Discussion: Building Universities - a Historical Survey
Instead of describing the construction of the first European universities, it would be more appropriate to write a history of the teaching communities and institutions that existed in the early years. Neither in Bologna nor in Paris, where the predecessors of our modern universities were created around 1200, were buildings erected specially for that purpose. In Paris, Philip II placed teaching scholars under the jurisdiction of the Church. Papal recognition of this community and the first statutes followed a few years later. The Latin term "universitas" used in this context referred to the community of people bearing the titles "doctor" and "master", not to a particular location or the subjects taught. In Bologna, the students were also included under this heading.
