Royal Holloway, University of London

Royal Holloway, University of London
Coat of Arms
MottoEsse quam videri (Latin)
Motto in English
To be, rather than to seem (to be)
TypePublic research university
Established1849: Bedford College
1879: Royal Holloway College
1900: became a constituent college of the University of London
1985: merger of Bedford College and Royal Holloway College
Parent institution
University of London
Endowment£75.5 million (2024)
Budget£219.8 million (2023/24)
ChairThe Baroness Hodge of Barking
VisitorLady Arden of Heswall
ChancellorThe Princess Royal
(as Chancellor of the University of London)
PrincipalJulie Sanders
Academic staff
1,165 (2021/22)
Administrative staff
1,055 (2021/22)
Students12,975 (2023/24)
Undergraduates10,515 (2023/24)
Postgraduates2,460 (2023/24)
Location, ,
England
CampusSuburban
Colours
Affiliations
Websiteroyalholloway.ac.uk

Royal Holloway, University of London (RH), formally incorporated as Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, is a public research university and a member institution of the federal University of London. It has six schools, 21 academic departments and approximately 10,500 undergraduate and postgraduate students from more than 100 countries. The campus is located west of Egham, Surrey, 19 miles (31 km) from central London.

The Egham campus was founded in 1879 by the Victorian entrepreneur and philanthropist Thomas Holloway. Royal Holloway College was officially opened in 1886 by Queen Victoria as an all-women college. It became a member of the University of London in 1900. In 1945, the college admitted male postgraduate students, and in 1965, around 100 of the first male undergraduates. In 1985, Royal Holloway merged with Bedford College (another former all-women's college in London). The merged college was named Royal Holloway and Bedford New College (RHBNC), this remaining the official registered name of the college by Act of Parliament. In 2022, it became a university in its own right within the University of London. The campus is dominated by the Founder's Building, a Grade I listed red-brick building modelled on the Château de Chambord of the Loire Valley, France. The annual income of the institution for 2023–24 was £219.8 million of which £16.8 million was from research grants and contracts, with an expenditure of £156.7 million.