French Government Fellowships

The idea that Churchill College might host visiting Fellows sponsored by the French Government was the brainchild of Sir John (Jock) Colville (1915-1987), seemingly to provide an explicit way for France to contribute to Sir Winston’s memorial. Colville had been Churchill’s Private Secretary during and after the Second World War; he was very well connected in diplomatic and financial circles and had been instrumental in helping to raise funds for the establishment of the College. He was elected an Honorary Fellow in 1971 and continued to work enthusiastically on behalf of the College.

In February 1975, apparently on his own initiative, he wrote to the French Ambassador in London, M. Jaques de Beaumarchais, suggesting that the French Government might like to fund a Fellowship at Churchill College, to be held by visiting French academics. He listed the five Frenchmen who had held Overseas Fellowships at the College in the preceding decade (two professors of physics and three of French literature) and suggested that, given the science bias of the College, support for French scientists might be most appropriate.

Following consultation with the French Government the Ambassador responded in July with an offer of 100,000 Francs to initiate a Fellowship scheme, which the College gratefully accepted, and a formal exchange of letters took place in early 1976. Colville’s subsequent attempts to secure additional funds from Mme. Pol Roger and Moet & Chandon (a nod to Churchill’s love of champagne), as a permanent endowment, were unsuccessful.