The Rectorial Festivities

How one enjoys the traditional and ceremonial side of university life! Having duly elected Simon Pepper OBE as the new Lord Rector of the Universitas Sancti Andreae, the usual rigamarole of festivities and rites recently took place. The first is the Rectorial Drag, in which the Blues of the University drag the new Lord Rector around the town in a carriage. Along the way he makes various stops, mostly at public houses, in which a number of student groups and the like present him with gifts and drinks. We in the Boat Club arranged to meet the Lord Rector at the Central bar in Market Street. Above (and below), having alighted from his carriage, the Lord Rector greets a number of students, among them Felix Lobkowicz, the recently-elected President of the Boat Club, and Chris Kololian, the outgoing president.

We presented the Lord Rector with a mounted wooden oar blade, the quality German craftsmanship of which we are indebted to ascribe to Herr Alex Cooper. Above, Chris Kololian exhibits the mounted oar blade, replete with his Canadian grin.

Seeing as Simon rowed for Aberdeen in his younger days, we challenged the Lord Rector to a ‘boat race’, a drinking game popular in many a boat club (and OTC mess, come to think of it). Two ‘boats’ are organized, usually of eight each, but in this case only four. You line the oarsmen up and the first person has to drink a pint of beer, then place the empty pint upside down on his head to show it’s empty, whereupon the next person commences drinking and so on and so forth. The first ‘boat’ to finish drinking wins. The Lord Rector was the final drinker in one boat, and yours truly in the other. Naturally, I lost, just by a hair, and Simon praised my diplomacy.

The Lord Rector with some of the young ladies of the Boat Club.

Then the rector had to hop back into his carriage and head over to his next port of call, my very own St. Salvator’s Hall.

If you’d like to view a 14-second QuickTime movie of the Rectorial drag turning onto Union Street, click the image above.

Simon then arrived at dear old Sallies, where the Senior Student presented him with a bottle of whiskey and a framed photo of St. Salvator’s Hall in the snow. (Seen below).

In the 1950’s, the visit of the Lord Rector to Sallies during the drag marked the ceremonial induction of that official into the St. Salvator’s Croquet Club, an august body which no longer exists, I am sad to say.

I understand the Lord Rector and his company then continued to the Town Hall to meet representatives of the Royal Burgh of St Andrews Community Council, but at this point I diverged from the drag, meeting up with it a little while later on South Street.

The drag heads down South Street, having passed the ruins of the Cathedral.

The Lord Rector, Mr. Simon Pepper, OBE and the Rector’s Assesor, Mr. Ben Nicholson, Esq.

In front of Parliament Hall, Miss Laura Wilson, Convenor of the University of St Andrews Union Debating Society (the oldest “and some would say the finest” debating society in the realm), presented the Lord Rector with a scroll…

…bestowing upon him honorary life membership in the Society.

Laura and Simon.

At the other end of South Street, in the Westport bar and lounge, the dour-faced Stuart Paterson, President of the 138-year-old University of St Andrews Conservative Association, awaited the arrival of the Lord Rector.

The Tories’ gift was a panda symbolizing Simon Pepper’s leadership of the World Wildlife Fund Scotland, bedecked with a Conservative blue rosette.

With nightfall came the traditional torchlit procession. Everyone gathered in the cloister of St. Salvator’s Quad where torches were distributed and some rather keen fire-people did very strange things with fiery objects, as can be seen in the above photograph.

From the quad we made our way through the ancient gate of the college, founded in 1450 by Bishop James Kennedy, and down North Street, past the ruins of the Bishop’s Castle, the crumbling remnants of the great Cathedral, Scotland’s mother church, to the medieval pier. In the photo immediately above, the lights of the torchs line the pier. Click here to see a daylight view.

The torchlit procession leaving the quad, 1950.

Passing through the Pends, the ruined gateway to the cathedral precint, 1950.

The torchlit Pier Walk, 1950.

The procession then walked down to the end of the pier, where we sang the Gaudeamus. A proper Pier Walk, in the St Andrews tradition, involes walking down to the end of the pier, then mounting the higher wall and walking back along the thin surface of the wall, all while being assailed by the vicious wind and waves of the North Sea. At this point I was with J.E.B., PMC of the A Sqn Mess, Randolph Macgregor, R.J.E. Bradley, and a few others, and there was some Scandinavian busybody atop the pier instructing us that we would not be allowed to carry our torches while climbing the ladder to the top of the pier wall. Mind you this was a student, not a policeman or town or university official. “I don’t want to see anyone carrying torches up the ladder!” he proclaimed with pomposity. “Too bad, Johnny Foreigner!” replied the irate enthusaists of torchlit pier walks proclaimed, “Go back to Russia!”. Just as it was felt the busybody was sufficiently put in his place, an even mightier wind (for it was already exceedingly windy) came upon us and we conceded that we would extinguish our torches. As this concession was executed, the busybody then further shouted “I’m sorry, the winds are too strong. In the interests of health and safety I cannot let any more people climb up.” Cheeky bastard! Of course by this time we had resolved to give him no further care, as he clearly must not be aware that here in the English-speaking world we don’t care for self-appointed busybodies telling us what to do. Personal autonomy, though constantly assailed and attacked in these wicked days, remains the pride and joy of the Anglo-Saxon. Thus we mounted the ladder with pride and reverance for the traditions of our ancient university and an utter disdain for the authoritarian mentality of the interloper. The wind was frightful, my friends! We feared our academic gowns might act as sails to catch the wind and throw us unto the craggy rocks below. But damn the wind and damn the rocks and damn that wretched interloper, we were dashed if we weren’t going to do a proper pier walk! And a proper pier walk we did!

The Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of St Andrews, Brian Lang M.A., Ph.D., F.R.S.E.

The next day beheld the official installation of the Lord Rector in the Younger Hall. The student representatives and academic officials process in while the assembled sing the Gaudeamus:

Gaudeamus igitur, juvenes dum sumus:
Gaudeamus igitur, juvenes dum sumus:
Post jucundem juventutem, post molestam senectutem,
Nos habebit humus, nos habebit humus.

Pereat tristitia, pereant osores,
Pereat tristitia, pereant osores,
Pereat diabolus, quivis antiburschius,
Atque irrisores, atque irrisores!

The long procession was ongoing while the Gaudeamus finished, so the organist played the Beatles’ Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band on the organ in honor of Simon Pepper (though the Lord Rector has never been a sergeant). The procession is followed by the Janitors in their formal 19th-century black uniforms with red piping, bearing the six maces of the University: the Mace of the Faculty of Arts, the Mace of the Faculty of Canon Law (now of the Divinity School), the Mace of St Salvators, all three from the late 15th century, as well as the Mace of the School of Medicine (1949), the University Mace (rather ugly, 1958), and the Mace of the Lord Rector (2003). The Principal of St. Mary’s College (the School of Divinity) says an opening prayer in Latin, and a number of addresses are then given. Finally, the Vice-Chancellor administers the oath to the Lord Rector…

JURO, ME QUA POSSUM FIDE AC DILIGENTIA RECTORIS
MUNERE DEFUNCTURUM,
STUDIA OMNIA IN HAC UNIVERSITATE SANCTI
ANDREAE AC PRIVILEGIA PROCURATURUM,
LAUDABILES EJUSDEM CONSTITUTIONES
SACROSANTAS HABITURUM

…and the new Lord Rector is then invested with his gown of office and accompanying cap of office. More laudatory addresses are then given, two songs are sung, the President of the Students’ Representative Council then gives the Loyal Address, which is finally followed by the rector’s own Rectorial Address. J.M. Barrie famously gave his rectorial address on ‘Courage’, and decades later John Cleese parodied it in his rectorial address on ‘Cowardice’. Sir Clement Freud began his in Latin, to the confusion of many and the amusement of three or four chuckling academics on the stage. He had said in Latin “This speech isn’t going to be very interesting, so please feel free to switch on your mobile telephones”. Simon Pepper lauded the maturity of the student body, warned that we must be constantly on guard in case Parliament strips the University of its unique privileges and method of government, while spending most of the address talking about sustainability.

Following the Rectorial Address, a benediction was given (in Latin), and everyone highed off to the Quad, where a reception followed in Lower College Hall and Upper College Hall. To the outrage of many, including yours truly, there was no champagne. Heck, there wasn’t even wine. Just tea, coffee, water, and a selection of cakes and biscuits. Outrageous! I could understand if the Rector was teetotal but seeing as I had been defeated by him in a drinking competition only the previous afternoon, I knew this was not the case. Simply outrageous. I didn’t stay long. I dumped my gown in hall, changed out of my three-piece suit and headed to Canmore. It was just an hour or so until Mass, during which I naturally prayed for our new rector, who’s quite a nice fellow and from all appearances will make quite a capable Lord Rector, representing the students’ interests and chairing of the University Court. Lack of champagne aside, the rectorial festivities were most enjoyable, and I do hope they continue so long as this university exists.

Instagram: @andcusack

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