University of Travancore

Kerala University, formerly Travancore University, is an affiliated university situated in Thiruvananthapuram. The University of Kerala was established as Travancore University in the former princely state of Travancore in 1937, one of the first 16 universities in India and the first in the state of Kerala.The University's earliest origins can be traced back to two early learning institutions situated in Kerala, the University College, Thiruvananthapuram and the Trivandrum Observatory. Maharaja Swathi Thirunal, along with Mr John Roberts, initially founded the University College as Maharaja's Free School in 1834. A Christian Missionary as Headmaster, and soon became a college affiliated with the University of Madras in 1866. When Travancore University was founded, the college departments became the departments of the university, only to switch back again when the transformation to Kerala University occurred in 1957.As an affiliated college, University College still retains its connection to the University. Founded in 1838, The Trivandrum Observatory had as its first director an internationally renowned scientist, John Caldecott FRS. It became a part of the University of Travancore but was administered as an independent government institution for some time. Now it's the oldest institution under University of Kerala.

Travancore University was established in 1937 by a promulgation from Travancore's Maharajah, Sri Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma, who was also the University's first Chancellor. Sir C. P Ramaswamy Ayyar, the state's then Diwan was the first Vice-Chancellor. He was a distinguished scholar and an competent administrator. It is said that the government made an unsuccessful effort to invite the first vice-chancellor to be Albert Einstein. The University was modelled after the UK's best universities, and still retains some of these features today. The University's affiliate program however developed to be distinct from British Universities' college system.

Only ten colleges within Travancore City, which were then affiliated to the University of Madras, became the Travancore University affiliated colleges. In 1954, the independent state of Kerala came into being with most of it being part of Travancore and entire state of Cochin and Malabar district of Madras presidency. The Kerala University Act came into effect, and Travancore University was renamed Kerala University. Three campuses were located in three different parts of the State viz. Thiruvananthapuram, Kozhikode and Ernakulam.Phenomenally the number of affiliated colleges increased. In 1968, however, the University Center at Kozhikode became a full-fledged University, the University of Calicut, affiliating the colleges in the Kerala districts of Thrissur, Palakkad, Kozhikode and Kannur, and turning the Kozhikkode Center into University Departments. Subsequently, Cochin University of Science and Technology-CUSAT, Kerala Agricultural University, and Mahatma Gandhi University were founded, with CUSAT taking over the center of Cochin University. Such changes have narrowed the University of Kerala 's jurisdiction to Trivandrum, Kollam, Alappuzha and some areas of the Pathanamthitta district.