On 20 June 1214, the University of Oxford was granted a charter of liberties by Nicholas de Romanis, the papal legate, which authorised the appointment of a chancellor of the University.

The chancellor at first was an independent official appointed by the Bishop of Lincoln to act as ecclesiastical judge in scholastic matters. Gradually, however, he was absorbed into the university and became its head. The chancellor today is Lord Patten of Barnes.

The University of Oxford is the oldest university in the English-speaking world and has been in existence for around nine centuries.

One of the major events in Oxford’s past, which helped to bring students to the city, is when King Henry II banned English students from attending Paris University in 1167.

The coat of arms of the University of Oxford.