Royal Grammar School Worcester
Encyclopedia
The Royal Grammar School Worcester (also known as RGS Worcester) is an independent
coeducational school in Worcester
, United Kingdom. Founded before 1291, it is one of the oldest British independent schools.
In September 2007 it merged with the neighbouring Alice Ottley School
and was briefly known as RGS Worcester and The Alice Ottley School before reverting to its original name.
The school has been coeducational since the end of 2002, having previously been boys only.
The school is a day-school
. Until 1992 it accepted boarders
who resided in Whiteladies house, a building that is rumoured to contain hidden treasure from Charles I
from when he sought refuge there during the Civil War.
. This makes it the 5th oldest school in the United Kingdom and the 6th in the world. It was located outside the monastic precincts (as with The King's School, Canterbury
) and catered for the relatives of monks and children intending to go into the monastery. The first written reference to the school appears in 1265 when the Bishop of Worcester
, Walter de Cantilupe
, sent four chaplains into the city to teach.
Conclusive evidence appears in 1291 when an argument was settled by Bishop Godfrey Giffard
regarding who owned the wax from the candles used at the feast of St Swithun. It was decided that the Scholars of the Worcester School owned it, and the Rector of Saint Nicholas Church had to rely on the generosity of the scholars in order to get candle wax. The headmaster is mentioned as Stephen of London. The letter dated December 1291 is in the County Records Office in Worcester.
The next headmaster was appointed in 1312 as Hugh of Northampton as recorded in the Bishop's register for that year. He was appointed personally by the Bishop of Worcester, Archbishop of Canterbury
, Lord Chancellor
Walter Reynolds
. The school continued to exist under the control of the city guilds through the centuries with various records of headmasters being appointed, again listed in the registers of the bishops of Worcester. One in particular was 'Sir Richard (Chaplain)', who was dismissed by the bishop of Worcester, Philip Morgan, in 1422 for taking money from the scholars for his own use. He was replaced the same year by Sir John Bredel. Sir Richard Pynnington was appointed in 1485 and is known to have given money to the Archbishop of Canterbury's fund , showing the strong connection of the school with the church.
In 1541, however, Henry VIII
founded a new school in Worcester; The King's School Worcester
was based on the former site of the Royal Grammar School and became a rival school, with the rivalry manifesting itself in sports fixtures between the two schools.
by Queen Elizabeth I
in 1561 and a governing body known as the Six Masters was set up, which remains as the governing body of the new RGS Worcester school today. Amongst famous Six masters are John Wall, Earl Beauchamp
and Sir Anthony Lechemere.
The Six Masters acquired much land for the school including its current site bought in 1562, the Pitchcroft fields, now used as the city racecourse, and land in Herefordshire still owned by the school. The 1906 Charity Commission survey also recorded a number of Pubs in Worcester which still exist today.
A second Royal Charter was granted in 1843 by Queen Victoria
, and the title of 'Royal' was conferred in 1869.
was introduced in 1899 by the then headmaster Frederick Arthur Hillard. Initially six houses were established, and membership of houses was based on the place of residence of each boy. The original houses were: Boarders, Barbourne, City, St. John's, County A, and County B. In 1909 the house system was changed to reflect the increasing number of boys in the school, and the difficulty of allocating pupils on the basis of where they lived. The six houses created in 1909 were: School House, for boarders, (which, due to common usage, changed to Whiteladies, as this was the building in which the boarders lived); Temple (after Henry Temple, headmaster 1850s); Tudor (after Elizabeth I
); Woolfe (after Richard Woolfe, benefactor 1877 ); Wylde (after Thomas Wylde, benefactor 1558); and Yewle (after Robert Yewle, Six Master 1561).In 1963 two additional houses were created by the then headmaster Godfrey Brown, namely Langley (after William Langley, Six Master 1561) and Moore (after John Moore, benefactor 1626).
Every pupil in the school is a member of a House, with members of the same family always being in the same house. Pupils wear different ties to represent which house they are in, with the basic tie design being the same for all pupils (a navy blue tie with a repeated crown motif) but with different coloured stripes to represent the house. In house sports events pupils wear different coloured socks to indicate which house they are in (this colour being the same as the colour of the tie stripe).
The colours that represent each house are as follows: Flagge is represented by red, Cobham by mauve, Britania by blue, Eld by green, Butler by gold and Perrins by orange.
The school held a yearly house championship, Decided by events a range of events throughout the school year in which all six houses competed, with the winners of each event being awarded eight points, the second placed house seven, down to the losing house one point. The house championship was traditionally called the 'Cock House' (or Cock House Cup Competition) competition, its name deriving from that of the Cock
. The original cup that was competed for is one which was presented to the school in 1902 by the Old Elizabethans' Association; in modern times competition is for a cup which was introduced in 1978.
. The school is also a member of the HMC
meaning it has links with schools across the globe. The school has links with four (of the other six) Royal Grammar Schools in the country due to its participation in an annual cricket competition between five of the RGS Schools. The other four RGS schools that compete are those in Colchester
, Guildford
, High Wycombe
, and Newcastle
with the host school changing each year
, who was an Old Boy
and a member of the school's governing body. Perrins Hall was named after his father James Dyson Perrins, owner of Lea and Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, who went to the school, the basement of Perrins Hall contains a rifle range, which was added in 1914.
in 1886. The first recorded match to be held there was in 1939, when the school played Merton College, Oxford
. The ground has also played host to several Second XI fixtures for the Worcestershire Second XI
in the Second XI Championship
and Second XI Trophy. In 2007, the ground held a single List-A match for Worcestershire
when they played Sri Lanka A
.
The Old School buildings were built in 1868 on a site owned by the school since 1562. The Main Hall, Eld Hall and adjoining buildings were designed by A E Perkins in the Gothic style. It is three bays long with a central lantern. A life-size statue of Elizabeth I by R L Boulton stands above the central window.
The Perrins Hall was built in 1914 to the plans of Alfred Hill Parker (an Old Boy) in a Jacobethan style with an Oriel Window
on the staircase end and balcony looking over the hall. The interior is panelled with fitted bookcases (which make up the Dowty
Library) and a plastered ceiling. Two war memorials for the two World Wars are housed in the hall. a life-size portrait of Charles William Dyson Perrins hangs opposite the fireplace. Portraits of the 20th-century headmasters hang below. The school organ
is in this building, and is played regularly at assemblies.
The Clock Block is connected to the Perrins Hall and was built in 1927, and had extension work carried out in 1967 to link it to the Science Block. It has a bell tower and clock above the entrance. The clock is made of Cotswold Limestone
, and is surmounted by the carved head of Old Father Time
. To commemorate the millennium a stained glass
window was commissioned and installed over the main entrance to the Clock Block.
and Duchess of York
(later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth). The science buildings were subsequently re-furbished in 1996 and thereafter re-opened by Michael Portillo
. The science block features at one end of a long path which comes from the main quad of the school, which is the location of Perrins Hall and the Main block. This long path is known as Long Walk.
Whiteladies House, built in the seventeenth century, was traditionally the Headmaster's house and stands opposite Clock Block across the gardens. Its West wall is part of the Whiteladies Priory
chapel built in 1255.. Its name derives from the white habit
that is worn by Cistercian nuns, who were based at a Nunnery, which was adjacent to Whiteladies.
Other buildings include Priory House (17th Century), Pullinger House (1980s), Gordon House (after Adam Lindsay Gordon
OE
) and Hillard Hall (1961, opened by Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother on her second visit to the school). The Almshouses, built in 1877 in the Arts and crafts
style, were designed by Sir Aston Webb
, the designer of the facade of Buckingham Palace
, the Royal Naval College Dartmouth and the Victoria and Albert Museum
and are an example of some of his earliest work..
The most recent building work to a school building took place on the school's library. The library was refurbished in 2001, and was renamed the Philip Sawyer Library (after the former Chairman of the Governors). The library is situated above Eld Hall, and features a high vaulted roof structure.
, rugby
, football, athletics
, rowing
, tennis
, netball
, hockey
and chess
.
There is a large and active CCF
section at the school, with all three branches of the services represented. Students also have the opportunity to participate in the The Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme
, and all three levels of award are regularly achieved by students. One of the other activities that students can participate in is the Ten Tors
event, with the school having had teams compete at all three distance levels.
Independent school
An independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
coeducational school in Worcester
Worcester
The City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...
, United Kingdom. Founded before 1291, it is one of the oldest British independent schools.
In September 2007 it merged with the neighbouring Alice Ottley School
The Alice Ottley School
The Alice Ottley School was an independent all-girl school in Worcester which existed between 1883 and 2007 before it was renamed to take the name of the school's first ever headmistress and became 'The Alice Ottley School'.-History:...
and was briefly known as RGS Worcester and The Alice Ottley School before reverting to its original name.
The school has been coeducational since the end of 2002, having previously been boys only.
The school is a day-school
Day school
A day school—as opposed to a boarding school—is an institution where children are given educational instruction during the day and after which children/teens return to their homes...
. Until 1992 it accepted boarders
Boarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...
who resided in Whiteladies house, a building that is rumoured to contain hidden treasure from Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
from when he sought refuge there during the Civil War.
History
The School was originally founded as a secular monastic school in Worcester in around 685 by Bishop BoselBosel
Bosel was a medieval Bishop of Worcester.He was consecrated bishop in 680. In c. 685, Bosel founded the Royal Grammar School Worcester, which is the oldest school of its type in the United Kingdom. He was also the head of Worcester Cathedral when it was founded.He resigned the see in 691 and died...
. This makes it the 5th oldest school in the United Kingdom and the 6th in the world. It was located outside the monastic precincts (as with The King's School, Canterbury
The King's School, Canterbury
The 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....
) and catered for the relatives of monks and children intending to go into the monastery. The first written reference to the school appears in 1265 when the Bishop of Worcester
Bishop of Worcester
The Bishop of Worcester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Worcester in the Province of Canterbury, England. He is the head of the Diocese of Worcester in the Province of Canterbury...
, Walter de Cantilupe
Walter de Cantilupe
Walter de Cantilupe was a medieval Bishop of Worcester.-Life:He came of a family which had risen by devoted service to the crown...
, sent four chaplains into the city to teach.
Conclusive evidence appears in 1291 when an argument was settled by Bishop Godfrey Giffard
Godfrey Giffard
Godfrey Giffard was Chancellor of the Exchequer of England, Lord Chancellor of England and Bishop of Worcester.-Early life:Giffard was the son of Hugh Giffard of Boyton in Wiltshire, a royal justice, and of his wife Sibyl, daughter and co-heiress of Walter de Cormeilles...
regarding who owned the wax from the candles used at the feast of St Swithun. It was decided that the Scholars of the Worcester School owned it, and the Rector of Saint Nicholas Church had to rely on the generosity of the scholars in order to get candle wax. The headmaster is mentioned as Stephen of London. The letter dated December 1291 is in the County Records Office in Worcester.
The next headmaster was appointed in 1312 as Hugh of Northampton as recorded in the Bishop's register for that year. He was appointed personally by the Bishop of Worcester, Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
, Lord Chancellor
Lord Chancellor
The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
Walter Reynolds
Walter Reynolds
Walter Reynolds was Bishop of Worcester and then Archbishop of Canterbury as well as Lord High Treasurer and Lord Chancellor.-Life:...
. The school continued to exist under the control of the city guilds through the centuries with various records of headmasters being appointed, again listed in the registers of the bishops of Worcester. One in particular was 'Sir Richard (Chaplain)', who was dismissed by the bishop of Worcester, Philip Morgan, in 1422 for taking money from the scholars for his own use. He was replaced the same year by Sir John Bredel. Sir Richard Pynnington was appointed in 1485 and is known to have given money to the Archbishop of Canterbury's fund , showing the strong connection of the school with the church.
Rival schools
In 1501 an attempt was made at establishing a rival school in the city, but the Bishop of Worcester at the time, Sylvestre de Giglis, passed a law that stated any person who set up a school in the city or monastic precincts would be excommunicated. Thus all rivals ceased to exist, and the headmaster of that said school, Hugh Cratford MA, was created headmaster of the City School in 1504.In 1541, however, Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
founded a new school in Worcester; The King's School Worcester
The King's School, Worcester
The 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...
was based on the former site of the Royal Grammar School and became a rival school, with the rivalry manifesting itself in sports fixtures between the two schools.
Royal charters
After a petition by some notable citizens of Worcester to endow the school permanently, the school was given a Royal CharterRoyal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
by Queen Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
in 1561 and a governing body known as the Six Masters was set up, which remains as the governing body of the new RGS Worcester school today. Amongst famous Six masters are John Wall, Earl Beauchamp
Earl Beauchamp
Earl Beauchamp was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1815 for William Lygon, 1st Baron Beauchamp, along with the subsidiary title Viscount Elmley, in the County of Worcester. He had already been created Baron Beauchamp of Powyke in the County of Worcester, in 1806,...
and Sir Anthony Lechemere.
The Six Masters acquired much land for the school including its current site bought in 1562, the Pitchcroft fields, now used as the city racecourse, and land in Herefordshire still owned by the school. The 1906 Charity Commission survey also recorded a number of Pubs in Worcester which still exist today.
A second Royal Charter was granted in 1843 by Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
, and the title of 'Royal' was conferred in 1869.
School houses
The house systemHouse system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...
was introduced in 1899 by the then headmaster Frederick Arthur Hillard. Initially six houses were established, and membership of houses was based on the place of residence of each boy. The original houses were: Boarders, Barbourne, City, St. John's, County A, and County B. In 1909 the house system was changed to reflect the increasing number of boys in the school, and the difficulty of allocating pupils on the basis of where they lived. The six houses created in 1909 were: School House, for boarders, (which, due to common usage, changed to Whiteladies, as this was the building in which the boarders lived); Temple (after Henry Temple, headmaster 1850s); Tudor (after Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
); Woolfe (after Richard Woolfe, benefactor 1877 ); Wylde (after Thomas Wylde, benefactor 1558); and Yewle (after Robert Yewle, Six Master 1561).In 1963 two additional houses were created by the then headmaster Godfrey Brown, namely Langley (after William Langley, Six Master 1561) and Moore (after John Moore, benefactor 1626).
Every pupil in the school is a member of a House, with members of the same family always being in the same house. Pupils wear different ties to represent which house they are in, with the basic tie design being the same for all pupils (a navy blue tie with a repeated crown motif) but with different coloured stripes to represent the house. In house sports events pupils wear different coloured socks to indicate which house they are in (this colour being the same as the colour of the tie stripe).
The colours that represent each house are as follows: Flagge is represented by red, Cobham by mauve, Britania by blue, Eld by green, Butler by gold and Perrins by orange.
The school held a yearly house championship, Decided by events a range of events throughout the school year in which all six houses competed, with the winners of each event being awarded eight points, the second placed house seven, down to the losing house one point. The house championship was traditionally called the 'Cock House' (or Cock House Cup Competition) competition, its name deriving from that of the Cock
Rooster
A rooster, also known as a cockerel, cock or chanticleer, is a male chicken with the female being called a hen. Immature male chickens of less than a year's age are called cockerels...
. The original cup that was competed for is one which was presented to the school in 1902 by the Old Elizabethans' Association; in modern times competition is for a cup which was introduced in 1978.
School Connections
The school has close links with private schools in the local region due to its membership of the 'Monmouth Group', which is a collection of schools similar in aims and membership to that of the Eton GroupEton Group
The Eton Group is an association of 12 leading English independent schools within the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference including some of the most elite academic schools in the country...
. The school is also a member of the HMC
Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference is an association of the headmasters or headmistressess of 243 leading day and boarding independent schools in the United Kingdom, Crown Dependencies and the Republic of Ireland...
meaning it has links with schools across the globe. The school has links with four (of the other six) Royal Grammar Schools in the country due to its participation in an annual cricket competition between five of the RGS Schools. The other four RGS schools that compete are those in Colchester
Colchester Royal Grammar School
Colchester Royal Grammar School is a grammar school in Colchester, Essex, founded in AD 1206 and granted two Royal Charters by Henry VIII and by Elizabeth I .-Admissions:...
, Guildford
Royal Grammar School, Guildford
The Royal Grammar School is a selective English independent day school for boys in Guildford, Surrey. The school dates its founding to the death of Robert Beckingham in 1509 who left provision in his will to 'make a free scole at the Towne of Guldford'; in 1512 a governing body was set up to form...
, High Wycombe
Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe
See Royal Grammar School for the other schools with the name RGS.The Royal Grammar School High Wycombe is a selective grammar school situated in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. As a state school it does not charge fees for students to attend, but they must pass an entrance exam...
, and Newcastle
Royal Grammar School, Newcastle
Royal Grammar School Newcastle upon Tyne, known locally and often abbreviated as RGS, is a long-established co-educational, independent school in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It gained its Royal Charter under Queen Elizabeth I...
with the host school changing each year
Land and buildings
Many of the current buildings were paid for Charles William Dyson PerrinsCharles Dyson Perrins
Charles William Dyson Perrins was an English businessman, bibliophile and philanthropist. He was born in Claines, near Worcester, the son of James Dyson Perrins, the owner of the Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce factory and the grandson of William Perrins, co-originator of the Lea & Perrins...
, who was an Old Boy
Old boy network
An old boy network, or society, can refer to social and business connections among former pupils of male-only private schools. British public school students were traditionally called "boys", thus graduated students are "old boys"....
and a member of the school's governing body. Perrins Hall was named after his father James Dyson Perrins, owner of Lea and Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, who went to the school, the basement of Perrins Hall contains a rifle range, which was added in 1914.
Flagge Meadow
Flagge Meadow was first levelled and used for cricketCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
in 1886. The first recorded match to be held there was in 1939, when the school played Merton College, Oxford
Merton College, Oxford
Merton College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the 1260s when Walter de Merton, chancellor to Henry III and later to Edward I, first drew up statutes for an independent academic community and established endowments to...
. The ground has also played host to several Second XI fixtures for the Worcestershire Second XI
Worcestershire County Cricket Club
Worcestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Worcestershire...
in the Second XI Championship
Second XI Championship
The Second XI Championship is a season-long cricket competition in England that is competed for by the reserve teams of those county cricket clubs that have first-class status...
and Second XI Trophy. In 2007, the ground held a single List-A match for Worcestershire
Worcestershire County Cricket Club
Worcestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Worcestershire...
when they played Sri Lanka A
Sri Lanka A cricket team
The Sri Lanka A cricket team is a national cricket team representing Sri Lanka. It is the 'second-tier' of international Sri Lankan cricket, below the full Sri Lanka national cricket team. Matches played by Sri Lanka A are not considered to be Test matches or One Day Internationals, instead...
.
Other land
The School Playing Fields are located nearby at the back of the school, next to the Birmingham and Worcester Canal. The other playing field across the road from Flagge Meadow is St Oswald's Field mainly used for athletics.School's halls
The Perrins Hall was built in 1914 to the plans of Alfred Hill Parker (an Old Boy) in a Jacobethan style with an Oriel Window
Oriel window
Oriel windows are a form of bay window commonly found in Gothic architecture, which project from the main wall of the building but do not reach to the ground. Corbels or brackets are often used to support this kind of window. They are seen in combination with the Tudor arch. This type of window was...
on the staircase end and balcony looking over the hall. The interior is panelled with fitted bookcases (which make up the Dowty
Dowty
Dowty may refer to:*Alan Dowty, an international relations scholar*David Dowty, an American linguist.*Dowty Group, a British aircraft equipment manufacturing business.**Ultra Electronics was created by the demerger of seven Dowty companies in 1993....
Library) and a plastered ceiling. Two war memorials for the two World Wars are housed in the hall. a life-size portrait of Charles William Dyson Perrins hangs opposite the fireplace. Portraits of the 20th-century headmasters hang below. The school organ
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
is in this building, and is played regularly at assemblies.
The Clock Block is connected to the Perrins Hall and was built in 1927, and had extension work carried out in 1967 to link it to the Science Block. It has a bell tower and clock above the entrance. The clock is made of Cotswold Limestone
Cotswold stone
Cotswold stone is a yellow oolitic limestone quarried in many places in the Cotswold Hills in the south midlands of England. When weathered, the colour of buildings made or faced with this stone is often described as 'honey' or 'golden'....
, and is surmounted by the carved head of Old Father Time
Father Time
Father Time is usually depicted as an elderly bearded man, somewhat worse for wear, dressed in a robe, carrying a scythe and an hourglass or other timekeeping device...
. To commemorate the millennium a stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
window was commissioned and installed over the main entrance to the Clock Block.
Other buildings of note
The science buildings were built in 1922 and opened by the DukeGeorge VI of the United Kingdom
George VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death...
and Duchess of York
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon
Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon was the queen consort of King George VI from 1936 until her husband's death in 1952, after which she was known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, to avoid confusion with her daughter, Queen Elizabeth II...
(later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth). The science buildings were subsequently re-furbished in 1996 and thereafter re-opened by Michael Portillo
Michael Portillo
Michael Denzil Xavier Portillo is a British journalist, broadcaster, and former Conservative Party politician and Cabinet Minister...
. The science block features at one end of a long path which comes from the main quad of the school, which is the location of Perrins Hall and the Main block. This long path is known as Long Walk.
Whiteladies House, built in the seventeenth century, was traditionally the Headmaster's house and stands opposite Clock Block across the gardens. Its West wall is part of the Whiteladies Priory
chapel built in 1255.. Its name derives from the white habit
Religious habit
A religious habit is a distinctive set of garments worn by members of a religious order. Traditionally some plain garb recognisable as a religious habit has also been worn by those leading the religious eremitic and anachoritic life, although in their case without conformity to a particular uniform...
that is worn by Cistercian nuns, who were based at a Nunnery, which was adjacent to Whiteladies.
Adam Lindsay Gordon
Adam Lindsay Gordon was an Australian poet, jockey and politician.- Early life :Gordon was born at Fayal in the Azores, son of Captain Adam Durnford Gordon who had married his first cousin, Harriet Gordon, both of whom were descended from Adam of Gordon of the ballad...
OE
Royal Grammar School Worcester
The Royal Grammar School Worcester is an independent coeducational school in Worcester, United Kingdom. Founded before 1291, it is one of the oldest British independent schools....
) and Hillard Hall (1961, opened by Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother on her second visit to the school). The Almshouses, built in 1877 in the Arts and crafts
Arts and crafts
Arts and crafts comprise a whole host of activities and hobbies that are related to making things with one's hands and skill. These can be sub-divided into handicrafts or "traditional crafts" and "the rest"...
style, were designed by Sir Aston Webb
Aston Webb
Sir Aston Webb, RA, FRIBA was an English architect, active in the late 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century...
, the designer of the facade of Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
, the Royal Naval College Dartmouth and the Victoria and Albert Museum
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
and are an example of some of his earliest work..
The most recent building work to a school building took place on the school's library. The library was refurbished in 2001, and was renamed the Philip Sawyer Library (after the former Chairman of the Governors). The library is situated above Eld Hall, and features a high vaulted roof structure.
Extracurricular activities
The school has a number of sports teams which compete with schools from both within the locality and those from around the country. The school fields teams in cricketCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
, rugby
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
, football, athletics
Athletics (track and field)
Athletics is an exclusive collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross country running, and race walking...
, rowing
Rowing (sport)
Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...
, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, netball
Netball
Netball is a ball sport played between two teams of seven players. Its development, derived from early versions of basketball, began in England in the 1890s. By 1960 international playing rules had been standardised for the game, and the International Federation of Netball and Women's Basketball ...
, hockey
Hockey
Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...
and chess
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
.
There is a large and active CCF
Combined Cadet Force
The Combined Cadet Force is a Ministry of Defence sponsored youth organisation in the United Kingdom. Its aim is to "provide a disciplined organisation in a school so that pupils may develop powers of leadership by means of training to promote the qualities of responsibility, self reliance,...
section at the school, with all three branches of the services represented. Students also have the opportunity to participate in the The Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award , is a programme of activities that can be undertaken by anyone aged 14 to 24, regardless of personal ability....
, and all three levels of award are regularly achieved by students. One of the other activities that students can participate in is the Ten Tors
Ten Tors
Ten Tors is an annual weekend hike organised and run in early May for 2,400 young people by the British Army on Dartmoor. The majority of entrants are schools, colleges, Scout groups and Cadet squadrons from South West England, though groups from across the UK regularly take part, as do teams from...
event, with the school having had teams compete at all three distance levels.
Notable patrons
- Bishop Godfrey GiffardGodfrey GiffardGodfrey Giffard was Chancellor of the Exchequer of England, Lord Chancellor of England and Bishop of Worcester.-Early life:Giffard was the son of Hugh Giffard of Boyton in Wiltshire, a royal justice, and of his wife Sibyl, daughter and co-heiress of Walter de Cormeilles...
(1240–1306) Bishop of Worcester and Lord Chancellor of England. - Bishop Walter ReynoldsWalter ReynoldsWalter Reynolds was Bishop of Worcester and then Archbishop of Canterbury as well as Lord High Treasurer and Lord Chancellor.-Life:...
(d.1327) Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Chancellor of England. - Hugh LatimerHugh LatimerHugh Latimer was a Fellow of Clare College, Cambridge, Bishop of Worcester before the Reformation, and later Church of England chaplain to King Edward VI. In 1555, under Queen Mary, he was burnt at the stake, becoming one of the three Oxford Martyrs of Anglicanism.-Life:Latimer was born into a...
(1470–1555) Bishop of Worcester and Protestant Martyr. - C.W. Dyson PerrinsCharles Dyson PerrinsCharles William Dyson Perrins was an English businessman, bibliophile and philanthropist. He was born in Claines, near Worcester, the son of James Dyson Perrins, the owner of the Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce factory and the grandson of William Perrins, co-originator of the Lea & Perrins...
Chairman Royal WorcesterRoyal WorcesterRoyal Worcester is believed to be the oldest remaining English pottery brand still in existence today.-Overview:Royal Worcester is a British brand known for its history, provenance and classically English collections of porcelain...
Porcelain and collector. - Queen Elizabeth IElizabeth I of EnglandElizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
- Queen VictoriaVictoria of the United KingdomVictoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
- Godfrey BrownGodfrey BrownArthur Godfrey Kilner Brown was a British athlete, winner of gold medal in 4x400 m relay at the 1936 Summer Olympics...
Headmaster 1950–78,Olympic Gold Medallist. - Dr. Roger Fry CBECBECBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...
Governor, Founder of King's College, Madrid.
Past pupils
Famous Old Boys of the school or Worcester Old Elizabethans (more complete list here), include (in alphabetical order)- John Mark AinsleyJohn Mark AinsleyJohn Mark Ainsley is an English lyric tenor. Known for his supple voice, Ainsley is particularly admired for his interpretations of baroque music and the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart...
(1963–) Tenor - Sir Roy Allen (R.G.D. Allen) (1906–1980) Economist
- The Very Rev. David Bird (1946-) Dean, Trinity Cathedral, San Jose, USA
- Dom Augustine BradshawAugustine BradshawDom Augustine Bradshaw was a Benedictine monk. Born John Bradshaw near Worcester in 1575 to recusant Roman Catholic parents, he was sent to Royal Grammar School Worcester . He was sent to St...
(1574–1618) Catholic missionary - Sir Reginald Bray KGOrder of the GarterThe Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
(d.1503) Statesman and Architect - Tim CurtisTim CurtisTim Curtis is a former England cricketer. A right-handed batsman, Curtis was a prolific scorer for Worcestershire and county captain between 1992 and 1995...
(1960–) Cricketer, former captain of WorcestershireWorcestershire County Cricket ClubWorcestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Worcestershire...
. - Adam Lindsay GordonAdam Lindsay GordonAdam Lindsay Gordon was an Australian poet, jockey and politician.- Early life :Gordon was born at Fayal in the Azores, son of Captain Adam Durnford Gordon who had married his first cousin, Harriet Gordon, both of whom were descended from Adam of Gordon of the ballad...
(1833–1870) National Poet of Australia - Dean HeadleyDean HeadleyDean Warren Headley is an English cricketer.He comes from a famous cricketing family, being the son of Ron Headley and grandson of George Headley. He was the first Test cricketer to be both the son and grandson of Test cricketers...
(1970–) Former England International Cricketer - Imran KhanImran KhanImran Khan Niazi is a Pakistani politician and former Pakistani cricketer, playing international cricket for two decades in the late twentieth century. After retiring, he entered politics...
(1952–) Pakistani Cricketer - William LanglandWilliam LanglandWilliam Langland is the conjectured author of the 14th-century English dream-vision Piers Plowman.- Life :The attribution of Piers to Langland rests principally on the evidence of a manuscript held at Trinity College, Dublin...
(1330–1387) - Benjamin Williams LeaderBenjamin Williams LeaderBenjamin Williams Leader RA was an English landscape painter.-Early years and training:Leader was born in Worcester as Benjamin Leader Williams, the son, and first child of eleven children, of notable civil engineer Edward Leader Williams and Sarah Whiting...
RARoyal AcademyThe Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and...
(1831–1923) Artist - Sir Thomas Littleton (1407–1481) Lawyer
- Jurek MartinJurek MartinJurek Martin is a British-born journalist.Martin, a Financial Times columnist and former foreign editor and twice Washington, D.C...
(1942 -) Financial Times Foreign Correspondent and former Foreign Editor - Julian PhillipsJulian PhillipsJulian Phillips was a co-host of Fox & Friends Weekend along with Alisyn Camerota, Kiran Chetry and other Fox News personalities.He currently works as a motivational speaker....
(1965 -) Former Head Boy and Businessman - Neil PinnerNeil PinnerNeil Douglas Pinner is an English cricketer. Pinner is a right-handed batsman who bowls right-arm off break. He was born in Wordsley, Worcestershire and educated at the Royal Grammar School Worcester....
(1990-), cricketer - Graham RobbGraham RobbGraham Macdonald Robb FRSL is a British author.Robb was born in Manchester and educated at the Royal Grammar School Worcester and Exeter College, Oxford, where he studied Modern Languages...
(1958–) Author - T J Cobden Sanderson (1840–1922) Arts and Crafts movement pioneer
- Philip SerrellPhilip SerrellPhilip Serrell is a British auctioneer, antiques expert, and television presenter.-Early life:Serrell attended the Royal Grammar School Worcester, where he was a schoolmate of the Pakistani cricket captain Imran Khan...
TV Auctioneer. He is this year's Old Elizabethans' President. - Jon TurleyJon TurleyJonathan "Jon" Turley is an English author who writes children's books.- Early life and education :He was born in Worcester and was a pupil at the Royal Worcester Grammar School, which he attended from 1982 until 1989...
(1971–) Children's writer - Simon WebbSimon Webb (composer)Simon Webb is a composer, musical director, conductor, arranger and performer. He was born in Bridgnorth, Shropshire in the UK, into an artistic family and began his musical life at a very early age. At the age of 8 he won a choral scholarship to St. Michael's College, Tenbury, and at 13, an organ...
(1955–) TV, Theatre and Film composer - Professor Michael Wilding (1942–) Australian Author
- Sir Edward Leader WilliamsEdward Leader WilliamsSir Edward Leader Williams was an English civil engineer, chiefly remembered as the designer of the Manchester Ship Canal, but also heavily involved in other canal projects in north Cheshire.-Early life:...
(1828–1910) civil engineerCivil engineerA civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
(Manchester Ship CanalManchester Ship CanalThe Manchester Ship Canal is a river navigation 36 miles long in the North West of England. Starting at the Mersey Estuary near Liverpool, it generally follows the original routes of the rivers Mersey and Irwell through the historic counties of Cheshire and Lancashire. Several sets of locks lift...
)
External links
- RGS website
- Flagge Meadow at CricketArchiveCricketArchiveCricketArchive is a website that aims to provide a comprehensive archive of records relating to the sport of cricket. It claims to be the most comprehensive cricket database on the internet, including scorecards for all matches of first-class cricket , List A cricket , Women's Test cricket and...
- Flagge Meadow at CricinfoCricinfoESPNcricinfo is believed to be the largest cricket-related website on the World Wide Web. Content includes news,articles, live scorecards,live text commentary and a comprehensive and searchable database called 'StatsGuru', of historical matches and players from the 18th century to the present...
- Organ recital series
- Worcester Royal Grammar School – Roll of Honour World War 1 & 2
See also
- The Alice Ottley SchoolThe Alice Ottley SchoolThe Alice Ottley School was an independent all-girl school in Worcester which existed between 1883 and 2007 before it was renamed to take the name of the school's first ever headmistress and became 'The Alice Ottley School'.-History:...