Introduction

This chapter explores how a long-established institution, St Nicholas's Cathedral (subsequently referred to as Newcastle Cathedral), has set about rediscovering its roots through place making and interaction with the community and civic life. It draws parallels between the journey of the cathedral and the university. The present cathedral was a medieval parish church for a mercantile city until 1882, when the regionally oriented northern part of the diocese separated from the Diocese of Durham, with its strong theological orientation, to become the Cathedral Church of St Nicholas for a new Newcastle Diocese serving the area ‘between Tyne and Tweed’. Newcastle University had its origins in a School of Medicine and Surgery established in 1834, and Armstrong College, with a focus on applied sciences relevant to the rapidly industrialising North East of England, established in 1871. Together, they became King's College University of Durham in 1937.

In the early stages, philanthropy and the local state played a key role in the development of both institutions, for example, the corporation funding of the lantern tower on the church to guide ships into the River Tyne and merchants endowing the church to ‘buy a place in heaven’. The college was named after the industrialist William Armstrong; it relied heavily on philanthropic endowments. During the late 19th century, alongside other civic bodies with their own premises, such as the Literary and Philosophical Society and Mining Institute, both institutions contributed to a vibrant civil society.

In 1963, King's College separated from the more academically oriented University of Durham to form the independent University of Newcastle upon Tyne. This was facilitated by the provision of land by the city council as part of a major redevelopment of the city centre. However, in the following decades, as higher education (alongside local government) was incorporated into the nation state, the university turned its back on the city. This disconnection became problematic after the turn of the last century, particularly following the 2008 financial crash as public austerity increased pressure on both institutions to plug gaps left by the shrinking local state at the heart of a region facing severe economic decline and social deprivation. In response, Newcastle University developed a role as a ‘world-class civic university’ seeking to mobilise its global intellectual capital for the benefit of the city and region.