Queen's College, Cork was founded under the provisions of the Act 8 and 9 Victoria, cap. 66, which instituted An Act to enable Her Majesty to endow new Colleges for the Advancement of Learning in Ireland. Under the powers given by this act the three Colleges of Belfast, Cork and Galway were incorporated on the 30th day of December, 1845. The statutes were drawn up, and the system of education to be pursued in them was arranged, by a board called the Board of Queen's Colleges, consisting of the Presidents and Vice-Presidents of the three colleges. The professors were appointed on 4th August, 1849, and on 30th October of the same year the colleges were opened for the reception of students.

The Queen's University in Ireland was founded in 1845, and its Charter provided that the Senate should have power to confer upon the students of the Queen's Colleges of Belfast, Cork and Galway such degrees and distinctions in the Faculties of Arts, Law and Physics as are granted and conferred in other colleges and universities of Great Britain and Ireland. The Charter further ordained that any of the students of the three Queen's Colleges who should have obtained such degrees in any of the several Faculties of Arts, Medicine and Law, as should be conferred by the Chancellor and Senate of the Queen's University, should be fully possessed of all such rights, privileges and immunities, as belonging to similar degrees granted by other universities or college