Traditional regional associations of Oxford Colleges
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For periods up to the middle of the nineteenth century, a number of colleges of the University of Oxford had explicit regional associations, that functioned in particular as catchment areas from which they drew students and Fellows. Conspicuous examples were Balliol College and Scotland, and Jesus College and Wales. Others were Exeter College with Cornwall and Devon; Wadham College with Dorset and Somerset; Brasenose College with Lancashire and Cheshire; and The Queen's College with Cumberland and Westmorland.[1]
One way in which these relationships were expressed was the existence of endowments for closed scholarships, restricted to undergraduates from a given area or school. Privileges linked to founder's kin were also prevalent. As a consequence of the Oxford University Act 1854, much of that system of scholarships was reformed, after which the geographical distribution of students, which was never rigidly defined, became more uniform.
For example, for Balliol there was the "traditional link" between Scotland and the College. From the 17th century it amounted to the scholarships endowed by John Snell, for University of Glasgow students.[2]
Exeter College
At the beginning of the 19th century, Exeter College's student intake was 40% taken from South West England. Its selection of Fellows had geographical restrictions, but was not limited to internal candidates.[3]