Barring out is the former custom in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

schools of barring a schoolmaster from the premises. A typical example of this practice was at the school in

Bromfield, Cumbria Bromfield is a village and civil parish in the Allerdale district of Cumbria, in the north of England. It is about five miles north-east of Aspatria. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 530, decreasing to 510 at the 20 ...

, where it was the custom "for the scholars, at Fasting's Even (the beginning of

Lent Lent ( la, Quadragesima, 'Fortieth') is a solemn religious observance in the liturgical calendar commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke ...

) to depose and exclude the master from the school for three days." During this period the school doors were barricaded and the boys armed with mock weapons. If the master's attempts to re-enter were successful, extra tasks were inflicted as a penalty, and willingly performed by the boys. On the third day terms of capitulation, usually in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

verse, were signed, and these always conceded the immediate right to indulge in

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

and a cockfight. The custom was long retained at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

and figures in many school stories, including the story "The Barring Out: or Party Spirit" in ''

The Parent's Assistant ''The Parent's Assistant'' is the first collection of children's stories by Maria Edgeworth, published by Joseph Johnson in 1796. Contents The first edition (Part I) had five stories: ''Lazy Lawrence'', ''Tarlton'', ''The Little Dog Trusty,'' ...

'' by Maria Edgeworth (1796), and the 1948 Billy Bunter story "Barring Out". More serious incidents of barring out reportedly took place at

The Royal School, Armagh The Royal School, Armagh is a co-educational voluntary grammar school, founded in the 17th century, in the city of Armagh in Northern Ireland. It has a boarding department with an international intake. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Hea ...

, and Belfast Royal Academy in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

; and at the Royal High School, Edinburgh. Dr.

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson (18 September 1709 – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

reports a story that

Joseph Addison Joseph Addison (1 May 1672 – 17 June 1719) was an English essayist, poet, playwright and politician. He was the eldest son of The Reverend Lancelot Addison. His name is usually remembered alongside that of his long-standing friend Richard S ...

, when a schoolboy, was the ringleader of a barring out at his school. The custom extended to some early American Colonial schools, such as

William and Mary College The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William III a ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

, where students barred out Dr. James Blair and shot at him with pistols when he attempted to enter. According to

David Hackett Fischer David Hackett Fischer (born December 2, 1935) is University Professor of History Emeritus at Brandeis University. Fischer's major works have covered topics ranging from large macroeconomic and cultural trends (''Albion's Seed,'' ''The Great Wave ( ...

, the custom became common in the southern highlands and the Ohio and Mississippi valleys, though occasionally taking place elsewhere in the colonies.David Hackett Fischer, ''

Albion's Seed ''Albion's Seed: Four British Folkways in America'' is a 1989 book by David Hackett Fischer that details the folkways of four groups of people who moved from distinct regions of Great Britain ( Albion) to the United States. The argument is that ...

'', (Oxford University Press, 1989), 725. Barring out continued in

Falstone Falstone is a small village in Northumberland, England, just east of Kielder Water. The village is from the Anglo–Scottish border. The name ''Falstone'' means "speckled stone". Much of the village is clustered around its two churches, St. Pet ...

, a village in Northumberland, until 1940 when the headmaster William Moody, who was unaware of the custom, demanded entrance to his school and the students eventually relented and let him enter.

Notes

References

* * Stephen Nissenbaum, ''The Battle for Christmas'' (Vintage, 1997), 113–114.

External links

* {{Commonscatinline School traditions Student culture