George Heriot's School is a Scottish
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
primary and
secondary day school
A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children and adolescents are given instructions during the day, after which the students return to their homes. A day school has full-day programs when compa ...
on Lauriston Place in the
Old Town of
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
, Scotland. In the early 21st century, it has more than 1600 pupils, 155 teaching staff, and 80 non-teaching staff. It was established in 1628 as George Heriot's Hospital, by bequest of the royal
goldsmith
A goldsmith is a metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Nowadays they mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, goldsmiths have also made silverware, platters, goblets, decorative and servicea ...
George Heriot
George Heriot (15 June 1563 – 12 February 1624) was a Scottish goldsmith and philanthropist. He is chiefly remembered today as the founder of George Heriot's School, a large independent school in Edinburgh; his name has also been given to H ...
, and opened in 1659. It is governed by George Heriot's Trust, a Scottish charity.
Architecture
The main building of the school is notable for its
renaissance architecture
Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of Ancient Greece, ancient Greek and ...
, the work of
William Wallace
Sir William Wallace ( gd, Uilleam Uallas, ; Norman French: ; 23 August 1305) was a Scottish knight who became one of the main leaders during the First War of Scottish Independence.
Along with Andrew Moray, Wallace defeated an English army ...
, until his death in 1631. He was succeeded as master mason by William Aytoun, who was succeeded in turn by
John Mylne. In 1676,
Sir William Bruce
Sir William Bruce of Kinross, 1st Baronet (c. 1630 – 1 January 1710), was a Scottish gentleman-architect, "the effective founder of classical architecture in Scotland," as Howard Colvin observes.Colvin, p.172–176 As a key figure in introduc ...
drew up plans for the completion of Heriot's Hospital. His design, for the central tower of the north façade, was eventually executed in 1693.
The school is a turreted building surrounding a large
quadrangle, and built out of
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...
. The foundation stone is inscribed with the date 1628. The intricate decoration above each window is unique (with one paired exception - those on the ground floor either side of the now redundant central turret on the west side of the building). A statue of the founder can be found in a niche on the north side of the quadrangle.
The main building was the first large building to be constructed outside the Edinburgh city walls. It is located next to
Greyfriars Kirk
Greyfriars Kirk ( gd, Eaglais nam Manach Liath) is a parish church of the Church of Scotland, located in the Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is surrounded by Greyfriars Kirkyard.
Greyfriars traces its origin to the south-west parish of Edin ...
, built in 1620, in open grounds overlooked by
Edinburgh Castle directly to the north. Parts of the seventeenth-century city wall (the
Telfer Wall
There have been several town walls around Edinburgh, Scotland, since the 12th century. Some form of wall probably existed from the foundation of the royal burgh in around 1125, though the first building is recorded in the mid-15th century, when ...
) serve as the walls of the school grounds. When built, the building's front facade faced north with access from the
Grassmarket
The Grassmarket is a historic market place, street and event space in the Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland. In relation to the rest of the city it lies in a hollow, well below surrounding ground levels.
Location
The Grassmarket is located direct ...
by way of Heriot Bridge. It was originally the only facade fronted in fine ashlar stone, the others being harled rubble. "George Heriot's magnificent pile" became known locally, and by the boys who attended it, as the "Wark".
In 1833 the three rubble facades were refaced in Craigleith
ashlar stone. This was done because the other facades had become more visible when a new entrance was installed on Lauriston Place. The refacing work was handled by
Alexander Black Alexander Black may refer to:
* Alexander Black (athlete) (born 2000), Semi-professional Australian rules footballer
* Alexander Black (actor) (born 1983), American film actor
* Alexander Black (theologian) (1789–1864), theologian and Free Church ...
, then Superintendent of Works for the school. He later designed the first Heriot's free schools around the city.
The south gatehouse onto Lauriston Place is by
William Henry Playfair
William Henry Playfair FRSE (15 July 1790 – 19 March 1857) was a prominent Scottish architect in the 19th century, who designed the Eastern, or Third, New Town and many of Edinburgh's neoclassical landmarks.
Life
Playfair was born on 15 ...
and dates from 1829. The chapel interior (1837) is by
James Gillespie Graham
James Gillespie Graham (11 June 1776 – 11 March 1855) was a Scottish architect, prominent in the early 19th century.
Life
Graham was born in Dunblane on 11 June 1776. He was the son of Malcolm Gillespie, a solicitor. He was christened as J ...
, who is likely to have been assisted by
Augustus Pugin
Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin ( ; 1 March 181214 September 1852) was an English architect, designer, artist and critic with French and, ultimately, Swiss origins. He is principally remembered for his pioneering role in the Gothic Revival st ...
. The school hall was designed by Donald Gow in 1893 and boasts a hammerbeam roof. A mezzanine floor was added later. The science block is by
John Chesser (architect)
John Chesser (1819-1892) was a nineteenth-century Scottish architect largely based in Edinburgh. He was described as "the prime exponent of terrace design at the time". A very high number of his works are now category A listed buildings, eviden ...
and dates from 1887, incorporating part of the former primary school of 1838 by
Alexander Black (architect)
Alexander Black (c. 1790 – 19 February 1858) was a Scottish architect, born in Edinburgh around 1790 who is mainly known for his association with George Heriot’s School, where he acted as Superintendent of Works for most of his active lif ...
. The chemistry block to the west of the site was designed by John Anderson in 1911.
The grounds contain a selection of other buildings of varying age; these include a wing by inter-war school specialists Reid & Forbes, and a
swimming pool, now unused. A 1922
granite
Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...
war memorial
A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war.
Symbolism
Historical usage
It has ...
, by James Dunn, is dedicated to the school's former pupils and teachers who died in
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. Alumni and teachers who died in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
were also added to the memorial.
History
17th and 18th centuries
On his death in 1624, George Heriot left just over 23,625 pounds sterling – equivalent to about £3 million in 2017 – to found a "hospital" (a charitable school) on the model of
Christ's Hospital
Christ's Hospital is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 11–18) with a royal charter located to the south of Horsham in West Sussex. The school was founded in 1552 and received its first royal charter in 1553. ...
in London, to care for the "puir, faitherless bairns" (
Scots: poor, fatherless children) and children of "decayit" (fallen on hard times) burgesses and freemen of Edinburgh.
The construction of Heriot's Hospital (as it was first called) was begun in 1628, just outside the city walls of Edinburgh. It was completed in time to be occupied by
Oliver Cromwell's English forces during the
invasion of Scotland during the Third English Civil War. When the building was used as a
barracks, Cromwell's forces stabled their horses in the
chapel
A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...
. The hospital opened in 1659, with thirty sickly children in residence. As its finances grew, it took in other pupils in addition to the
orphan
An orphan (from the el, ορφανός, orphanós) is a child whose parents have died.
In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents due to death is called an orphan. When referring to animals, only the mother's condition is usuall ...
s for whom it was intended.
By the end of the 18th century, the Governors of the George Heriot's Trust had purchased the Barony of
Broughton, thus acquiring extensive land for feuing (a form of leasehold) on the northern slope below
James Craig's Georgian
New Town. This and other land purchases beyond the original city boundary generated considerable revenue through leases for the Trust long after Heriot's death.
19th and 20th centuries
In 1846 there was an insurrection in the Hospital and fifty-two boys were dismissed. This was the worst of several disturbances in the 1840s. Critics of hospital education blamed what they described as the monastic separation of the boys from home life. Only a minority (52 out of 180 in 1844) were fatherless, which meant, these critics argued, that poorer families were leaving their children to Hospital care, even through holiday periods, and the influence of disaffected older boys. 'Auld Callants' (former pupils) were prepared to defend the Hospital as a source of hope and discipline to families in difficulties. This argument about the value of hospitals, which reached the pages of ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...
'' in late 1846, was taken up by
Duncan McLaren when he became
Lord Provost of Edinburgh
The Right Honourable Lord Provost of Edinburgh is the convener of the City of Edinburgh local authority, who is elected by the city council and serves not only as the chair of that body, but as a figurehead for the entire city, ex officio the ...
, and therefore Chairman of the Hospital Governors, in 1851. McLaren pushed for the number of boys in the Hospital to be reduced and for the Heriot outdoor schools to be expanded with the resources thus saved.
Duncan McLaren was the primary initiator of the 1836 Act that gave the Heriot Governors the power to use the Heriot Trust's surplus to set up "outdoor" (i.e. outside the Hospital) schools. Between 1838 and 1885 the Trust set up and ran 13 juvenile and 8 infant outdoor schools across Edinburgh. At its height in the early 1880s this network of Heriot schools, which did not charge any fees, had a total roll of almost 5,000 pupils. The outdoor Heriot school buildings were sold off or rented out (some to the Edinburgh School Board) when the network was wound up after 1885 as part of reforms to the Trust and the absorption of its outdoor activities by the public school system. Several of these buildings, including the Cowgate, Davie Street, Holyrood and Stockbridge Schools, were designed with architectural features copied from the Lauriston Place Hospital building or stonework elements referring to George Heriot.
George Heriot’s Hospital was at the centre of the controversies surrounding Scottish educational
endowments between the late 1860s and the mid 1880s. At a time when general funding for secondary education was not politically possible, reform of these endowments was seen as a way to facilitate access beyond elementary education. The question was, for whom; those who could afford to pay fees or those who could not?
The Heriot’s controversy was therefore a central issue in Edinburgh municipal politics at this time. In 1875 a Heriot Trust Defence Committee (HTDC) was formed in opposition to the recommendations of the (Colebrooke) Commission on Endowed Schools and Hospitals, set up in 1872. These included making the Hospital a secondary technical day school, using Heriot money to fund university scholarships, introducing fees for the outdoor schools and accepting foundationers from outside Edinburgh. The HTDC saw this as a spoliation of Edinburgh’s poor to the benefit of the middle classes.
Already in 1870, under the permissive Endowed Institutions (Scotland) Act of the previous year, and again in 1879 to the (
Moncreiff) Commission on Endowed Institutions in Scotland, and finally in 1883 to the (
Balfour) Commission on Educational Endowments, Heriot’s submitted schemes of reform. All were turned down. The reasons included Heriot’s continuing commitment to free and hospital education, and its maintenance of the Heriot outdoor schools after the passage of the
Education (Scotland) Act in 1872 brought in publicly supported, compulsory elementary education.
The Balfour Commission had executive powers and used these in 1885 to impose reform on Heriot’s. The Hospital became a day school, charging a modest fee, for boys of 10 and above. Up to 120 foundationers, no younger than 7 years of age, enjoyed preferential admission. Greek was not to be taught. The new George Heriot's Hospital School was, in other words, to be a modern, technically oriented institution. The outdoor school network was to be wound up and the resources used for a variety of scholarships and bursaries, including a number to be used for attendance at the
High School
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
and
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
. These, rather than the new Heriot's day school, were to provide a path to university education for those able and interested. There were elements in this scheme of a response to contemporary European educational reforms, such as that exemplified by the German ''Realschulen''.
The most uncontroversial aspect of the Balfour Commission’s scheme of 1885 for the reform of the Heriot's Hospital and Trust was the takeover of the "Watt Institution and School of Arts" by the Trust. This was to be renamed the Heriot-Watt College. This was not just a matter of the Trust providing financial support, but was part of a policy of encouraging technical education in Edinburgh. Provision was especially to be made for pupils to continue their studies after completing the higher classes of the new Heriot’s day school. The School and the College were both run under the Heriot board of governors until the development and financial needs of the College required a separation in 1927. The Trust continued to make a contribution to the College of £8,000 p.a. thereafter. In 1966 the College was granted university status as
Heriot-Watt University.
In 1979 Heriot's became
co-educational
Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...
after admitting girls. In the same year
Lothian Regional Council attempted to bring the school in to the local authority system, but the Secretary of State for Scotland intervened.
Modern era
In the early 21st century, George Heriot's has approximately 1600 pupils. It continues to serve its charitable goal by providing free education to children who are bereaved of a parent, such children being referred to as "foundationers". In 2012, the school was ranked as Edinburgh's best performing school by
Higher exam results.
Headmasters and principals
![SerbiaRugby1918Lightened](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/SerbiaRugby1918Lightened.jpg)
Chronological list of the headmasters of the school, the year given being the one in which they took office.
*1659 James Lawson
*1664 David Davidsone
*1669 David Browne
*1670 William Smeaton
*1673 Harry Moresone
*1699 James Buchan
*1702 John Watson
*1720 David Chrystie
*1734 William Matheson
*1735 John Hunter
*1741 William Halieburton
*1741 John Henderson
*1757 James Colvill
*1769 George Watson
*1773 William Hay
*1782 Thomas Thomson
*1792 David Cruikshank
*1794 James Maxwell Cockburn
*1795 George Irvine
*1805 John Somerville
*1816 John Christison
*1825 James Boyd
*1829 Hector Holme
*1839 William Steven
*1844 James Fairburn
*1854 Frederick W. Bedford
*1880
David Fowler Lowe
*1908
John Brown Clark
*1926
William Gentle
*1942 William Carnon
*1947
William Dewar
*1970 Allan McDonald
*1983 Keith Pearson
*1997 Alistair Hector
Thereafter, the title of Headmaster was changed to that of Principal.
*2014 (January) Gareth Doodes
*2014 (September) Cameron Wyllie (Acting)
*2014 (December) Cameron Wyllie
*2018 (January) Mrs Lesley Franklin
*2021 (August) Gareth Warren
Other notable staff
*
James Craik
James Craik (; 17276 February 1814) was Physician General (precursor of the Surgeon General) of the United States Army, as well as George Washington's personal physician and close friend.
Biography Education and emigration to America
Born on ...
, Classics, c.1822 to c.1832
*
John Watt Butters, Maths, 1888 to 1899
*
James Stagg, Science, 1921 to 1923
* Donald Hastie, Games, 1949 to 1979 Hastie was reportedly the first full-time games master in Scotland.
*
Ray Milne, French and German, 1974 to 1978
*
Sam Mort, English and Drama (1997 to 2001), in 2021
Unicef
UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to ...
chief of Communication, Advocacy and Civic Engagement in Afghanistan
Sports and extra-curricular activities
Former pupils' clubs, the
Heriot's Rugby Club
Heriot's Rugby Club, also known as Heriot's FP, is one of Scotland's senior rugby football clubs in the Scottish Rugby Union, whose Men's 1st XV play in the FOSROC . The women play in
The club's home is in the Goldenacre area in Edinburgh.Bath ...
and
Heriot's Cricket Club, carry the School's name and use the School's Goldenacre grounds.
George Heriot's School Rowing Club competes at a national level and is affiliated to
Scottish Rowing
Scottish Rowing (SR), formerly the Scottish Amateur Rowing Association, is the governing body for the sport of rowing in Scotland. It is responsible for promoting the sport in Scotland and also for selecting crews to send to the Home Internati ...
. There is a
pipe band
A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of pipers and drummers. The term pipes and drums, used by military pipe bands is also common.
The most common form of pipe band consists of a section of pipers playing the Great Highland bagpipe, a ...
, and around 120 pupils take tuition of some kind.
Notable alumni
![Heriot's Classroom](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Heriot%27s_Classroom.jpg)
Academia and Science
*
George Alexander Carse (1880 – 1950) - physicist (
dux
''Dux'' (; plural: ''ducēs'') is Latin for "leader" (from the noun ''dux, ducis'', "leader, general") and later for duke and its variant forms (doge, duce, etc.). During the Roman Republic and for the first centuries of the Roman Empire, '' ...
in 1898)
*
J. W. S. Cassels, FRS (1922 – 2015) - mathematician
*
Henry Daniels, FRS (1912 – 2000) - statistician
*
Robert J. Ferrier (1932 – 2013) - organic chemist
* Sir
George Taylor (botanist) (1904 - 1993)
* Sir
Thomas Dalling (1892 - 1982) - Professor of Animal Pathology at Cambridge and Chief Veterinary Officer to the United Kingdom
*
John Borthwick Gilchrist (1759 – 1841) -
Indologist
Indology, also known as South Asian studies, is the academic study of the history and cultures, languages, and literature of the Indian subcontinent, and as such is a subset of Asian studies.
The term ''Indology'' (in German, ''Indologie'') is ...
* Professor Sir
Abraham Goldberg
Sir Abraham Goldberg (7 December 1923 – 1 September 2007) was a British physician who was a Regius Professor of the Practice of Medicine at the University of Glasgow. He was educated at George Heriot's School in Edinburgh and the Universit ...
(1923 – 2007),
KB MD DSc DSC may refer to:
Academia
* Doctor of Science (D.Sc.)
* District Selection Committee, an entrance exam in India
* Doctor of Surgical Chiropody, superseded in the 1960s by Doctor of Podiatric Medicine
Educational institutions
* Dalton State Col ...
FRCP FRSE - Emeritus
Regius Professor of Medicine, University of Glasgow
* Professor
Hyman Levy (1889 – 1975),
FRSE - Scottish philosopher, mathematician, political activist
*
Sir Harry (Work) Melville (1908 – 2000),
FRSE - polymer chemist and administrator
* Professor
Hamish Scott FBA FRSE (b. 1946) - historian
* Professor
Gordon Turnbull
Gordon Turnbull is a British psychiatrist and expert on post traumatic stress disorder. He is the lead trauma consultant at the Nightingale Hospital in London, visiting professor at the University of Chester, and Consultant Advisor in Psychia ...
(b. ) - psychiatrist
* Professor
Douglas C. Heggie (b. 1947),
FRSE - Personal Chair of Mathematical Astronomy, School of Mathematics, University of Edinburgh
Media and Arts
*
Nick Abbot
Nick Abbot (born 22 August 1960) is an English radio presenter and currently presents ''The Late Show'' on Friday, Saturday and Sunday on LBC.
Early life and career
Abbot was born on 22 August 1960, and was educated at George Heriot's School, ...
(b. 1960) - Talk Radio presenter
*
Ian Bairnson
Ian Bairnson (born 3 August 1953 as ''John Bairnson'') is a Scottish musician, best known for being one of the core members of The Alan Parsons Project. He is a multi-instrumentalist, who has played saxophone and keyboards, although he is best ...
(b. 1953) - musician, member of
Pilot
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...
and The
Alan Parsons Project
The Alan Parsons Project was a British rock band active between 1975 and 1990, whose core membership consisted of producer, audio engineer, musician and composer Alan Parsons and singer, songwriter and pianist Eric Woolfson. They were accompani ...
*
Emun Elliott
Emun Elliott is a Scottish actor, known for portraying Dr. Christian King in ''Paradox'', Richie in ''Threesome'', John Moray in '' The Paradise'', and Kenny in '' Guilt''.
Background
Elliott was born in Edinburgh, Scotland as Emun John Moham ...
(b. 1983) - actor
*
Gavin Esler
Gavin William James Esler (born 27 February 1953) is a Scottish journalist, television presenter and author. He was a main presenter on BBC Two's flagship political analysis programme, ''Newsnight'', from January 2003 until January 2014, and pr ...
(b. 1953) - television journalist and presenter of ''Newsnight''
*
Mark Goodier
Mark Goodier (born 9 June 1961) is a British radio disc jockey best known for his time on BBC Radio 1 between 1987 and 2002. He had two spells presenting the station's Top 40 singles chart, from 1990 to 1992 and from 1995 until 2002. He also h ...
(b. 1961) - Radio One disc jockey
*
Mike Heron
James Michael Heron (born 27 December 1942) is a Scottish singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, best known for his work in the Incredible String Band in the 1960s and 1970s.
Career
Heron was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, and attended th ...
(b. 1942) - musician, formerly of the Incredible String Band
*
Roy Kinnear
Roy Mitchell Kinnear (8 January 1934 – 20 September 1988) was a British character actor. He was known for his roles in films such as The Beatles' ''Help!'' (1965), Clapper in '' How I Won the War'' (1967) and Planchet in ''The Three Musketeer ...
(1934 – 1988) - actor
*
Iain Macwhirter
Iain Macwhirter (born September 1952) is a Scottish political journalist. He is a political commentator for several newspapers, an author and documentary film and radio presenter and a former Rector of Edinburgh University. He has worked at both ...
(b. 1953) - journalist and Rector of the University of Edinburgh (2009 – 2012)
*
Henry Raeburn
Sir Henry Raeburn (; 4 March 1756 – 8 July 1823) was a Scottish portrait painter. He served as Portrait Painter to King George IV in Scotland.
Biography
Raeburn was born the son of a manufacturer in Stockbridge, on the Water of Leith: a f ...
(1756 – 1823) - painter
*
Ian Richardson
Ian William Richardson (7 April 19349 February 2007) was a Scottish actor.
He portrayed the Machiavellian Tory politician Francis Urquhart in the BBC's '' House of Cards'' (1990–1995) television trilogy. Richardson was also a leading S ...
(1934 – 2007) - actor
*
Mike Scott (musician) (b. 1958) - musician and composer, founder of
The Waterboys
The Waterboys are a folk rock band formed in Edinburgh in 1983 by Scottish musician Mike Scott. The band's membership, past and present, has been composed mainly of musicians from Scotland, Ireland, Wales and England. Mike Scott has remained ...
*
Alastair Sim
Alastair George Bell Sim, CBE (9 October 1900 – 19 August 1976) was a Scottish character actor who began his theatrical career at the age of thirty and quickly became established as a popular West End performer, remaining so until his ...
(1900 – 1976) - actor
*
Ken Stott
Kenneth Campbell Stott (born 19 October 1954) is a Scottish stage, television and film actor who won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in 1995 in the play '' Broken Glass'' at Royal National Theatre. He portrayed th ...
(b. 1955) - actor
*
Bryan Swanson (b. 1980) - Sky Sports chief reporter
*
Nigel Tranter
Nigel Tranter OBE (23 November 1909 – 9 January 2000) was a writer of a wide range of books on castles, particularly on themes of architecture and history. He also specialised in deeply researched historical novels that cover centuries of Sco ...
(1909 – 2000) - historical novelist
*
Robert Urquhart (1921 – 1995) - actor
*
Paul Young (actor)
Paul Young (born 3 July 1944) is a Scottish television actor and presenter.
Young was born in Edinburgh, the son of the actor John Young. He was educated at George Heriot's School in Edinburgh.
He started acting as a child. His first performa ...
(b. 1944) - actor
Law and Politics
*
Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh
Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh OBE WS NP (born 5 October 1970) is a Scottish politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ochil and South Perthshire from 2015 to 2017. A former member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), Ahmed-Sheikh served ...
(b. 1970) - SNP politician
*
James Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern
James Peter Hymers Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern, (born 2 July 1927) is a British advocate. He served as Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, Lord Advocate, and Lord Chancellor (1987–1997). He is a former active member of the House of L ...
(b. 1927) - Advocate and former Lord Chancellor
*
David McLetchie
David William McLetchie CBE (6 August 1952 – 12 August 2013) was a Scottish politician who served as Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party from 1999 to 2005. He was Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Edinburgh Pentlands co ...
(1952 – 2013) - former leader of the Scottish Conservatives
*
Doug Naysmith
John Douglas Naysmith (born 1 April 1941) is a British Labour Co-operative politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bristol North West from 1997 until standing down at the 2010 general election.
Early life
Doug Naysmith was born i ...
(b. 1941) - Labour politician and former MP for Bristol North West
*
Keith Stewart, Baron Stewart of Dirleton
Keith Douglas Stewart, Baron Stewart of Dirleton (born 31 October 1965) is a British lawyer who specialises in criminal law. He was appointed Advocate General for Scotland on 15 October 2020, succeeding Lord Keen of Elie who resigned over Unit ...
- HM Advocate General for Scotland
*
Gordon Prentice
Gordon Prentice (born 28 January 1951) is a British former politician of the Labour Party who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Pendle in Lancashire from 1992 to 2010.
Early life
He was educated at the independent George Heriot's School i ...
(b. 1951) - Labour politician and former MP for Pendle
*
Stephen Woolman, Lord Woolman (b. 1953) - Senator of the College of Justice
*
Kenneth Borthwick CBE DL JP (1915 – 2017) - Lord Provost of Edinburgh (1977 to 1980), Chairman of the 1986 Commonwealth Games
* Sir
Adam Wilson
Sir Adam Wilson (September 22, 1814 – December 28, 1891) was a lawyer, judge and political figure in Canada West. He served as mayor of Toronto in 1859 and 1860 and in the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada for York North from 1860 ...
(1814 – 1891) - 15th mayor of
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
, member of the
Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada
Sports
*
Bruce Douglas (b. 1980) - Rugby Union player
*
Charles Groves (1896–1969) - cricketer
*
Andy Irvine (b. 1951) - Rugby Union internationalist
*
Iain Milne (b. 1956) - Rugby Union player
*
Kenny Milne (b. 1961) - Rugby Union player
*
Robert More (b. 1980) - cricketer
*
John Mushet (1875–1965) - cricketer
*
Gordon Ross (b. 1978) - Rugby Union player
*
Ken Scotland
Kenneth James Forbes Scotland (29 August 1936 – 7 January 2023) was a Scotland international rugby union player and a Scotland international cricket player. He played at full-back in rugby union.Bath, p157
Rugby Union career
Amateur career
...
(b. 1936) - Rugby Union internationalist
*
Polly Swann (b. 1988) - Member of the GB Rowing Team, and Rowing World Champion
*
Douglas Walker (b. 1973) - sprinter
Military
* Colonel
Clive Fairweather (1944 – 2012) - 2nd in command of the SAS during the
Iranian Embassy siege.
*
David Stuart McGregor (1895 – 1918) - Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross
Religion
*
Graham Forbes
Graham John Thomson Forbes, CBE is a priest of the Scottish Episcopal Church. He was Provost of St Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh from 1990 until June 2017.
He was born on 10 June 1951 and educated at George Heriot's School, Edinburgh and the U ...
,
CBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(b. 1951) - Provost of St Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh
*
Hector Bransby Gooderham (1901 – 1977) - priest of the Scottish Episcopal Church
*
Gordon Keddie (b. 1944) -
Reformed Presbyterian minister and
theologian
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
*
James Pitt-Watson (1893–1962) - theologian and Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
*
Brian Smith (bishop) (b. 1943) - Bishop of Edinburgh (Scottish Episcopal Church) 2001–2011
Other
*
James Aitken, aka "John the Painter" (1752 – 1777) - mercenary
*
Hippolyte Blanc
Hippolyte Jean Blanc (18 August 1844 – 17 March 1917) was a Scottish architect. Best known for his church buildings in the Gothic revival style, Blanc was also a keen antiquarian who oversaw meticulously researched restoration projects.
...
(1844 – 1917) - architect
*
Archie Forbes (1913 – 1999),
CBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
- Colonial administrator
*
Norman Irons (b. ) - former Lord Provost of Edinburgh
* Sir
Andrew Hunter Arbuthnot Murray (1903 – 1977) - former Lord Provost of Edinburgh
*
Stuart Harris (1920 – 1997), architect and local historian
References
External links
*
*
Profileon the
Independent Schools Council
The Independent Schools Council (ISC) is a non-profit lobby group that represents over 1,300 schools in the United Kingdom's independent education sector. The organisation comprises seven independent school associations and promotes the bus ...
website
{{DEFAULTSORT:George Heriot's School
Buildings and structures completed in 1628
School buildings completed in the 17th century
Renaissance architecture in Scotland
Category A listed buildings in Edinburgh
Educational institutions established in the 1650s
Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
Old Town, Edinburgh
Independent schools in Edinburgh
William Bruce buildings
William Wallace buildings
1628 establishments in Scotland