Ceremony

Rectorial ceremonies can add historic pageant, colour and publicity to the life of the university. Here are some examples:

St Andrews

The rectorial elections are held at the end of October. Installation ceremony is held in Younger Hall, St Andrews, in February or March, with the afternoon declared a teaching holiday by the Principal.  The newly installed rector delivers an ‘Improving Speech’ as the keynote of the ceremony. The Principal acts as host of a formal dinner for 150 guests, held in the evening in Lower College Hall in honour of the new rector. The day before the Installation is filled with student-led celebrations under the title of ‘The Drag’. The rector is ‘delivered’ into town by a novel form of transport, and is then drawn in an ancient carriage, pulled by university Blues, to a series of 12-15 hostelries where student groups, clubs and societies are deployed to introduce themselves and their activities, buy him/her a drink, and offer a relevant gift as a memento of the occasion. The Drag ends with a reception at the Student Union Building, followed by a night-time torchlight procession from St Salvator’s Quad to the end of the pier, and indefinite further revelling in the town’s bars.

Glasgow

Classes are suspended for students to attend the Installation Ceremony and hear the rectorial Address. This is held in the Bute Hall, the University of Glasgow’s most famous venue, and all students, staff and guests are invited to attend. Celebrations vary with each rector but previous festivities have ranged from a large formal dinner for 150 guests to a small more relaxed dinner followed by a ceilidh, to which students are invited.

Edinburgh

Some of the more hair-raising traditions around the rector and his or her election have toned down over the years. A ‘battle’ involving the throwing of flour and dried peas was held in the Old Quad on polling day. The ‘rowdyism’ only stopped when the Principal appeared with a placard indicating the result of the election, which was then paraded around town by the winner’s supporters. The installation address was also an opportunity for general mayhem; Lloyd George’s address was disrupted by fireworks and a live hen being thrown from the gallery. Thankfully, although the election campaigns are still keenly fought, the hooliganism has disappeared. One tradition that remains is the chairing of the rector, now limited to a circuit of the Old Quad in a sedan chair-like apparatus, lifted by the rector’s campaign team and supporters. The Rector’s Address is also a lower key affair, and is followed by a lunch.