John Langhorne (King's School Rochester)

John Langhorne (Rochester School)

Reverend John Langhorne (born Giggleswick, Yorkshire England in 1836 and died in 1911) was headmaster of The King's School, Rochester (founded 604) and an educational innovator there.

His father was John Langhorne of Haber farm, Crosby Ravensworth, Cumbria (1808 - 1881). He was mathematics master of Giggleswick School for thirty years.

His mother was Elizabeth Wildman. She was the daughter of Mary Clark and William Wildman, a farmer from Giggleswick. They may have been related to John Wildman (born 1811) bookseller and publisher in Settle.

He is believed to have been a descendant of Rowland Laugharne.

Early life and Cambridge University

He attended Christ College, Cambridge University where he obtained an Master of Arts degree. Whilst at Cambridge he won the Chancellor's Gold Medal for classics.

Henrietta Long of Harston Hall], Cambridgeshire (1836 - 1869), first wife of John Langhorne (Rochester School)

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Tonbridge School

He taught at Tonbridge school (founded 1553), Kent, England for 17 years, leaving in 1877.

The following poem was written about John Langhorne by Hughes-Hughes (probably whilst a student at Tonbridge School):

"Ego sum Johannes Ursus Et te puneam si ursus facils tumultum Grave puer! num silebis? Immo vero non lidebis Si me provocabis multum" Langhorne was often referred to as "the Bear" (Ursus in Latin)

It is written from the teacher's perspective:

"I am the bear and i will fight you if you are you are a bear that take easily to turmoil Unpleasant boy! If you are silent? To the contrary if you do not sit down if you provoke me alot"

The following account of his time at Tonbridge school comes from the “Hill Side Letter”, the journal of one of the houses at Tonbridge school.

“A year after leaving Cambridge, where he had been a scholar at Christ’s college, [he] arrived at Tonbridge in 1860 to teach Classics to the fifth form. Originally from Giggleswick in Yorkshire, he had spent the year since university teaching in Wakefield and had married Henrietta Long. They moved into Hanover House, a decaying Elizabethan house immediately opposite the new school (Old Library) from where they witnessed the pulling down of the old school buildings and the raising of the present ones. Three sons were born in the next few years …. but then Henrietta died, leaving the children motherless and John needing to employ a housekeeper”

By 1866 he had moved to Bordyke . At this time “it was necessary for him to advertise for pupils and a contemporary leaflet shows him charging 40-50 guineas for ‘house, board and washing’”.

The “Hill Side Letter” states that he was known at Tonbridge as “Fling”. It quotes the following poem composed by an erstwhile student:

“There in the fifth form room, well skilled to swear
The mighty Langhorne teaches from his chair
A man serene he is and stern to view
Satirically inclined and witty too
Well have the fellows earned the rows to trace
When in the morn they look upon his face
But of the will a hearty laugh provoke
By witty sayings or a harmless joke” (1870)

In October 1877 he left to take up his new position at Kings, Rochester. Around this time a contemporary student quoted in the "Hill Side Letter" described John Langhorne thus:

“His loss will be very deeply felt. By his manly and vigorous training he has done much to form aright the character of the school: and many now doing well in the world must look back gratefully to the years spent under his care. A perfect disciplinarian, a thorough and painstaking teacher, he was one whom it was impossible not to respect and admire… the school will always have in him a true and steadfast friend”.

King's School, Rochester

In about 1877 John Langhorne became Headmaster at Kings School Rochester.

Lamberhurst and Retirement

He left Rochester in 1893 to become vicar of Lamberhust and remained there until his death.

Marriage and Children

In 1861 he married Hentietta Long of Harston Hall in her parish of Harston, Chesterton, Cambridgeshire, England. See image. Henrietta Long was a direct descendant of Gregory Wale.

His second wife was Frances Yorke (whose father had been a captain in the dragoon guards) of the Yorke family of Forthampton court of Tewkesbury.

He had eight children including Brigadier General Harold Stephen Langhorne, Brigadier James Archibald Dunboyne Langhorne, and Major-General Algernon Philip Yorke Langhorne, William Langhorne(who became county inspector for the Royal Irish Constabulary) and Herbert Langhorne became a headmaster in Lahore, John Langhorne(who worked at Loretto School and then became headmaster of the Dean Orphanage charity school that later became known as John Watson's that was housed in the building that is now the modern art gallery in Edinburgh). There is believed to be a bronze plaque to him in that building.

References

Hill Side Letter No. 180 (July 1993). “The First Housemaster”. Published by the Tonbridge school, Kent, England. This article about Rev. John Langhorne was included in the papers of his granddaughters Elizabeth Vowles (nee Langhorne) and Mary Langhorne both formerly of New Hasbrook, Whaddon, Gloucester.

A hand held printing press and a print entitled "Colonel Langhorne" is in the possession of John Langhorne's descendants. This image is almost identical to a drawing in the National Portrait Gallery, London entitled "Major-General Rowland Laugharne" and dated 1647. This is the evidence for his being a descendant of Rowland Laugharne. The "Colonel Langhorne" image is, however, entitled "From a scarce Print in Englands Worthys in the Collection of J Cronl. Esq. Pub 1 January 1796 by E and S Harding Pall Mall". The image in the National Portrait Gallery can be seen on http://www.npg.org.uk/live/search/portrait.asp?LinkID=mp55702&rNo=0&role=sit. Langhorne is well recognised as the English version of Laugharne.