Of all conceptions born of medieval Europe, the most powerfully charged and widely adopted is the mind-altering idea of the university. Arising a thousand years ago, this one revolutionary idea has spread to nearly every nation in the world and all seven continents. The ancient campus of William & Mary centers upon the oldest academic buildings in the United States. The university preserves in brick and mortar the ancient human aspiration to universal knowledge, the ultimate object of which is the unity of the individual soul. In this walking tour we examine the local origins of a universal idea.