Tradition

History

Source: Kyösti Julku, Promootioperinne, University of Oulu, 1972, Oulu

Following the establishment of universities in the thirteenth century, the ceremonies held on various occasions gradually developed into magnificent spectacles. This applied particularly to the conventus publicus at the University of Bologna and universities modelled upon it, as well as to the inceptio in Paris and generally throughout Northern Europe.

Conferment ceremonies were by no means unique events in medieval society. Rather, they were closely connected with the customs observed in other communities: becoming a doctor or master signified admission into a corporation, that is, a faculty, as a new member.

At the University of Bologna, the doctoral degree consisted of two stages, the privata and the publica. The ceremonial proceedings belonged to the latter. Shortly before the conferment day, the licentiate rode through the city inviting officials and friends to the ceremony. He was accompanied by the archdeacon (whose role corresponded to that of a chancellor), the bedels, and the doctor serving as conferrer. On the appointed day, the licentiate arrived at the cathedral together with the conferrer and his fellow students.

First, the licentiate delivered a speech and presented a thesis on a legal question. Pre-selected opponents then challenged his arguments, and thus began the future doctor's first disputation, in which he himself occupied the teacher's position. After the disputation, the conferrer presented the licentiate to the archdeacon, who delivered a speech of thanks and granted the licentiate permission to teach law. The conferrer then invested the new doctor with the insignia of the degree.

At the University of Paris, the ceremonies likewise centred on the final stage of graduation, the inceptio. On the preceding evening, a ceremonial disputation known as the vesperiae was held. The actual inceptio took place before the faculty, where the candidate delivered a lecture and then received the master's biretta and a book. Following the greetings, he took his place in the professor's chair. In the evening, the promovendi naturally hosted a banquet for masters and friends.

The University of Paris also had the lower degree of bachelor, and during its concluding phase, the examen determinantium, efforts were made to follow, albeit in a more modest form, the same customs observed in the master's conferment ceremony. In Paris, the ceremony also included the custom of swearing an oath to the rector, the faculty and the nation.

Drawing upon the examples of Bologna and Paris, the conferment traditions of other universities likewise flourished during the Middle Ages, often developing into highly elaborate and splendid ceremonies.

The tradition arrives in Finland through Uppsala

The university institution reached the Nordic countries comparatively late, as the University of Uppsala was not founded until 1477. Finnish students therefore had to seek their academic education abroad. The University of Uppsala attracted many Finnish students.

The first well-documented conferment ceremony was held in 1600, when fifteen bachelors and seven masters, or doctors, were conferred. The course of the ceremony is well known because the conferrer, Laurentius Paulinus Gothus, published an account shortly afterwards entitled Panegyris philosophica.

Following the conferrer's address, the fifteen bachelors swore obedience to the authorities. The conferrer then crowned them with wreaths of rue, as laurel wreaths were unavailable. Thereafter, the promovendi were proclaimed bachelors.

The ceremony then proceeded to the conferment of the seven masters, or doctors. These bachelors were now declared masters and received the insignia and privileges associated with their rank. The first stage consisted of ascending the professor's chair, symbolising that the promovendi had received the jus tenendae cathedrae, the right to teach at the university.

This was followed by the ceremony of the book. First the book was opened, symbolising continuous study. It was then closed, symbolising the completion of studies and the acquisition of knowledge. After this, the purple master's hat was placed upon the promovendi's head as a symbol of learning, virtue and freedom.

The next stage was the placing of a ring upon the promovendi's finger. The ring served to remind its wearer of the obligations owed to scholarship and of the privileges now belonging to him as a master. Finally, the conferrer offered congratulations, and a formal examination followed in which the promovendi demonstrated their learning. At the conclusion of the ceremony, the ultimus thanked Duke Charles and the other distinguished guests present.

The First Conferment Ceremony in Finland Was Organised by the Faculty of Philosophy

The first conferment ceremony in Turku was organised in 1643, three years after the establishment of the Academy, by the Faculty of Philosophy. Six Masters were conferred at the ceremony. Thereafter, the conferment tradition remained alive, as the old Academy of Turku organised no fewer than fifty-two conferment ceremonies in the Faculty of Philosophy, generally at intervals of three years except during exceptional periods.

The Conferrer of Degrees, initially the Dean of the Faculty and later one of the professors in rotation, delivered an address. The Primus among those being conferred answered a question posed to him. This practice was a variation of the formal examination by which candidates in the Uppsala conferment ceremony of 1600 demonstrated their learning. The practice of questioning the Primus also became customary in Sweden, although it later disappeared there.

In Finland, however, the exchange of question and answer has survived to the present day. The Masters being conferred took the traditional oath and received the insignia of their degree: a ring, a diploma, and the Master's hat, which was still purple in colour. The hat was later replaced by a laurel wreath. The insignia also included books, which according to ancient custom were first held open and then, at the instruction of the Conferrer of Degrees, closed (Aperite libros. Legite libros.).

The sword, as a symbol of the doctoral degree, originally belonged only to Doctors of the Faculty of Medicine, but over time it became an insignia of all doctoral degrees. Processions and church services naturally formed part of the festivities.

Conferment Ceremonies in Helsinki During the Period of Autonomy

The old Academy of Turku was nearly completely destroyed in the Great Fire of Turku in September 1827. Immediately afterwards, Emperor and Grand Duke Nicholas ordered that the University be transferred to Helsinki, which had become the capital of Finland in 1819.

The conferment tradition was preserved in Helsinki as well. In 1840, the University celebrated its bicentenary. An unprecedented number of guests attended the festivities. The celebration began at ten o'clock in the morning with an academic procession entering the church, where the audience had already taken their places. At the head of the procession walked the Rector, wearing a doctoral hat and a purple cloak. In front of him marched the cursors carrying the University's silver sceptres, while the Chancellors walked at his sides. They were followed by university teachers, officials and students, senior government officials, invited guests and others, all in the order prescribed by ceremony.

In the afternoon, a more private event was held at the University, where invited representatives from elsewhere delivered speeches and presented their congratulations.

All faculties had prepared to organise conferment ceremonies in connection with the bicentennial celebrations. The conferment day of the Faculty of Theology began at six o'clock in the morning with eight cannon shots. At ten o'clock, the academic procession marched to St Nicholas Church, where all conferment ceremonies were held. The Conferrer of Degrees was Dean Gustaf Gadolin, who conferred doctoral degrees upon seven licentiates and twelve persons to whom the Emperor had granted the doctoral title. The ceremonies followed established tradition. The promovendi took the doctoral oath, which was confirmed by placing two fingers upon the University's sceptres. The doctors then received the hat, ring and Bible, the insignia of the doctoral degree.

A few mishaps occurred during the ceremony, although none seriously disrupted the proceedings. The Conferrer of Degrees mixed up the doctors' hats and spoke so quietly that, according to the diary of Zacharias Topelius, only a few people could hear him and even fewer could understand which language he was speaking, while scarcely anyone could understand what he actually said.

The conferment ended with magnificent festivities at the Seurahuone Hotel. The merchant community of Helsinki hosted the celebration in honour of the seven Doctors of Theology and twelve Honorary Doctors, with 1,400 guests attending.

The conferment ceremony of the Faculty of Philosophy was held last. The queen of the Master's Ball that evening was Rosina von Haartman, granddaughter of F. M. Franzén and the General Wreath Binder.

The Era of Independence

During Finland's independence, the University of Helsinki has carefully preserved its conferment traditions. As early as 1919, several faculties organised conferment ceremonies, known as the Independence Conferments.

Immediately after independence, Finland's university system began to expand rapidly. Åbo Akademi, founded in 1918, began operations in 1919, while the University of Turku, founded in 1920, began operating in 1922. Once established and after their first graduates and doctors had completed their studies, both universities adopted the conferment tradition.

The inauguration ceremony and first conferment ceremony of the University of Turku took place in May 1927 on Snellman Day. The first conferment ceremony of Åbo Akademi was likewise held later that same year, in September 1927.

Following the rapid expansion of the university system after the Second World War, newly established universities also adopted the conferment tradition.

The Conferment Tradition and the Modern Age

The conferment ceremony has a history spanning more than seven hundred years and, in Finland, more than three hundred years. At their purest, conferment ceremonies have preserved the essential elements of the profound symbolism they acquired during the first great flourishing of universities in the High Middle Ages.

The medieval studium generale, universitas magistrorum et scholarium, later universitas scientiarum et litterarum, or simply the university, is characterised by three fundamental features:

The university is a place of universal learning.
The university is a centre of the highest teaching and research.
The university is a community formed by its members, a universitas, a societas.

The most important insignia of the conferment ceremony, the ring and the hat, derived their meaning from these principles at an early stage. The doctoral hat is an ancient symbol of freedom, while the ring serves as a reminder of fidelity to scholarship.

The conferment ceremony is more than this. It is a symbolic account to society of the work that has been accomplished and, perhaps above all, despite all its seriousness and profound symbolism, it is for the promovendi, their teachers and their friends a joyful and sometimes even exuberant celebration.