In its classical 19th century form, the
tripos was a distinctive written examination of undergraduate students of the
University of Cambridge. Prior to 1824, the Mathematical Tripos was formally known as the "Senate House Examination". From about 1780 to 1909, the "Old Tripos" was distinguished by a number of features, including the publication of an order of merit of successful candidates, and the difficulty of the
mathematical problems set for solution. By way of example, in 1854, the Tripos consisted of 16 papers spread over eight days, totalling 44.5 hours. The total number of questions was 211. It was divided into two parts, with Part I (the first three days) covering more elementary topics. The questions for the 1841 examination may be found within
Cambridge University Magazine (pages 191–208). Questions from 1876 are reprinted in
Lord Rayleigh's collected works. award, 1910
Influence According to the study
Masters of Theory: Cambridge and the Rise of Mathematical Physics by Andrew Warwick during this period the style of teaching and study required for the successful preparation of students had a wide influence: • on the development of 'mixed mathematics' (a precursor of later
applied mathematics,
descriptive geometry and
mathematical physics, with emphasis on algebraic manipulative mastery)
Early history The early history is of the gradual replacement during the middle of the eighteenth century of a traditional method of oral examination by written papers, with a simultaneous switch in emphasis from
Latin disputation to mathematical questions. That is, all degree candidates were expected to show at least competence in mathematics. A long process of development of coaching—tuition usually outside the official University and college courses—went hand-in-hand with a gradual increase in the difficulty of the most testing questions asked. The standard examination pattern of
bookwork (mostly memorised
theorems) plus
rider (problems to solve, testing comprehension of the bookwork) was introduced.
Wranglers and their coaches The list of
wranglers (the candidates awarded a first-class degree) became in time the subject of a great deal of public attention. According to
Alexander Macfarlane :To obtain high honours in the Mathematical Tripos, a student must put himself in special training under a mathematician, technically called a coach, who is not one of the regular college instructors, nor one of the University professors, but simply makes a private business of training men to pass that particular examination. Skill consists in the rate at which one can solve and more especially write out the solution of problems. It is excellent training of a kind, but there is not time for studying fundamental principles, still less for making any philosophical investigations. Mathematical insight is something higher than skill in solving problems; consequently the
senior wrangler has not always turned out the most distinguished mathematician in after life.
William Hopkins was the first coach distinguished by his students' performances. When he retired in 1849, one of his students,
Edward Routh, became the dominant coach. Another coach,
William Henry Besant, published a textbook,
Elementary Hydrostatics, containing
mathematical exercises and solutions such as would benefit students preparing for Tripos. After Routh retired in 1888,
Robert Rumsey Webb coached many of the top wranglers. Warwick notes that college teaching improved toward the end of the 19th century: :The expansion of intercollegiate and university lectures at all levels through the 1880s and 1890s meant that, by 1900, it had become unnecessary for coaches either to lecture students or even to provide them with manuscripts covering the mathematical methods they were required to master. The prime job to the coach now was to ensure that students were attending an appropriate range of courses and that they understood what they were being taught. … This curtailment of responsibility made it virtually impossible for a private tutor to dominate undergraduate training the way that Hopkins, Routh, and Webb had done. In 1880,
Charlotte Angas Scott obtained special permission to take the Mathematical Tripos, as women were not normally allowed to sit for that exam. She came eighth on the Tripos of all students taking them, but due to her sex, the title of "eighth wrangler", a high honour, went officially to a male student. At the ceremony, however, after the seventh wrangler had been announced, all the students in the audience shouted her name. Because she could not attend the award ceremony, Scott celebrated her accomplishment at Girton College where there were cheers and clapping at dinner, a special evening ceremony where the students sang "See the Conquering Hero Comes", received an ode written by a staff member, and was crowned with laurels. and their exam scores listed, although separately from the men's and thus not included in the rankings. Women obtaining the necessary score also received a special certificate instead of the BA degree with honours. In 1890,
Philippa Fawcett became the first woman to obtain the top score in the Mathematical Tripos, but since she could not receive a degree from Cambridge due to being a woman, she could not be the
senior wrangler. Cambridge did not offer degrees to women until 1948. ==1909 reforms==