This volume investigates the historical trajectory and institutional evolution of the University of Aberdeen following the 1860 merger of King's College and Marischal College. The author, W. Douglas Simpson, utilizes his position as a historian and university official to synthesize the administrative, social, and academic developments of the institution across its first century. By combining official records with historical narrative, the text provides a comprehensive account of the university's consolidation and subsequent growth.

Historians and university archivists regard this work as a primary reference for the institutional development of the University of Aberdeen. Readers frequently note the formal, commemorative tone of the prose, which reflects its origin as an official centenary publication.