A Short History of the University of Melbourne

With its early buildings erected at the same time as those of the Victorian parliament, the University of Melbourne was raised when its namesake was a frontier town and the first classes offered were attended by just 16 students. Lively, shrewd, and erudite, this history explores the evolution of the campus site, the tensions and achievements of the academicians it employed, and the variety of students who studied there. The subtlety of storytelling and the reverence for the university imbue this tribute with a respect for how the university has offered a critical perspective on the increasing complexity of Australian Society.

Stuart Macintyre is a professor of history at the University of Melbourne. He is the author of A Colonial Liberalism, A History for a Nation, The Oxford History of Australia, volume 4, and The Reds: The Communist Party of Australia from Origins to Illegality. Richard Selleck is a professorial fellow in the Centre for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Melbourne. He is the author of Frank Tate: A Biography and James Kay-Shuttleworth: Journey of an Outsider and a coauthor of Not So Eminent Victorians and Family, School and State in Australian History.