Christ College, Brecon
Encyclopedia
Christ College, Brecon is a co-educational, boarding
and day independent school
, located in the market town of Brecon
in mid-Wales
. It caters for pupils from eleven to eighteen.
Christ College was founded by Royal Charter
in 1541 by King Henry VIII
. The Chapel and dining hall date from the 13th Century when the site was occupied by a Dominican order
Priory
.
The School has been ranked in the top three of all UK Independent Schools in terms of "Value for Money" by the Financial Times
newspaper. In February 2011, a Eystyn inspection (equivalent to OFSTED in England) declared Christ College to be "excellent". 18% of GCSE entries were at the highest (A*/A) grades. At A-level, about 10% of entries resulted in B-grades or higher and over 10% of entries resulted in A*/A grades.
friary
; in 1541 Henry VIII
established a school on the site and finally in 1855 the modern 'public' school was founded by Act of Parliament. The surviving buildings and architecture reflect each of the three periods. The Dominicans were friars who first came to Britain in 1221; they are first mentioned as being in Brecon, in 1269. Given that range of dates and the evidence of the surviving medieval buildings, it is likely that the friary was founded c.1250.
The chapel is an example of thirteenth century work, though like all the medieval buildings it was much restored by Gilbert Scott in the nineteenth century. More survivals are the two halls with their fifteenth century open timber roofs. Of the cloister, chapter house and other monastic buildings nothing remains but their position can be deduced from documents. In the 1530s momentous changes affected England and Wales. Henry VIII brought all of Wales under his control; this involved the creation of new Welsh counties, including Breconshire. At the same time the King made himself the Head of the Church and then dissolved the monasteries
. This combination of events resulted in the foundation of 'the College of Christ of Brecknock' in 1541 to provide education in this area and thus would 'the Welsh rudeness soon be framed to English civility'.
Like many schools founded in the sixteenth century, Christ College suffered dramatic changes of fortune. The maintenance of the buildings was a constant struggle given the relative poverty of the original endowment, or more accurately the reluctance of prebendaries to disgorge part of their income to the College. The English Civil War
caused devastation at the hands of the notorious Roger Thomas of Llanfrynach; repairs were carried out by Bishop William Lucy
after 1660. By the middle of the nineteenth century the College buildings were ruinous and there were few pupils. A new start was imperative. A committee of local landowners, clergy and businessmen came to the rescue and the school was refounded by Act of Parliament in 1855. As in 1541 political considerations again played a part; this time the threats of Chartism
and Dissent
prompted conservatives and Anglicans to action.
The new boarding school needed buildings and the Llandaff diocesan architects, Prichard
and Seddon
, were employed to provide them. The present School House building is theirs; so too is much of the furniture in the chapel. Expansion during the next thirty years produced Donaldson's House and the 'Big School', now the Library.
In the second half of the 20th Century, more building work was completed; this was necessary both to expand the facilities available and to meet the changing needs of what is now a co-educational boarding school.
Christ College is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. There are now 320 pupils at Christ College Brecon with an increasing number of girls and many students from Breconshire and neighbouring counties as well as from overseas, including China, Germany, Spain, Japan and the USA.
for a List A match against the touring Zimbabweans. The Glamorgan Second XI used the college ground for Second Eleven Trophy matches, firstly in 1996 when they played the Somerset Second XI
and secondly in 1997 when they played the Hampshire Second XI
.
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...
and day independent school
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...
, located in the market town of Brecon
Brecon
Brecon is a long-established market town and community in southern Powys, Mid Wales, with a population of 7,901. It was the county town of the historic county of Brecknockshire; although its role as such was eclipsed with the formation of Powys, it remains an important local centre...
in mid-Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. It caters for pupils from eleven to eighteen.
Christ College was founded by Royal Charter
Royal 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...
in 1541 by King 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...
. The Chapel and dining hall date from the 13th Century when the site was occupied by a Dominican order
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
Priory
Priory
A priory is a house of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the Premonstratensians, and the...
.
The School has been ranked in the top three of all UK Independent Schools in terms of "Value for Money" by the Financial Times
Financial Times
The Financial Times is an international business newspaper. It is a morning daily newspaper published in London and printed in 24 cities around the world. Its primary rival is the Wall Street Journal, published in New York City....
newspaper. In February 2011, a Eystyn inspection (equivalent to OFSTED in England) declared Christ College to be "excellent". 18% of GCSE entries were at the highest (A*/A) grades. At A-level, about 10% of entries resulted in B-grades or higher and over 10% of entries resulted in A*/A grades.
Houses
There are seven Houses in the School, consisting of three boys' houses: St David's, Orchard and School; three girls' houses: de Winton, Bannau, and Donaldson's; and one junior house: Alway.History
The history of Christ College falls into three periods. For three hundred years it was a DominicanDominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
friary
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
; in 1541 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...
established a school on the site and finally in 1855 the modern 'public' school was founded by Act of Parliament. The surviving buildings and architecture reflect each of the three periods. The Dominicans were friars who first came to Britain in 1221; they are first mentioned as being in Brecon, in 1269. Given that range of dates and the evidence of the surviving medieval buildings, it is likely that the friary was founded c.1250.
The chapel is an example of thirteenth century work, though like all the medieval buildings it was much restored by Gilbert Scott in the nineteenth century. More survivals are the two halls with their fifteenth century open timber roofs. Of the cloister, chapter house and other monastic buildings nothing remains but their position can be deduced from documents. In the 1530s momentous changes affected England and Wales. Henry VIII brought all of Wales under his control; this involved the creation of new Welsh counties, including Breconshire. At the same time the King made himself the Head of the Church and then dissolved the monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
. This combination of events resulted in the foundation of 'the College of Christ of Brecknock' in 1541 to provide education in this area and thus would 'the Welsh rudeness soon be framed to English civility'.
Like many schools founded in the sixteenth century, Christ College suffered dramatic changes of fortune. The maintenance of the buildings was a constant struggle given the relative poverty of the original endowment, or more accurately the reluctance of prebendaries to disgorge part of their income to the College. The English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
caused devastation at the hands of the notorious Roger Thomas of Llanfrynach; repairs were carried out by Bishop William Lucy
William Lucy
William Lucy was an English clergyman. He was bishop of St David's after the English Restoration of 1660.-Opponent of Hobbes:He published in 1657 an attack on the philosophy of Thomas Hobbes, and in particular on Leviathan , using the pseudonym William Pyke, Christophilus, and circulated by...
after 1660. By the middle of the nineteenth century the College buildings were ruinous and there were few pupils. A new start was imperative. A committee of local landowners, clergy and businessmen came to the rescue and the school was refounded by Act of Parliament in 1855. As in 1541 political considerations again played a part; this time the threats of Chartism
Chartism
Chartism was a movement for political and social reform in the United Kingdom during the mid-19th century, between 1838 and 1859. It takes its name from the People's Charter of 1838. Chartism was possibly the first mass working class labour movement in the world...
and Dissent
English Dissenters
English Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
prompted conservatives and Anglicans to action.
The new boarding school needed buildings and the Llandaff diocesan architects, Prichard
John Prichard
John Prichard was a Welsh architect of the neo-Gothic style. John Prichard was the son of Richard Prichard a rector from Llangan, Glamorgan and was born on 6 May 1817. He established a practice in Llandaff, Cardiff where he became the diocesan architect. Between 1852 and 1863 he set up a...
and Seddon
John Pollard Seddon
John Pollard Seddon was an English architect.He was a pupil of Thomas Leverton Donaldson and C.F.A. Voysey trained under him....
, were employed to provide them. The present School House building is theirs; so too is much of the furniture in the chapel. Expansion during the next thirty years produced Donaldson's House and the 'Big School', now the Library.
In the second half of the 20th Century, more building work was completed; this was necessary both to expand the facilities available and to meet the changing needs of what is now a co-educational boarding school.
Christ College is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. There are now 320 pupils at Christ College Brecon with an increasing number of girls and many students from Breconshire and neighbouring counties as well as from overseas, including China, Germany, Spain, Japan and the USA.
Cricket ground
The first recorded match held on the college cricket ground came in 1888, when the college played Llandovery. In use for the entire 20th century, the ground was used by GlamorganGlamorgan County Cricket Club
Glamorgan County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Glamorgan aka Glamorganshire . Glamorgan CCC is the only Welsh first-class cricket club. Glamorgan CCC have won the English County...
for a List A match against the touring Zimbabweans. The Glamorgan Second XI used the college ground for Second Eleven Trophy matches, firstly in 1996 when they played the Somerset Second XI
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset 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 Somerset...
and secondly in 1997 when they played the Hampshire Second XI
Hampshire County Cricket Club
Hampshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Hampshire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1863 as a successor to the Hampshire county cricket teams and has played at the Antelope Ground from then until 1885, before moving to the County Ground where it...
.
Notable Old Breconians
- Robert AckermanRobert AckermanRobert Angus Ackerman is a Welsh former dual-code international rugby union and rugby league footballer. In 1983 he toured New Zealand with the British and Irish Lions whilst playing for London Welsh RFC. A centre, he also played club rugby for Newport RFC...
- rugby player - Lord Atkin - lawyer and judge
- William AubreyWilliam AubreyWilliam Aubrey was Regius Professor of Civil Law at the University of Oxford from 1553 to 1559, and was one of the founding Fellows of Jesus College, Oxford. He was also a MP.-Early life and Oxford University:...
- Regius Professor of Civil Law, Oxford - Bill Evans - rugby player
- Simon HughesSimon HughesSimon Henry Ward Hughes is a British politician and Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats. He is Member of Parliament for the constituency of Bermondsey and Old Southwark. Until 2008 he was President of the Liberal Democrats...
- MP for North Southwark and Bermondsey - James Dickson InnesJames Dickson InnesJames Dickson Innes was a British painter, mainly of mountain landscapes but occasionally of figure subjects. He worked in both oils and water-colours.-Biography:...
- painter - Arthur HardingArthur HardingArthur Flowers Harding was an English-born international rugby union player who played for and captained the Wales national team. Often called 'Boxer' Harding, he was a member of the winning Wales team who beat the 1905 touring All Blacks in a game considered one of the greatest in the history of...
- rugby player - Henry Lewis JamesHenry Lewis JamesHenry Lewis James was Dean of Bangor from 1934 to 1940 and an author of theological works in Welsh.-Life:...
- theologian - Hubert ReesHubert ReesHubert Rees was a Welsh character actor who had supporting roles in British television shows throughout the 1970s and 1980s.-Career:...
- actor - Victoria James - first Welsh woman to summit Mt. Everest
- Jack JonesJack Jones (rugby player)John "Jack" Phillips Jones was a Welsh international centre who played club rugby for Pontypool Rugby Club and Newport Rugby Football Club. He won 14 caps for Wales and was known as The Prince of Centres.-Rugby career:...
- rugby player - Maurice JonesMaurice JonesMaurice Jones was a priest and university educator.Born on 21 June 1863 at Trawsfynydd, Meirionnydd, he was educated at local school then, with scholarships, proceeded to Friars School, Bangor and Christ College, Brecon, and then Jesus College, Oxford, where he gained a first class degree in...
- priest and bard - Thomas JonesThomas Jones (artist)Thomas Jones was a British landscape painter. He was a pupil of Richard Wilson and was best known in his lifetime as a painter of Welsh and Italian landscapes in the style of his master. However, Jones's reputation grew in the 20th century when more unconventional works by him, ones not been...
- artist - Thomas Babington JonesThomas Babington JonesThomas Babington Jones was a Welsh cricketer, who played first-class cricket for Oxford University Cricket Club.-Life:...
- cricketer - Willie LlewellynWillie LlewellynWilliam Morris "Willie" Llewellyn was a Welsh international rugby union player. He captained Wales in 1905 and London Welsh in 1902. He was a member of the winning Welsh team who beat the 1905 touring All Blacks, toured with the British Isles to Australasia in 1904 and won three Triple Crown...
- rugby player - Teddy MorganTeddy MorganEdward "Teddy" Morgan was a Welsh international rugby union player. He was a member of the winning Wales team who beat the 1905 touring All Blacks and is remembered for scoring the winning try...
- rugby player - Thomas MorganThomas Morgan (navy chaplain)Thomas Morgan was a Welsh navy chaplain who saw action during the French Revolutionary Wars and was involved in the Spithead mutiny before serving as chaplain of the naval dockyard at Portsmouth.-Life:...
- Navy chaplain - Jamie OwenJamie OwenJamie Owen is a Welsh radio and television presenter best known for presenting Wales Today.-Background:Owen was born in Withybush Hospital Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire. His father was a Pembroke Dock Solicitor, James Meyrick Owen and his mother was a health visitor and midwife. Jamie also had two...
- Presenter for the BBC Wales Today news programme - David Price - Orientalist
- Brinley ReesBrinley ReesProfessor Brinley Roderick Rees was a Welsh academic. He wrote extensively on Classics, particularly the study of the Greek language. Early work was devoted to Greek papyri; a later publication was devoted to the Life and Letters of Pelagius...
- Classical scholar - Paul SilkPaul SilkPaul Silk is a Clerk in the British House of Commons. He was formerly Clerk to the National Assembly for Wales from March 2001 to January 2007, the most senior official of the Assembly, and acted as the principal adviser to the Presiding Officer, responsible for all the services that are delivered...
- Parliamentary clerk - Glyn SimonGlyn SimonWilliam Glyn Hughes Simon was the Anglican Archbishop of Wales from 1968 to 1971.Simon was born in Swansea, where his father was curate at St Gabriel's church. He was baptised by David Lewis Prosser, later to become the third Archbishop of Wales....
- Archbishop of Wales - Peter WatkinsPeter WatkinsPeter Watkins is an English film and television director. He was born in Norbiton, Surrey, lived in Sweden, Canada and Lithuania for many years, and now lives in France. He is one of the pioneers of docudrama. His movies, pacifist and radical, strongly review the limit of classic documentary and...
- film director - Lloyd WilliamsLloyd Williams (cricketer)Gwynfor Lloyd Williams, born at Kidwelly, Carmarthenshire on 30 May 1925 and died 18 July 2007, was a schoolmaster at Millfield School who played first-class cricket in a few matches for Somerset in 1955....
- cricketer
External links
- Official website
- http://www.estyn.gov.uk/english/provider/6666000/ Christ College Estyn Report 2011