its coronet of pilaster-like gothick finials". The tower of Dunster House at Harvard University is a direct imitation of Tom Tower, though its details have been Georgianised, and stones from Christ Church are installed in one of the house's main entryways. Tom Tower was the inspiration for the Clock Tower (formally the Old Arts Building) at the University of Auckland.

Pembroke Square is a square in central Oxford, England, located to the west of St Aldate's and directly adjoining it. The square is named for Pembroke College, which has its main entrance at the south-west corner of the square, and houses St Aldate's Church which was formerly the library of the college. The square is also opposite the main entrance to Christ Church, the largest Oxford college, with Tom Tower above it to the east.Nos 13–14, were built in 1641, consisting of four floors, using rubble construction with a timber frame above. Nos 17–18 are Jacobean and nos 36–37 are Georgian in style. To the west at the north of the square is Beef Lane, although the road has now been incorporated within the walls of Pembroke College and converted into its "North Quad". Samuel Johnson, a student of Pembroke; and J. R. R. Tolkien, a fellow at Pembroke, variously had rooms overlooking the square.

Pembroke College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford, is located at Pembroke Square, Oxford. The college was founded in 1624 by King James I of England, using in part the endowment of merchant Thomas Tesdale, and was named after William Herbert, 3rd Earl of Pembroke, Lord Chamberlain and then-Chancellor of the University.Like many Oxford colleges, Pembroke previously accepted men only, admitting its first mixed-sex cohort in 1979. As of 2020, Pembroke had an estimated financial endowment of £63 million. Pembroke College provides almost the full range of study available at Oxford University. A former Senior President of Tribunals and Lord Justice of Appeal, Sir Ernest Ryder, has held the post of Master of Pembroke since 2020.

Christ Church Cathedral School is an independent preparatory school for boys in Oxford, England. It is one of three choral foundation schools in the city and educates choristers of Christ Church Cathedral, and the Chapels of Worcester College and Pembroke College. It is a member of the IAPS and the Choir Schools Association.

The Newman Society: Oxford University Catholic Society (est. 1878; current form 2012) is Oxford University's oldest Roman Catholic organization. It is a student society named as a tribute to Cardinal Newman, who agreed to lend his name to a group formed seventeen years before the English hierarchy formally permitted Catholics to attend the university. The society acquired its current form and title following the merger in 2012 of the pre-existing Newman Society and Oxford University's Catholic Society (est. 1990). It exists, according to its constitution, to 'work in conjunction with the Chaplains to support and encourage Catholic students in their Christian vocation by promoting their personal, intellectual and spiritual development, social interaction, and apostolic witness within the broader context of their university experience', and has served as the model for Catholic students societies throughout the English-speaking world.

Oxford University Catholic Chaplaincy is based in the Old Palace, also known as Bishop King's Palace. The chaplaincy started in 1896 and moved into its current premises in 1920. The building was originally constructed in 1485 with another part added to it from 1622. It is situated on the corner of Rose Place and St Aldate's, next to Christ Church Cathedral School and Campion Hall. It is a Grade I listed building.

St Aldate's is a Church of England parish church in the centre of Oxford, in the Deanery and Diocese of Oxford. The church is on the street named St Aldate's, opposite Christ Church college and next door to Pembroke College. The church has a large congregation and has a staff team of about 30 which includes clergy, pastoral and administrative staff. The offices of the Rector and other members of staff are at 40 Pembroke Street.

Christ Church War Memorial Garden is a garden in Oxford, England, created in 1926 to commemorate the First World War.The war memorial garden, in memory of members of Christ Church, Oxford, one of the Oxford colleges, is located east off St Aldate's at the western end of Broad Walk, which leads along the northern edge of Christ Church Meadows. To the north is Christ Church with a view of Tom Tower above its main entrance, also on St Aldate's. There is an inscription in the paving of the path through the garden with a quotation from John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress.Post Second World War development planned for central Oxford included a relief road passing through the northern edge of Christ Church Meadow along the route of Broad Walk and joining the district of St Ebbe's, via the location of the garden. The proposal was defeated after vigorous opposition.

Christ Church (Latin: Ædes Christi, the temple or house, ædēs, of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniquely a joint foundation of the university and the cathedral of the Oxford diocese, Christ Church Cathedral, which also serves as the college chapel and whose dean is ex officio the college head. As of 2022, Christ Church had the largest financial endowment of any Oxford college at £770 million. As of 2022, the college had 661 students. Its grounds contain a number of architecturally significant buildings including Tom Tower (designed by Sir Christopher Wren), Tom Quad (the largest quadrangle in Oxford), and the Great Dining Hall, which was the seat of the parliament assembled by King Charles I during the English Civil War. The buildings have inspired replicas throughout the world in addition to being featured in films such as Harry Potter and The Golden Compass, helping Christ Church become the most popular Oxford college for tourists with almost half a million visitors annually. The college's alumni include 13 British prime ministers out of the 30 educated at Oxford (the highest number of any college at Oxford or Cambridge), as well as former prime ministers of Pakistan and Ceylon. Other notable alumni include King Edward VII, King William II of the Netherlands, the founder of Pennsylvania, William Penn, seventeen archbishops, writers Lewis Carroll (author of Alice in Wonderland) and W. H. Auden, philosopher John Locke, and scientist Robert Hooke. Albert Einstein was also associated with the college. The college has several cities and places named after it.

The Canterbury Quadrangle is one of the quadrangles of Christ Church, Oxford, England. It stands on the site of the former Canterbury College.On the west side is Christ Church Library, whose north façade completes the four sides of Peckwater Quadrangle. On the east side is Canterbury Gate with access to Oriel Square and Merton Street. The Christ Church Picture Gallery is accessed through staircase 4 in the south range, originally designed to house the college's most noble undergraduates. Designed by Philip Powell & Hidalgo Moya in 1968, the exterior of the Picture Gallery cannot be seen from within Canterbury Quadrangle, as it is partially sunk into the Deanery garden behind.The original quadrangle was created 1632 to 1636 by a group of masons from London led by John Jackson and Robert White.Canterbury Quadrangle was redesigned by the architect James Wyatt (1746–1813), in a style similar to the neighbouring Peckwater Quadrangle, and was completed in 1783. The money needed to build the quadrangle was donated to the college by Richard Robinson, 1st Baron Rokeby, Archbishop of Armagh. The quad is Grade I listed. As an undergraduate at Christ Church from 1828, future Prime Minister, William Gladstone lived in a "leisured set" in Canterbury Quadrangle.

Alice's Shop is a shop at 83 St Aldate's, Oxford, England. With 82 St Aldate's next door it is part of a stone-built 15th-century house that was remodelled in the 17th century. It is now a gift shop selling gifts, souvenirs and memorabilia, all based on Alice. 83 St Aldate's has long been a shop. In the Victorian era its customers included Alice Liddell, daughter of Henry Liddell, who was Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, which is opposite the shop. Alice, who used to buy sweets at the shop, was the inspiration for Lewis Carroll's 1865 novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its 1871 sequel Through the Looking-Glass. 82 and 83 St Aldate's were built in the 15th century. Early in the 17th century they were remodelled. 83 St Aldate's has a gabled front with a 17th-century bay window on the first floor. On its north side 83 has a blocked 17th-century window. Together 82 and 83 St Aldate's are a Grade II* listed building.

The Great Quadrangle, more popularly known as Tom Quad, is one of the quadrangles of Christ Church, Oxford, England. It is the largest college quad in Oxford, measuring 264 by 261 feet. Although it was begun by Cardinal Wolsey in 1525–1529, he was unable to complete it before his fall from power. Wolsey planned a cloister, but only the starts of the arches on the walls, and of the supports jutting into the lawn were done; these can still be seen around the quadrangle. The main entrance was also left incomplete, and it is not known how the gatehouse was planned to look. After some 150 years, the gatehouse was completed in 1681–1682 with Tom Tower, designed by Sir Christopher Wren, when John Fell was Dean. A statue of Queen Anne on Tom Tower overlooks the main entrance to the Quad. The quad is listed Grade I on the National Heritage List for England.