Arrival of the race in 2007 (Photo Blog by Francisco Javier Tostado)

From 1829 between the end of March and the beginning of April there is a sports event on the Thames River in London, which draws the attention of everyone known as the "race." His interest is not so much in sports, but in the confrontation between the dark blues of Oxford and the Light blues of Cambridge. They travel in less than 20 minutes 6 km. But the prestige of the winner can be compared to the cattle in the Olympic Games. But today we will not talk about this passionate competition, but we will explain the origin of this pretedious rivalry between the two best universities in England, a competition that has its origin in a murder that occurred 800 years ago.

Between the mid-12th and the beginning of the 13th century the first universities appeared in Europe. It is not known which was the first, although some give that honor to that of Bologna, in Italy, founded by the Emperor Federico I Barbaroja in 1155 aprox. by the privilege Habita. The University of Paris was already teaching outside the control of the Church, and the University of Oxford was founded in 1163.

During the 13th century, others appeared: Cambridge (1209), Palencia (1212), Salamanca (1220), Toulouse (1229), Pádua (1222) and Naples (1224). The proliferation was so significant that around 1500 universities across Europe existed.

The word "university" refers to the "whole" of the members of a group, and thus there were "universities" of butchers, traders and other professions. They were born when students and teachers decided to organize themselves in professional associations to defend their own interests before the civil authorities. But let's focus on our two English universities:

The one in Oxford was founded by English students from Paris. At that time, the students were in great hardship and the majority were subject to the many prohibitions provided for in the statutes of the university. Few were the ones who had no trouble eating, and the fights and challenges were on the agenda, especially with the well-off people of the city.

Infography of Spanish Radio Television

In 1209, a group of teachers and students, to protest the execution of several of them by the bourgeoisie as a result of a murder, went on strike. Since the matter far from being settled, it got worse, they decided to leave the city to end up moving to Cambridge. At first they lived in houses that were home to them but eventually they were organized in shelters. They then started regular study courses conducted by themselves under the supervision of the Chancellor.

The problems between the population and the students were constant and to try to solve them, King Henry III of England, granted them the monopoly of teaching there in 1231, decreing that only students studying under a recognized teacher could remain in the city.

The rivalry over the centuries between these two universities probably made them one of the most important in the world. His spirit of competition and wanting to be one better than the other, helped his classrooms to emerge men and women whose contributions have helped to change the world. Over the centuries, Oxford has stood out for his literates and philosophers while Cambridge, for his men of science like Darwin and Newton.

Author of the article, Francisco Javier Tostado
I was born in Barcelona (Spain) on December 27... more than forty years ago, in the same hospital where I later learned my profession. I graduated in Medicine and Surgery from the University of Barcelona and am a specialist in Obstetrics and Gynecology. After subspecialized in the Prenatal Diagnosis I began to develop my activity in both the private and public spheres in that city. Compagino (as I can) my work with the studies of Geography and History and I am the author of two historical novels: Lucius Cassius, the slave doctor and The Writer of God, and more recently the book "How to get sick and not die in the attempt." Among my hobbies is the electric guitar, and yes, AC / DC is the best group in the world.