The Queen's University of Ireland was established formally by royal charter on 3 September 1850, as the degree-awarding university of the Queen's Colleges of Belfast, Cork, and Galway that were established in 1845 "to afford a university education to members of all religious denominations" in Ireland.
The Tudor Gothic quadrangle of the former Queen's College, Cork was built by Sir Thomas Deane
The main building of Queen's College Belfast, named after its designer, Charles Lanyon, and built in 1849
The quadrangle of the former Queen's College Galway is dominated by a clock tower
The National University of Ireland (NUI) is a federal university system of constituent universities and recognised colleges set up under the Irish Universities Act 1908, and significantly amended by the Universities Act, 1997.
