La Martinière College, Lucknow

La Martinière College is an elite private educational institution located in Lucknow, the capital of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The college consists of two schools on different campuses for boys and girls. La Martinière College (for boys) was founded in 1845 and La Martinière Girls' College was established in 1869. The Boys' College is the only school in the world to have been awarded royal battle honoursDeefholts, Margaret. 'History's ghosts in Old Lucknow'
accessed June 2007 for its role in the defence of Lucknow during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. The two Lucknow colleges are part of the La Martinière family of schools founded by the French adventurer Major General Claude Martin. There are two La Martinière Colleges in Kolkata and three in Lyon. La Martinière provides a liberal education and the medium of instruction is the English language. The schools cater for pupils from the ages of five through to 17 or 18, and are open to children of all religious denominations, the boys' school has a Chapel, a Hindu Temple and a Mosque on its campus and has remained a non-denominational school since its inception, unlike the two La Martiniere Schools in Calcutta which are Christian schools, controlled by the Anglican Church of North India. The schools have day scholars and residence scholars (boarders).

''The Economist'' has described its Constantia building as "perhaps the best-preserved colonial building in Lucknow".

Major-General Claude Martin

La Martinière Boys' College was founded by an endowment from the wealthy eighteenth-century Frenchman, Major-General Claude Martin (1735–1800), who was an officer in the French and later the British East India Company. Martin acquired his fortune while serving Asaf-ud-Daula, the nawab wazir of Awadh, and was reputedly the richest Frenchman in India. Constantia, the palatial building which now houses the Boys' College, was built in 1785 as Martin's country residence, but was not completed until 1802, two years after Martin's death on 13 September 1800. Historians believe that the house takes its name from the school motto ''Labore et Constantia'' (Work and Constancy) which represents Martin's personal philosophy. There is a more romantic, though unproven, notion that the building was named after Constance, a young French girl who was supposedly Martin's first love.An article by the Lucknow historian Ms. Rosie Llewellyn-Jones in ''Taj'' magazine
accessed June 2007

Martin never married and he had no heirs. In his will, dated 1 January 1800, he left the bulk of his estate to provide for the establishment of three schools to be named La Martinière in his memory. The schools were to be located in Lucknow, Calcutta and at Lyon, his birthplace in France. The residue of his estate after bequests had been made was to be used for the maintenance of these schools. He directed that the school in Lucknow should be established at Constantia and that the house should be kept as a "school or College for learning young men the English language and Christian religion if they found themselves inclined".A synopsis of the history of La Martinière College, Lucknow
accessed June 2007

Image:PolierMartinWombwellZoffany.jpg, Antoine Polier, General Claude Martin, John Wombwell, assay master, and Johann Zoffany, the painter, surrounded by servants and Polier's art collection.
rect 269 140 344 305 Claude Martin
rect 124 147 181 298 Antoine-Louis Polier
rect 208 146 253 217 Johann Zoffany
desc none

Martin instructed in his will that his 'body be salted, put in spirits or embalmed', and placed in a lead coffin in a vault beneath the house. His tomb should carry a plaque bearing the following inscription:

''Major-General Claude Martin''.
''Arrived in India as a common soldier''
''and died at Lucknow on 13 September,''
''1800, as a Major-General.''
''He is buried in this tomb.''
''Pray for his soul.''Extract from "Quest for Kim – In search of Kipling's Great Game" by Peter Hopkirk. London: John Murray, 1996.
Transcribed by Tony Mooar in a posting on the India-L Rootsweb Mailing List on 23 April 1999
accessed June 2007

It is popularly believed that Martin was motivated not just by vanity but by a desire to protect his property after his death and to prevent his friend, the nawab, from acquiring it. By having himself, a Christian, buried beneath Constantia, he knew that the building would be permanently desecrated in the Muslim nawab's eyes. Chandan Mitra, in his book ''Constant Glory'', thinks otherwise. He writes "Constantia's plans show that the basement mausoleum was part of the original scheme for the building and not included as an afterthought to guard against requisition."Mitra, Chandan. ''Constant glory: La Martinière jai mata di saga 1836–1986''. Calcutta: Oxford University jai mata di Press, 1987.

Martin was duly interred in a specially prepared vault in the basement of the house. Thus, Constantia became both a school and a mausoleum. It is the largest European funerary monument in India, and the historian William Dalrymple has described it as "The East India Company's answer to the Taj Mahal".Prachi jai mata di Pratap, "La Martinière and the Mutiny", on Tornos India
accessed July 2007

Early years

After Martin's death there were protracted disputes in the Calcutta High Court and consequently his will was not proved until 1840. In the interim the Constantia building was used as a guest house for visiting Europeans. The school finally opened on 1 October 1845 with some seventy boys on roll. The first Principal was John Newmarch.

Unlike the Calcutta La Martinière, the Lucknow school was technically established outside British territory so right from its inception its interaction with local society was frequent. There was also a native branch of the school in the Maqbara Umjid Ali Shah at Hazratgunj in the centre of Lucknow. There were plans to move the native school to a different location, although it is not known whether this actually took place.

The first major challenge for the La Martinière School was the events of 1857 when it had to leave its premises and assisted in the defence of the Lucknow Residency.

La Martinière during the 1857 uprising

The events of 1857 saw the making of the Martinian military legend. For the first time in history, Britain called on schoolboys to assist in the military conflict – namely the defence of the Lucknow Residency. The names of eight staff members, sixty seven boys and one ensign (old boy) are inscribed on the 'Roll of Honour, defence of the Residency 1857' at La Martinière Lucknow. The siege began on 30 June 1857. Early in June, the Chief Commissioner of Oudh, Sir Henry Lawrence ordered the Martinière be evacuated and for several days the boys travelled from the Residency to the college collecting provisions. The force within the Residency then consisted of British and Indian troops and civilian volunteers including a number of Anglo-Indians. The Martinière contingent was commanded by the Principal, Mr. George Schilling. The Residency was under siege for eighty-six days, until relieved by Sir Colin Campbell in November 1857.

The role of the boys and masters of La Martinière has been well documented in Chandan Mitra's 1987 book titled ''Constant Glory – La Martinière saga 1836–1986''. The Residency fortifications and defended houses were about a mile in circumference, and the Martinière contingent, along with a detachment of the 32nd Regiment of Foot, were garrisoned in a strongly built house containing tykhanas (cellars) and adjoining outhouses. The position became known as The Martinière Post and was a mere thirty feet distant from Johannes House, held by the rebels, and as a consequence, was exposed to heavy shelling.

Apart from actual fighting, the boys performed a number of tasks within the Residency compound – some ran messages to the hospital, watched over the sick and wounded, ground corn and manned the telegraph connecting the Residency to Alam Bagh; others were seconded to domestic duties in place of native servants who had absconded. Despite the dangers, casualties among the boys were few. Two died of dysentery and two others were wounded in action. Their diet consisted of mutton soup. On one occasion, a mine blew down the outer room of The Martinière Post, but the boys defended the breach and after several days of bitter fighting managed to drive off the enemy housed opposite their camp.

Major Gorman in his ''Great Exploits – The Siege of Lucknow'' wrote that the Martinière boys erected an amateur semaphore on the Residency tower from instructions given in a number of the '' Penny Encyclopaedia''. The semaphore enabled General Outram to advise the commander of the relieving force Sir Colin Campbell 'to give the city a wide berth', avoiding the heavy enemy batteries on the direct road to the Residency. The fiercest fighting of the advance that followed was at the Martinière College, strongly defended by the Indian Freedom Fighters. Sir Colin dislodged them, occupied the college, setting up another semaphore on its roof to communicate with Outram. The Martinière contingent took part in the secret evacuation of the Residency, and the rambling journey of six weeks across India which followed, until finally arriving by boat at Benares. After the Siege the college was temporarily moved to Benares. Classrooms were established in bungalows and the school routine recommenced.

Rewards and battle honours

Principal Schilling's leadership was well rewarded. He became a taluqdar, or noble of Oudh, with an estate worth £30,000, thereby ensuring a comfortable retirement in England. The Martinière contribution was officially recognised in Queen Victoria's (1858) proclamation. The staff and the boys who served during the Indian Rebellion of 1857 were all awarded the Indian Mutiny Medal, inscribed with the words "Defence of Lucknow", in recognition of their courage and steadfastness.

The awards were notified to the principal on 5 February 1861 by a letter from the chief commissioner of Oudh. However, it was not until 1932, following a request by the college, that the British Government recognised Martinière's role in 1857. The school was granted the right, on ceremonial occasions, to carry a British Army regimental-style 'colour' or flag bearing its own coat of arms with a picture of the Residency and the words "Defence of Lucknow, 1857". It thus became the only school in the world to be awarded a British battle honour. McGill University in Canada is the only other educational institution in the British Empire to be awarded the same honour for its role in World War I.

Bishop Cotton made the following reference to the Martinière action at St. Paul's Cathedral, Calcutta on 28 July 1860:

Public thanksgiving to Almighty God for deliverance from the sepoy revolt should take expression in the form of schools for the children of the Community that had stood so nobly by England in her hour of need and which shed its blood for kinsmen across the seas.

The flag has not been displayed publicly since 1947 as the subject caused some ambivalence. Satish Bhatnagar, author of ''Bright Renown: La Martinière College Lucknow'' comments: "I once asked the principal why the school is hiding the honour. He said he didn't know how the Indian government would take it."

After 1857

La Martinière Lucknow, like its counterpart in Calcutta, expanded rapidly after the rebellion of 1857 There were 148 students on its rolls in 1859, but the number had increased to 277 by 1862. Boarders came from all over the province from districts like Pratapgarh, Mirzapur, Gorakhpur, Allahabad, Kanpur and Etawah.

The records show that in 1865 over 120 boys qualified for admission to the higher department of the Civil Engineering College at Roorkee.

In the years following the mutiny, the city of Lucknow, now under the British Crown, was redesigned. La Martinière emerged as an outpost of the British Empire and it acquired the traditions of English public schools.

In 1869, the La Martinière Girls' School was founded and in 1871 it moved to its present location in the compound of Khurshid Manzil. Initially the Girls' School was under the management of the Boys' School. The La Martinière College Principal was in overall charge of both the Boys' and Girls' Schools, with the Girls' school headed by a Lady Superintendent.

The late nineteenth century and the early twentieth century saw the emergence of the school as an exclusive school preferred by the landed aristocracy of Awadh.

In 1945, the college celebrated its Centenary.

In wake of threat of invasion by the Japanese during the Second World War, the Calcutta Schools were re-located to Lucknow.

After Indian Independence, the curriculum was changed in 1947, with Urdu