New College Oxford, Front Quad

New College was founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester, and was known as the ‘St. Mary College of Winchester in Oxford’ Building was started on land just inside the north walls of the city in 1380. The college is a model for collegiate architecture as for the first time a college in Oxford was designed as a single group of buildings. The master mason William Wynford is credited as responsible for the design.
The Front Quadrangle is entered through the three-storey Gate Tower, the first in Oxford, which houses the warden’s lodgings. Originally two storeys housed both fellows and students, a third storey was added in 1634 by rebuilding the attic dormers. The ante-chapel (originally referred to as the nave) can be seen on the right adjoining the Chapel. The great painted west window in the ante-chapel was designed by Sir Joshua Reynolds.