On this day in 1582 King James VI granted a Royal charter for Edinburgh to establish a college.
It officially opened in 1583, it is one of Scotland's four ancient universities and the sixth-oldest university in continuous operation in the English-speaking world. The university played an important role in Edinburgh becoming a chief intellectual centre during the Scottish Enlightenment and contributed to the city being nicknamed the "Athens of the North".
Named Tounis College (Town's College), the university opened its doors to students on 14 October 1583, with an attendance of 80–90.At the time, the college mainly covered liberal arts and divinity.Instruction began under the charge of a graduate from the University of St Andrews, theologian Robert Rollock, who first served as Regent, and from 1586 as principal of the college. Initially Rollock was the sole instructor for first-year students. The first cohort finished their studies in 1587, and 47 students graduated with an M.A. degree.
