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Royal Hospital School

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The Royal Hospital School, Holbrook
File:RHS1.JPG
Location
Map
Holbrook
,
Suffolk
,
IP9 2RX

England United Kingdom
Information
TypePublic School

Boarding School
Independent School

Royal Foundation
MottoReg Hosp Gren

'Celebrating Britain's seafaring heritage through educating young people for the future'
"The Cradle of the Navy"
"Fear God and Honour the King" (Greenwich)
Association: [Otia Tuta] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help)

(Template:Lang-la)
Religious affiliation(s)Christian
Established1694 Royal Charter

1712 Greenwich

1933 Holbrook
FounderWilliam and Mary
Local authoritySuffolk
HeadmasterHoward Blackett MA (Oxon)
ChaplainRev. J W P McConnell MA[1]
Staff72
GenderCoeducational
Age11 to 18
Enrollmentc. 700
Houses11 Boarding Houses

Nelson      
Anson    
Drake (Boys Junior House)  
Raleigh  
St. Vincent  
Collingwood    
Hawke    
Hood    
Cornwallis    
Howe  

Blake (Girls Junior House)  
Colour(s)     

School Scarf

Publication"The Magazine"
School VisitorHRH Prince Andrew, The Duke of York
Charitable AssociationGreenwich Hospital
Former PupilsThe RHS Arms
Websitehttp://www.royalhospitalschool.org

The Royal Hospital School, (usually shortened as "RHS" and historically nicknamed "The Cradle of the Navy"[2]), is a British co-educational independent boarding school with naval traditions. It admits pupils from age 11 to 18 (years 7 to 13) through Common Entrance or the school's own exam. The school is regulated by Acts of Parliament.[3]

It is located in the village of Holbrook, near Ipswich, Suffolk, England, United Kingdom. The school's campus is of Queen Anne style and set in 200 acres (0.81 km2) of countryside, overlooking out the River Stour on the Shotley Peninsula in an area known as Constable Country.

The Royal Hospital School was established by a Royal Charter in 1694. It was originally located at Greenwich Hospital in Greenwich. The school moved in 1933 to East Anglia.

The Royal Hospital School is the only independent boarding school in the United Kingdom to have ever been continuously granted the Queen's Banner and flies its own Admiralty approved Royal Hospital School Blue Ensign, as well as being the only school in the United Kingdom to have the privilege of wearing Royal Navy uniforms.

The school is affiliated to the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference or HMC.

Bernard de Neumann notes the school's significance and impact in British history: "Just as, according to the Duke of Wellington, the Battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton, it may justifiably be claimed, that the establishment of... the British Empire, was charted and plotted in the classroom of... the Royal Hospital School."

Overview

Seafaring traditions, are important and integral elements of school life and Royal Navy uniforms (sailor suits) are issued to all pupils and used for ceremonial and formal events. The School is owned by the Crown naval charity, Greenwich Hospital and as a result provides a number of means-tested bursaries for families with a seafaring background.

Leadership development is another distinctive feature of The Royal Hospital School derived from the naval background. Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and Royal Marines Combined Cadet Force along with the Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme are the most popular extracurricular activities at the Royal Hospital School. The Combined Cadet Force is unique as it also includes REME Section, Pioneers, Her Majesty's Coastguard and St. John's Ambulance. HMS Illustrious is affiliated with the Royal Navy CCF.[4] The Army Section is affiliated with Army Air Corps.[5]

The front of the main building overlooking the sports pitches

The Royal Hospital School has a partnership with America's second-oldest institution of higher education and "sister institution", The College of William and Mary, Virginia, USA.[6]

The Royal Hospital School has a full boarding school ethos and operates seven days a week.

Students

There are a little over 700 students. 140 are day students and 80% are boarders and is the largest boarding school in East Anglia.

International Students come from about 20 countries. The school has specialist staff for international students and an English as a Foreign Language course.

Academics

The academic experience at RHS uses the National Curriculum Key Stages 3, 4, and 5 and provides a large choice of subjects for study including English, French, Spanish, German, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Latin, Geography, History, Mathematics, Technology, Art, Music, IT, Physical Education, Media Studies, Business Studies, Psychology, Drama & Theatre, Art History, Government & Politics, Textiles, Law, Russian, Greek and Religious Studies.

Faculty

All faculty live on site and participate in all aspects of school life.

History

Boys of The Royal Hospital School, Greenwich c.1900

The school was originally located at Greenwich Hospital and was based in what is now the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, London. The Hospital was founded in 1694 and the school in 1712, both by Royal Charter .[7][8] The original purpose of the school was to provide assistance and education to the orphans of seafarers in the Royal and Merchant Navies and it was once the largest school for navigation and seamanship in the country.[9]

The School has been at Holbrook since 1933. The land on which the school is now situated was bequeathed to the school by Gifford Sherman Reade, along with the sum of £1 million. The Holbrook campus was designed by the Birmingham based arts and crafts architect Herbert Tudor Buckland. Most of the buildings are now Grade II listed with the main range and chapel being Grade II*.

Until relatively recently, entry to the school was limited to the children or grandchildren of seafarers. Until the 1950s, boys of the school were also required to join the Royal or Merchant Navies and as such the education was very much maritime focused. Although this requirement has not been in force for some decades, the school has retained certain naval traditions such as Naval uniform, divisions and an element of marching.

In 2005 RHS was one of fifty of the country's leading private schools which were found guilty of running an illegal price-fixing cartel which had allowed them to drive up fees for thousands of parents.[10] Each school was required to pay a nominal penalty of £10,000 and all agreed to make ex-gratia payments totalling three million pounds into a trust designed to benefit pupils who attended the schools during the period in respect of which fee information was shared.[11]

Greenwich Hospital

Greenwich Pensioner, 1845

The school was founded by Royal Charter and is maintained by Greenwich Hospital who support a number of pupils with bursaries who demonstrate sufficient charitable need. The school also awards academic, sports, music and sailing scholarships, as well as bursaries and discounts to the children of seafarers in the Royal Navy, Royal Marines or Merchant Navy.[12]

Traditions

The school's close ties with Greenwich Hospital are highly respected and valued in school life. Many of the modern day Royal Hospital School traditions are associated with the Royal Navy or seafaring. For example key naval events are celebrated, the ceremonial marching band are frequently invited to attend prestigious events and the provision for sailing is unrivalled.

As well as standard school uniform, both boys and girls wear Naval uniforms for ceremonial occasions such as "Divisions".

All house POs (Petty Officers) wear a chevron on their left arm.

The School Chiefs (Chief Petty Officer)(approximately 20 Upper 6th Formers) wear chief petty officer ranks and uniform, including canes.

The Deputy Heads of School (one male and one female prefect) carry the rank of Warrant Officer (second class).

The Heads of School (one male and one female prefect) carry the rank of Warrant Officer (first class).

Music

The Royal Hospital School has a distinctive musical tradition, with all pupils required to attend weekly congregation practice. The Chapel houses the third largest pipe organ in Europe. [citation needed] The £3.6 Million Reade Music School opened in 2008.[13]

Band

The Royal Hospital School marching band is a perennial part of school life. The band is managed by a former member of the Royal Marines Band Service. The band forms a separate division and is the largest division. The Royal Marines Band style is the format of the RHS Band. It has travelled abroad for tours. Heart of Oak, A Life on the Ocean Wave and "Holbrook March" are some of the marches played.

School songs

William and Mary Scholars

William and Mary Scholars is an intercultural exchange programme, celebrating the heritage of the founders. It is for upper sixth formers to study a semester at The College of William and Mary and for a William and Mary graduate to teach at The Royal Hospital School for a year.

Events

  • Burns Night
  • House Shout
  • Drama Festival
  • School Plays and Musicals
  • Music Recitals and Concerts
  • Christmas Dinner
  • Alumni Reunion including Sporting Events
  • Trafalgar Night
  • Speech Day
  • Remembrance Sunday
  • Snow Ball

Chapel

The chapel programme is central to the RHS education.

Royal Foundation

The Royal Hospital School has some connection with the British Royal Family. The royal connections are principally The Royal Charter, School Visitor, and King's & Queen's Banners. The school's political breadth is shown by both its acknowledgement of its royal connections and its honouring the great republican hero, Admiral Blake, after whom a House is named.

Many members of the Royal Family have involved themselves with the development of the school. Queen Mary's involvement with the Royal Hospital School is noted as "the darling object of her life".[14]

Houses

All 11 Houses at the Royal Hospital School are named in honour of a famous seafarer.

The boarding houses and colours:

Boys

West Side

East Side

Junior House

  • Drake - Green

Girls

West Side

East Side

Junior House

Upper Sixth

Sports

RHS has inter house and inter school sporting opportunities. It is a highly competitive programme with many competing well beyond RHS and have even developed many professional athletes. Currently RHS fields Rugby, Riding, Swimming, Cross Country, Athletics, Netball, Rounders, Canoeing, Sailing, Soccer, Cricket, Golf, Tennis and Hockey.

Holbrook Coastguard

The Holbrook Coastguard, founded in 1996, has a fully operational watch station and CRV, affiliated with Her Majesty's Coastguard. The area the team covers stretches from the Dry Dock in Ipswich to Shotley and then from Shotley to the White Bridge at Manningtree, but often operate in the Wrabness area with the neighbouring team.

Holbrook Coastguard is unique since, in term-time, it is run entirely by students. While there is a student-operated coastguard in Scotland and Wales, it is the only one of its kind in England. There is a student in charge elected every year but there are adult team members who are in control during the school holidays. The student team has members aged 14–18.

Royal Hospital School Association

The Greenwich Royal Hospital School Old Boys Association was founded in 1925 and changed its name to the Royal Hospital School Association (RHSA) in 1992 in order to accommodate female ex-pupils. It now has a world wide membership of over 3,000[citation needed], however pupils leaving the school no longer automatically join the RHSA as the school no longer collects subscriptions. The Association publishes an irregular newsletter called Otia Tuta keeping members abreast of current events[15] [16].

Notable former pupils

See also: Category:People educated at the Royal Hospital School
  • Admiral Arthur Phillip (1738–1814) - founder of Sydney, Australia and the Governor of the first European colony on the continent (NSW)
  • Admiral Sir Philip King Enright, KBE, CB (1894–1960)
  • Major General Jasper Baker, CB, CBE (1877–1964) - Director of Ordnance Services and Commandant RAOC, 1932 - 1945.
  • Admiral Sir Henry Felix Woods, Pasha, (1843–1929) - Admiral in the Turkish Navy
  • Vice-Admiral Sir Benjamin C.S. Martin, KBE, DSO (1891–1957) - The first man promoted from the lower deck to become a Rear-Admiral on the active list in modern times.
  • Air Vice-Marshal Hubert Desmond Hall, CB, CMG, CBE, AFC (1925-?)
  • Rear-Admiral Stanley McArdle, GM (1922–2007)
  • Don Topley (1964-)- Essex CCC and coach of Zimbabwe.
  • Peter Richards (1978-) -Rugby, England, Gloucester and London Irish.
  • Captain Thomas Henry Tizard (1839–1924) - Oceanographer, Hydrographic surveyor and Navigator
  • Henry Petrides (1991 -) - Artist and Filmmaker
  • Ernest Edward Mills Joyce, AM (1875–1940) - Antarctic Explorer, hero of the Ross Sea Party of Shackleton's ill-fated Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition.
  • John Deane (1800–1884) and Charles Deane - inventors of the diving helmet, and discoverers of the wreck of the Mary Rose in 1839, whilst clearing the wreck of the Royal George.
  • Professor Bernard de Neumann (1943- ) – Mathematician
  • Commander Harry Pursey MP (1891–1980) - Member of Parliament for Kingston upon Hull East 1945-70
  • Captain Oswald Tuck RN (1876–1950) – Naval Chaplain and Instructor
  • Malcolm Douglas Cooper (1947–2001) - British marksman who won Olympic gold medals at Los Angeles and Seoul and beat or equalled 15 world records
  • Henry Davenport Sarratt (1828–1899)- Navigator, Royal Navy, Command of the Royal Yacht which brought Princess Alexandra from Denmark to marry the Prince of Wales
  • Zebedee Scaping (1833–1909) Esteemed headmaster of Hull Trinity House Navigation Schools (1854–1909).
  • Duncan Scott-Ford (1921–1942) executed for treason.

Notable Staff

  • Edward Riddle, FRAS (1786–1854) Astronomer, mathematician, and teacher of navigation. Highly esteemed teacher; senior mathematics master in the Upper School (1821–1840); headmaster of the Upper School (1840–1841); and then of the Nautical School (1841–1851). Author of an authoritative and important book: "Treatise on Navigation and Nautical Astronomy", that was used throughout the world and ran to eight editions. [1st edition 1821].
  • Rev George Fisher, MA, FRS, FRAS (1794–1873) Astronomer, Arctic explorer. Chaplain (1834–1863); Headmaster of the Upper School (1834–1840); Principal of the schools (1860–1863). Noted for his pioneering work in numerical educational attainment assessment.
  • Marlon (1991-present); future Prime Minister of Australia
  • John Riddle, FRAS (1816–1862) Astronomer, mathematician, and teacher of navigation. Only son of Edward Riddle, and his successor as headmaster of the Nautical School (1851–1862). Many of his pupils followed him into teaching and headed highly influential nautical schools throughout the United Kingdom, such as Hull, Glasgow, Leith, Dublin, Belfast.[citation needed]
  • T/Sub-Lieut.John Herbert Babington, GC, OBE. MA, BSc Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve. Awarded George Cross for bomb disposal work 27 December 1940. Headmaster 1947-1955.

See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.royalhospitalschool.org/sitefiles/upload_docs/Staff%20List%20Michaelmas%202010.pdf
  2. ^ The Royal Hospital School gallery : On display : Exhibitions : What's on : Visit the museum : NMM
  3. ^ Greenwich Hospital Act 1865
  4. ^ http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/operations-and-support/surface-fleet/aircraft-carriers/hms-illustrious/affiliations/index.htm
  5. ^ http://www.royalhospitalschool.org/default.asp?page=194&news=270
  6. ^ "Greenwich Hospital School: A Brief History of The Royal Hospital School". Mariners. March 5, 2003. Retrieved February 9, 2009. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  7. ^ "A Brief History of The Royal Hospital School", Bernard de Neumann, The City University, London
  8. ^ Royal Hospital School Association
  9. ^ http://www.nmm.ac.uk/visit/exhibitions/on-display/the-royal-hospital-school-gallery
  10. ^ Halpin, Tony (2005-11-10). "Independent schools face huge fines over cartel to fix fees". The Times. London. Retrieved 2010-05-22.
  11. ^ http://www.oft.gov.uk/news/press/2006/182-06
  12. ^ "2009/2010 Fees"
  13. ^ http://www.royalhospitalschool.org/default.asp?page=187&news=150
  14. ^ "http://www.mariners-l.co.uk/GreenwichRoyal.html
  15. ^ http://www.rhs-fame.co.uk/OtiaTuta.pdf
  16. ^ http://www.rhsa.co.uk/zips/newsletter.pdf

Literature

  • Desmond, Morris. "The Royal Hospital School Holbrook 1933-1993," United Kingdom.
  • McClean, David. "Education and Empire: Naval Tradition and England's Elite Society," British Academic Press, I. B. Tauris (January 15, 1999), ISBN 1860642950
  • Newell, Phillip. "Greenwhich Hospital: A Royal Foundation 1692-1983," United Kingdom.
  • Turner, H.D. The Cradle of the Navy: The Story of the Royal Hospital School at Greenwhich and at Holbrook, 1694–1988, William Sessions Limited of York, United Kingdom, 1990, ISBN 1-85072-077-0
  • Waldie, Paul. "Ghosts and Kippers: Schoolboy Memories, from the Royal Hospital School, Greenwich," United Kingdom.
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