Cathedral school
Encyclopedia
Early Middle Ages
The Early Middle Ages was the period of European history lasting from the 5th century to approximately 1000. The Early Middle Ages followed the decline of the Western Roman Empire and preceded the High Middle Ages...
as centers of advanced education, some of them ultimately evolving into medieval universities. Throughout the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
and beyond, they were complemented by the monastic school
Monastic school
Monastic schools were, along with cathedral schools, the most important institutions of higher learning in the Latin West from the early Middle Ages until the 12th century. Since Cassiodorus's educational program, the standard curriculum incorporated religious studies, the Trivium, and the...
s. Some of these early cathedral schools, and more recent foundations, continued into modern times.
Early schools
In the later Roman EmpireRoman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, as Roman municipal education declined, bishops began to establish schools associated with their cathedrals to provide the church with an educated clergy. The earliest evidence of a school established in this manner is in Visigothic Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
at the Second Council of Toledo
Councils of Toledo
Councils of Toledo . From the 5th century to the 7th century, about thirty synods, variously counted, were held at Toledo in what would come to be part of Spain. The earliest, directed against Priscillianism, assembled in 400. The "third" synod of 589 marked the epoch-making conversion of King...
in 527. These early schools, with a focus on an apprenticeship in religious learning under a scholarly bishop, have been identified in other parts of Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and in about twenty towns in Gaul
Gaul
Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
(France) during the sixth and seventh centuries.
During and after the mission of St Augustine
Augustine of Canterbury
Augustine of Canterbury was a Benedictine monk who became the first Archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597...
to the Southern British, Cathedral schools were established as the new dioceses were themselves created (Canterbury 597, Rochester 604, York
St Peter's School, York
St Peter's School is a co-educational independent boarding and day school located in the English City of York, with extensive grounds on the banks of the River Ouse...
627 for example). This group of schools forms the oldest schools continuously operating. A significant function of Cathedral schools was to provide boy
Choirboy
A choirboy is a boy member of a choir, also known as a treble.As a derisive slang term, it refers to a do-gooder or someone who is morally upright, in the same sense that "Boy Scout" refers to someone who is considered honorable or conscientious.- History :The use of choirboys in Christian...
trebles for the choirs, evolving into choir schools, some of which still function as such.
Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
, king of the Franks and later Emperor, recognizing the importance of education to the clergy and, to a lesser extent, to the nobility, set out to restore this declining tradition by issuing several decrees requiring that education be provided at monasteries and cathedrals. In 789, Charlemagne's Admonitio Generalis
Admonitio Generalis
The Admonitio Generalis, as it is commonly known, was an important piece of Carolingian legislation, promulgated in 789 by the Emperor Charlemagne...
required that schools be established in every monastery and bishopric, in which "children can learn to read; that psalms, notation, chant, computation, and grammar be taught." Subsequent documents, such as the letter De litteris colendis
De litteris colendis
The Epistola de litteris colendis is a well-known letter addressed by Charlemagne to Abbot Baugulf of Fulda sometime between 794 and 797 regarding language.-See also:*Admonitio Generalis*Carolingian dynasty*Carolingian Empire*Carolingian Renaissance...
, required that bishops select as teachers men who had "the will and the ability to learn and a desire to instruct others" and a decree of the Council of Frankfurt
Council of Frankfurt
The Council of Frankfurt in 794 was called by Charlemagne. This church council condemned the Adoptionist heresy and revoked decrees regarding the holy icons which were established in 787 at the Second Council of Nicaea...
(794) recommended that bishops undertake the instruction of their clergy.
Subsequently, cathedral schools arose in some major cities including Chartres, Orleans, Paris, Laon, Liege, Rheims, Rouen and Utrecht. Following in the earlier tradition, these cathedral schools primarily taught future clergy and provided literate administrators for the increasingly elaborate courts of the Renaissance of the 12th century
Renaissance of the 12th century
The Renaissance of the 12th century was a period of many changes at the outset of the High Middle Ages. It included social, political and economic transformations, and an intellectual revitalization of Western Europe with strong philosophical and scientific roots...
. The court of Henry I of England
Henry I of England
Henry I was the fourth son of William I of England. He succeeded his elder brother William II as King of England in 1100 and defeated his eldest brother, Robert Curthose, to become Duke of Normandy in 1106...
, himself an early example of a literate king, was closely tied to the cathedral school of Laon.
Characteristics and development
Cathedral schools were mostly oriented around the academic welfare of the nobility's children. Because it was intended to train them for careers in the church, girls were excluded from the schools. Later on, many lay students who weren't necessarily interested in seeking a career in the church wanted to enroll. Demand arose for schools to teach government, state and other Church affairs. The schools, (some notable ones dating back to the eighth and ninth centuries) accepted fewer than 100 students. Pupils had to demonstrate substantial intelligence and be able to handle a demanding academic course load. Considering that books were also expensive, students were in the practice of memorizing their teachers' lectures. Cathedral schools at this time were primarily run by a group of ministers and divided into two parts: Schola minor which was intended for younger students would later become elementary schoolElementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
s. Then there was the schola major, which taught older students. These would later become secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
s.
The subjects taught at Cathedral schools ranged from literature to mathematics. These topics were called the seven liberal arts: grammar
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
, astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
, rhetoric
Rhetoric
Rhetoric is the art of discourse, an art that aims to improve the facility of speakers or writers who attempt to inform, persuade, or motivate particular audiences in specific situations. As a subject of formal study and a productive civic practice, rhetoric has played a central role in the Western...
(or speech), logic
Logic
In philosophy, Logic is the formal systematic study of the principles of valid inference and correct reasoning. Logic is used in most intellectual activities, but is studied primarily in the disciplines of philosophy, mathematics, semantics, and computer science...
, arithmetic
Arithmetic
Arithmetic or arithmetics is the oldest and most elementary branch of mathematics, used by almost everyone, for tasks ranging from simple day-to-day counting to advanced science and business calculations. It involves the study of quantity, especially as the result of combining numbers...
, geometry
Geometry
Geometry arose as the field of knowledge dealing with spatial relationships. Geometry was one of the two fields of pre-modern mathematics, the other being the study of numbers ....
and music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
. In grammar classes, students were trained to read, write and speak Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
which was the universal language in Europe at the time. Astronomy was necessary for calculating dates and times. Rhetoric was a major component of a vocal education. Logic consisted of discovering the art of solving mathematical problems, and arithmetic served as the basis for quantitative reasoning. Students read stories and poems in Latin by authors such as Cicero and Virgil. Much as in the present day, cathedral schools were split into elementary and higher schools with different curricula. The elementary school curriculum was composed of reading, writing and psalmody, while the high school curriculum was trivium (grammar, rhetoric and dialect), the rest of the liberal arts, as well as scripture study and pastoral theology
Pastoral theology
Pastoral theology is the branch of practical theology concerned with the application of the study of religion in the context of regular church ministry. This approach to theology seeks to give practical expression to theology...
.
England
- The seven King's schools established, or re-endowed and renamed, by King Henry VIII in 1541, are located in CanterburyThe King's School, CanterburyThe King's School is a British co-educational independent school for both day and boarding pupils in the historic English cathedral city of Canterbury in Kent. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference and the Eton Group....
, ChesterThe King's School, ChesterThe King's School, Chester is a British coeducational independent 7-18 school situated just outside the city of Chester. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference....
, ElyThe King's School, ElyThe King's School, Ely, is a coeducational independent day and boarding school in the cathedral city of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England. It was founded in 970 A.D., making it one of the oldest schools in the world, though it was given its Royal Charter by King Henry VIII in 1541...
, GloucesterThe King's School, GloucesterThe King's School, Gloucester is an independent school in the United Kingdom, taking students from the ages of 3-18, with around 500 students. The current Headmaster is Alastair Macnaughton.- Origins :...
, PeterboroughThe King's School, PeterboroughThe King's School is a Voluntary Aided Church of England comprehensive secondary school in Peterborough, England. On the 1st January 2011, the School became an academy and changed its name from 'The King's School, Peterborough'...
, RochesterThe King's School, RochesterThe King's School, Rochester is an independent school in Rochester, Kent. It is a cathedral school, and being part of the foundation of Rochester Cathedral, the Dean of Rochester Cathedral serves as the chair of the school's governing body...
and WorcesterThe King's School, WorcesterThe King's School, Worcester is an English independent school refounded by Henry VIII in 1541. It occupies a site adjacent to Worcester Cathedral on the banks of the River Severn in the centre of the city of Worcester... - St Paul's CathedralSt Paul's CathedralSt Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its... - WestminsterWestminster Abbey Choir SchoolWestminster Abbey Choir School is a British boarding preparatory school and the only school in the United Kingdom exclusively for the education of boy choristers. It is located in Dean's Yard, by Westminster Abbey...
, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its... - Bristol Cathedral Choir School (a former cathedral school, it is now an academy)
- ChelmsfordChelmsford CathedralChelmsford Cathedral in the county town of Chelmsford, Essex, England is dedicated to St Mary the Virgin, St Peter and St Cedd. It became a cathedral when the Anglican Diocese of Chelmsford was created in 1914 and is the seat of the Bishop of Chelmsford....
- Wells Cathedral SchoolWells Cathedral SchoolWells Cathedral School is a co-educational independent school located in Wells, Somerset, England. The school is one of the five established musical schools for school-age children in the United Kingdom, along with Chetham's School of Music, the Yehudi Menuhin School, the Purcell School and St....
- Hereford Cathedral SchoolHereford Cathedral SchoolHereford Cathedral School is an independent, co-educational day school, with around 520 pupils aged between the ages of 11 and 18. It has four houses, named Langford , Stuart , Somerset and Cornwall Hereford Cathedral School is an independent, co-educational day school, with around 520 pupils aged...
- Salisbury Cathedral SchoolSalisbury Cathedral SchoolSalisbury Cathedral School is a school located in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. It was founded in 1091 by Saint Osmund at Old Sarum . It was moved 150 years later to the newly built Salisbury Cathedral. In 1947 it was relocated to the former Bishop's Palace in the grounds of the cathedral. The...
- Lichfield Cathedral SchoolLichfield Cathedral SchoolLichfield Cathedral School is an independent cathedral school located in the city of Lichfield, United Kingdom....
United States
Among others:- Arlington, Virginia - St. Thomas More Cathedral School
- Boston, Massachusetts - Cathedral High School
- Kalamazoo, MichiganKalamazoo, MichiganThe area on which the modern city stands was once home to Native Americans of the Hopewell culture, who migrated into the area sometime before the first millennium. Evidence of their early residency remains in the form of a small mound in downtown's Bronson Park. The Hopewell civilization began to...
- St. AugustineSt. Augustine-People:* Augustine of Hippo or Augustine of Hippo , father of the Latin church* Augustine of Canterbury , first Archbishop of Canterbury* Augustine Webster, an English Catholic martyr.-Places:*St. Augustine, Florida, United States...
Cathedral School - Raleigh, North CarolinaRaleigh, North CarolinaRaleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
- Sacred Heart Cathedral SchoolSacred Heart Cathedral (Raleigh, North Carolina)Sacred Heart Cathedral, sometimes referred to as Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, is the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Raleigh. The current bishop seated at the cathedral is the Most Reverend Michael Francis Burbidge. North Carolina, until 1924, was the only state in the United States of... - Salt Lake City, UtahSalt Lake City, UtahSalt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
- St. Vincent DePaul Cathedral School - Washington D.C.- National Cathedral School
Australia
- SydneySydneySydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
- St Andrew'sSt Andrew's Cathedral SchoolSt Andrew's Cathedral School is an independent, non-selective, Anglican, co-educational, day school located in the heart of the city of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia... - SydneySydneySydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
- St Mary'sSt Mary's Cathedral College, SydneySt Mary's Cathedral College is a private, Catholic, secondary day school for boys, located in the Central Business District of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is owned by the Archbishop of Sydney and operates as a systemic school....
Denmark
- RibeRibeRibe , the oldest extant Danish town, is in southwest Jutland and has a population of 8,192 . Until 1 January 2007, it was the seat of both the surrounding municipality, and county...
- Ribe katedralskoleRibe KatedralskoleRibe Katedralskole is a cathedral school in the Town of Ribe, Denmark. The school was first mentioned in 1145. The oldest building still in use, Puggård, is from the fourteenth century...
. - AarhusAarhusAarhus or Århus is the second-largest city in Denmark. The principal port of Denmark, Aarhus is on the east side of the peninsula of Jutland in the geographical center of Denmark...
- Aarhus Katedralskole. - AalborgAalborg-Transport:On the north side of the Limfjord is Nørresundby, which is connected to Aalborg by a road bridge Limfjordsbroen, an iron railway bridge Jernbanebroen over Limfjorden, as well as a motorway tunnel running under the Limfjord Limfjordstunnelen....
- Aalborg Katedralskole. - ViborgViborgViborg may refer to:*Viborg, Denmark, a city in Jutland, Denmark**Viborg Municipality, a Danish municipality named for the city**Viborg County, a former county of Denmark**Diocese of Viborg**Viborg FF, a professional football team based in Viborg...
- Viborg katedralskole. - OdenseOdenseThe city of Odense is the third largest city in Denmark.Odense City has a population of 167,615 and is the main city of the island of Funen...
- Odense Katedralskole. - RoskildeRoskildeRoskilde is the main city in Roskilde Municipality, Denmark on the island of Zealand. It is an ancient city, dating from the Viking Age and is a member of the Most Ancient European Towns Network....
- Roskilde Katedralskole.
See also
- List of choir schools
- Monastic schoolMonastic schoolMonastic schools were, along with cathedral schools, the most important institutions of higher learning in the Latin West from the early Middle Ages until the 12th century. Since Cassiodorus's educational program, the standard curriculum incorporated religious studies, the Trivium, and the...
- Carolingian SchoolsCarolingian SchoolsCarolingian Schools comprised a small number of educational institutions which had a major share in the Carolingian renaissance, specifically cathedral schools and monastic schools.-Antecedents:...
- School of ChartresSchool of ChartresDuring the High Middle Ages, Chartres Cathedral operated a famous and influential cathedral school, an important center of scholarship. It developed and reached its apex in the 11th and 12th centuries...
- School of ReimsSchool of ReimsThe School of Reims was the cathedral school of Reims Cathedral in France that was in operation during the Middle Ages.Established by Archbishop Fulcon , the school attracted great names such as Hincmar, the Archbishop of Reims between 845 and 882, the chronicler Flodoard The School of Reims was...