, motto_translation = Be Thou Forever , song = Thomian Song , athletics = Yes , sports = Yes , nickname = Thora , denomination =

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

, patron = St. Thomas , established = , coordinates = , seal_size = 150px , image = St. Thomas' College 2.jpg , caption = College Quadrangle , pushpin_map = Sri Lanka Colombo District , pushpin_map_caption = Location in Colombo District , pushpin_label_position = right , former_names = College of St. Thomas the Apostle
S. Thomas' College, Mutwal , type =

Private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

, religious_affiliation =

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

, newspaper = The Ternion , yearbook = The College Magazine , affiliation = Anglican Church of Ceylon , founder = James Chapman , location = Hotel Road, Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, Sri Lanka , city = Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia , state = Colombo , province = Western Province , country =

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

, system = National Education System

Pearson Edexcel Edexcel (also known since 2013 as Pearson Edexcel) is a British multinational education and examination body formed in 1996 and wholly owned by Pearson plc since 2005. It is the only privately owned examination board in the United Kingdom. It ...

, language =

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 ...

, Sinhala,

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

, hours_in_day = 07:25 - 13:30 , campus_type =

Suburban A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

, colours = Blue and black
, gender = Male , lower_age = 2 , upper_age = 19 , enrollment = 2,800 , chairman_label = Visitor to the College , chairman =

Dushantha Lakshman Rodrigo Dushantha Lakshman Rodrigo (born 5 October 1968) is the 16th and current Anglican Bishop of Colombo. Early life Dushantha Lakshman Rodrigo was born in Trincomalee on 5 October 1968, the son of Arthur William Rodrigo and Ruth Adlene De Alwis, hi ...

, head_name = Warden , head = Marc Billimoria , head_name2 = Sub-Warden , head2 = Asanka Perera , chaplain = Samuel Ponniah , grades = 1 - 14
(including a nursery for children of Old Boys) , free_label_3 = Former pupils , free_2 = *

S. Thomas' Preparatory School S. Thomas' Preparatory School (abbreviated as STPS) is a private, Anglicanism, Anglican, multi-ethnic, primary and secondary day school for boys aged 5 to 16 years, located in Kollupitiya in the Colombo District of the Western Province of Sri Lan ...

* St.Thomas' College, Matara * St.Thomas' College, Matale *

S. Thomas' College, Gurutalawa , motto_translation = Be Thou Forever , denomination = Anglican , established = , type = Private , religious_affiliation = Christianity , affiliation = , founder ...

* S. Thomas' College, Bandarawela , free_label2 = Brother schools , free_3 = Old Thomians , url = S. Thomas' College,

Mount Lavinia Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia ( si, දෙහිවල-ගල්කිස්ස, translit=Dehivala-Galkissa; ta, தெஹிவளை-கல்கிசை, translit=Tehivaḷai-Kalkicai), population 245,974 (2012) is the largest suburb of the City of ...

(abbreviated as STC), is a fee-levying

selective entry boys' private school in

. Started as a private school by James Chapman, the first

Anglican Bishop of Colombo The Anglican Bishop of Colombo is the ecclesiastical head of the Anglican Diocese of Colombo, a diocese in the Church of Ceylon which is part of the Anglican Communion. The Anglican Diocese of Colombo was founded in 1845, as the diocese of the C ...

, in 1851, it was founded as a college and cathedral for the new Diocese of Colombo of the Church of Ceylon, modelled on

British Public school In England and Wales (but not Scotland), a public school is a fee-charging endowed school originally for older boys. They are "public" in the sense of being open to pupils irrespective of locality, denomination or paternal trade or profess ...

tradition. An old boy of

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 ...

, Bishop Chapman founded the college on the

Etonian 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, ...

model, the school's motto of ''

Esto perpetua ''Esto perpetua'' is a Latin phrase meaning "let it be perpetual". It is the motto of Idaho. The motto appears on the back of the 2007 Idaho quarter dollar coin. The words are traced back to the Venetian theologian and mathematician Paolo Sar ...

'' being derived from that of Eton College. Following the

public school Public school may refer to: * State school (known as a public school in many countries), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government * Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging independent schools in England an ...

tradition, S. Thomas' College is a partial boarding school, with some pupils living at the school seven days a week, and others residing in Day houses. Having been founded in 1851, it is among the oldest schools in Sri Lanka. With a student body of approximately 2,800, S. Thomas' is considered as one of the most prestigious schools in Sri Lanka; a factor leading to its competitive rivalry with

Royal College, Colombo Royal College, Colombo is a selective entry boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started as a private school by Rev Joseph Marsh in 1835, it was established as the Colombo Academy by Sir Robert Wilmot-Horton in Janua ...

. This rivalry has led to a

Royal–Thomian The Royal–Thomian (The Battle of the Blues) is an annual cricket match in Sri Lanka played between Royal College, Colombo and S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia since 1879. It is known as ''The Battle of the Blues'' due to the colours of the tw ...

tradition with the annual Royal-Thomian Rugby Encounter and the

Royal Thomian Regatta The Royal Thomian Regatta is the annual rowing encounter between traditional school rivals Royal College, Colombo and S. Thomas' College, Mt Lavinia. Begun in 1962 as the Royal Thomian Boat Race it later evolved into a regatta in 1966 and now con ...

. The college has educated

prime ministers A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

, world leaders, sportsmen and

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a Literary award, literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United King ...

winners. Alumni of S. Thomas' College are referred to as ''Old Thomians,'' and include

D. S. Senanayake Don Stephen Senanayake ( si, දොන් ස්ටීවන් සේනානායක,; ta, டி. எஸ். சேனநாயக்கா; 21 October 1884 – 22 March 1952) was a Ceylonese statesman. He was the first Prime Mi ...

, the first Prime Minister of Ceylon,

S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike ( si, සොලොමන් වෙස්ට් රිජ්වේ ඩයස් බණ්ඩාරනායක; ta, சாலமன் வெஸ்ட் ரிட்ஜ்வே டயஸ் ப� ...

and two other Prime Ministers. Many of the prominent leaders of the

independence movement Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

in the early twentieth century were educated at the college. These include Leslie Goonewardene, who founded Sri Lanka's first political party, the

Lanka Sama Samaja Party The Lanka Sama Samaja Party, often abbreviated as LSSP (Literal translation, literally: Lanka Socialist Party, Sinhalese language, Sinhala: ලංකා සම සමාජ පක්ෂය, Tamil language, Tamil: லங்கா சமசமா� ...

and

N. M. Perera Nanayakkarapathirage Martin Perera, commonly known as Dr. N. M. Perera ( Sinhala එන්.එම්.පෙරේරා ; 6 June 1904 – 14 August 1979), was one of the leaders of the Sri Lankan Trotskyist Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP). He w ...

, who served as leader of the opposition and the first Trotskyist to become a cabinet minister.

College

Location

S. Thomas’ College is situated in a quiet suburb approximately half an hour from the southern limits of the City of Colombo. The school's entrance is characterised by the Chapel of the Transfiguration. Built in 1923 and designed by P. A. Adams, the chapel, at long and high, had its foundation stone lain by Rt. Rev. Earnest Arthur Copleston,

Bishop of Colombo Bishop of Colombo may refer to: * Anglican Bishop of Colombo The Anglican Bishop of Colombo is the ecclesiastical head of the Anglican Diocese of Colombo, a diocese in the Church of Ceylon which is part of the Anglican Communion. The Anglican D ...

. The main school body is modelled on that of the British public school model, comprising the primary quadrangle, the college hall, main buildings and library. The school's grounds reach the city of

Administration

Having been managed by a board of governors since 1927, S. Thomas’ College is chaired by the

Bishop of Colombo as ‘Visitor to the College’. The school's administration remains deeply rooted in Anglicanism, with a further chaplaincy for the aforementioned Chapel of the Transfiguration. The administration of the College itself is headed by a warden. Admission to the college is at the sole discretion of the warden. The college is divided into the primary (grades 1–5), lower secondary (grades 6–9) and upper secondary schools (grades 10 and 11), followed by the senior school. These combined sectors amount to the college's student body of approximately 2,800 – stemming from varied faiths and ethnicities.

History

Mutwal

S. Thomas’ College was founded by the first Bishop of Colombo, James Chapman, who had been educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

and

King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the city ...

. Chapman's vision included building as a college and cathedral for the new Diocese of Colombo of the Church of Ceylon, modelled on the

British Public School In England and Wales (but not Scotland), a public school is a fee-charging endowed school originally for older boys. They are "public" in the sense of being open to pupils irrespective of locality, denomination or paternal trade or profess ...

system he was accustomed to. An old boy of

, Bishop Chapman founded the college on the

model, and even borrowed the school motto, ''Esto Perpetuas,'' from Eton. Chapman's objective was to train a Christian clergy and to make children good citizens under the discipline and supervision of Christianity. In 1852 Bishop Chapman laid the foundation stone of the college chapel on a hill in the school grounds. The chapel became Christ Church Cathedral of the Colombo Diocese of the Church of Ceylon when it was dedicated on 21 September 1854.

Mount Lavinia

In 1918, the school moved away from the "dusty environs" of Mutwal, which was near the Colombo harbour, to a more picturesque location near the sea in Mount Lavinia. On 13 October 1923, the foundation stone for what would become the

Chapel of the Transfiguration The Chapel of the Transfiguration is a small log chapel in Grand Teton National Park, in the community of Moose. The chapel was sited and built to frame a view of the Cathedral Group of peaks in a large window behind the altar. The chapel, whi ...

was laid by the Bishop of Colombo, Ernest Arthur Copleston, and the chapel was completed on 12 February 1927, when it was consecrated by the Bishop of Colombo

Mark Carpenter-Garnier The Rt Rev Mark Rodolph Carpenter-Garnier (1 January 1881 – 11 October 1969) was an Anglican bishop in the first half of the 20th century. Born in Wickham, Hampshire''1911 England Census'' on New Year's Day, he was the third son of John ...

. In 1968, David Paynter, the noted Sri Lankan painter, completed his mural of the

Transfiguration of Jesus In the New Testament, the Transfiguration of Jesus is an event where Jesus is transfigured and becomes radiant in glory upon a mountain. The Synoptic Gospels (, , ) describe it, and the Second Epistle of Peter also refers to it (). In these a ...

upon the interior of the east wall of the chapel, which included a then unusual "beardless Christ". In 1951, S. Thomas' became a private fee-levying school.

Song

The "Thomian Song" was first introduced in the April issue of the College Magazine in 1916. The lyrics of the College Song were written by Mr. Edmund de Livera, a Royalist; and music was composed by Revd. W. A. Stone, 8th Warden of the College. The 5th line of the 2nd verse was amended in the time of Warden M. L. C. Illangakoon on a suggestion made by the late Mr. Mervyn Casie-Chetty, and ‘King’ was replaced by ‘State’.

Houses

There are five houses at the college, four of which are "day houses", for those who do not live in the boarding house. From the college's inception, boarders were admitted under a

dormitory A dormitory (originated from the Latin word ''dormitorium'', often abbreviated to dorm) is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential quarters for large numbers of people such as boarding school, high school, college or university s ...

system, under which each dormitory had a master after whom the dormitory was named. Around 1900, it was proposed that the college have a permanent house system introduced, however this was rejected. The shift to a permanent house system was only to take place with the move to Mount Lavinia. The houses were named Claughton, Chapman, Read, Copleston and Miller. There was also a small, rather short-lived Winchester House. At the time, Miller and Copleston were senior houses. An organised house system was introduced following the school's founding by Warden K. C. McPherson, with the aims to encourage boys to take part in extracurricular activities. In 1926, the day boys were divided first into 5 houses, namely Wood, Buck, Stone, De Saram, and Miller- Copleston. Boys were allotted in them according to the location of their residences. Wood house consisted of boys from Ratmalana, further south and from Nugegoda and Borella. Stone and Buck housed children from Mount Lavinia, the former consisting of those whose surnames starts from A to M, while the latter of the rest. Baly housed boys who lived in Wellawatte and Bambalapitiya. Children who were from Dehiwala, Slave Island & Fort were allotted in Jermyn House. This system was not found successful, and by 1932, the boarding house system of two senior houses and two junior houses was discarded in favour of an alternative system.

Sports

The most prominent sports are those classified as the " Royal-Thomian". These sports take precedence because of the importance given to the clash between S. Thomas' oldest rival, the

. A cricket match between these colleges takes place in the first term of Lent every year. As the rains begin in Michaelmas Term, the rugby season has kicked off and the main encounter is the Royal-Thomian Rugby match. As the year ends with the term of Yuletide, the highlights are the

and the Boat Race for the oarsmen of the two Colleges and simultaneously the two leg Water Polo matches for the R.L. Hayman trophy.

Royal-Thomian Cricket Match

The Royal-Thomian, is the annual cricket match between the

and S Thomas' College, Mt Lavinia is the second longest uninterrupted cricket match series in the world and, first and oldest in Sri Lanka, even older than the Ashes, having been played for more than 140 years continuously. The original match was played between the Colombo Academy and S. Thomas' College, Mutwal in 1879, with schoolmasters participating as well as schoolboys. From 1880 onwards, only schoolboys were allowed to play in the match. The match is played for the D.S. Senanayake Memorial Shield, which was first presented in 1928. From 1979 matches were played for 3 days except in 1985 which was a 2-day match. A limited overs match (50 overs) was introduced in 1975 and is played for the Mustangs Trophy.

Royal-Thomian Rugby Match

The Royal-Thomian

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

match held annually in the Michaelmas Term of S. Thomas. and between the two sessions of

Bradby Shield Encounter The Bradby Shield Encounter - commonly known as "The Bradby" - is the pinnacle of Sri Lanka's school rugby union season. It is played annually between two of the most prominent boys’ schools in the country and traditional rivals Royal College, C ...

of Royal since 1955. It is played for the Michael Gunaratne Trophy.

Royal-Thomian Rowing Regatta

The Royal-Thomian Regatta (or Boat Race) is the annual rowing race between Royal College, Colombo and S. Thomas' College, Mt Lavinia, having begun in 1962 the event has evolved into the Royal Thomian Regatta or The Regatta in 1966 and now is made up of 8 events which carry points and 3 exhibition events. The races are rowed over a distance of 1000 yards and take place on the

Beira Lake Beira Lake (/bˈɐjɾɐ/; Sinhalese: බේරේ වැව, translit. ''Bērē væva''; Tami: பேரே ஏரி, translit. ''Pērē ēri'') is a lake in the centre of the city of Colombo in Sri Lanka. The lake is surrounded by many large b ...

in Colombo. The regatta takes place in the month of October and is usually held on the last Saturday of the month at the Colombo Rowing Club. The Royal Thomian Regatta is the oldest inter-mural rowing regatta in Sri Lanka.

Royal-Thomian Tennis Match

The Royal Thomian Tennis is the annual tennis tournament between Royal College and S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia. The victor is awarded the E F C Pereira memorial trophy.

Dr. R.L. Hayman Trophy Royal-Thomian Water Polo Matches

The Dr. R.L. Hayman Trophy is the annual 2 leg Water Polo fixture between Royal College, Colombo and S. Thomas' College, Mt Lavinia. While Water Polo matches between the two schools have been held on and off through the annals of the two schools shared histories, the matches were made a permanent fixture as part of the two schools sporting calendars in 1992 as the Dr. R. L. Hayman Trophy Royal-Thomian Water Polo matches. The event was initially played in two legs much like the Bradby Shield in home and away pools. However, while it is still a two leg event, for the past several years it has been held at the

Sugathadasa Stadium Sugathadasa Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is currently used for football, rugby union, and athletics. The stadium holds 25,000 people and has an on-site hotel. History The concept of an outdoor sporting stadium was ...

Swimming Pool allowing for much larger participation and making it the best patronised Water Polo matches in Sri Lanka and Asia. As of 2019 the tally stands at S.Thomas' winning 16, Royal winning 8 and 3 matches drawn.

Personalities

Warden

The Warden of S. Thomas' College is appointed by the Board of Governors to run the day-to-day activities of the College. Shown below is the list of Wardens who have served the College: In the early days of the College, acting Wardens served during interregnum periods whilst new Wardens were being chosen back in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, under whom

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

was a colony at the time.

Alumni

Past students of S. Thomas' are referred to as Old Thomians, and include many distinguished figures. The school produced the first Prime Minister of Sri Lanka,

, the Head Mudaliyar of Ceylon, Sir Solomon Dias Bandaranaike, and three other Prime ministers;

Dudley Senanayake Dudley Shelton Senanayake ( Sinhala: ඩඩ්ලි ශෙල්ටන් සේනානායක: ta, டட்லி சேனநாயக்கா; 19 June 1911 – 13 April 1973), was a Sri Lankan statesman who served as Prime Mi ...

Solomon Bandaranaike Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike ( si, සොලොමන් වෙස්ට් රිජ්වේ ඩයස් බණ්ඩාරනායක; ta, சாலமன் வெஸ்ட் ரிட்ஜ்வே டயஸ் ப� ...

and

Wijeyananda Dahanayake Wijeyananda Dahanayake ( si, විජයානන්ද දහනායක ta, விஜயானந்த தகநாயக்கா; 22 October 1902 – 4 May 1997) was a Sri Lankan politician. He was the Prime Minister of Ceylon from Septe ...

. Many of the prominent leaders of the

in the early twentieth century were educated at the college. These include Leslie Goonewardene, who founded Sri Lanka's first political party, the

and

, who served as leader of the opposition and the first Trotskyist to become a cabinet minister. File:D S Senanayake.jpg,

File:Michael Ondaatje at Tulane 2010.jpg,

Michael Ondaatje Philip Michael Ondaatje (; born 12 September 1943) is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian poet, fiction writer, essayist, novelist, editor, and filmmaker. He is the recipient of multiple literary awards such as the Governor General's Award, the Giller P ...

File:Don Richard Wijewardana (1886-1950).jpg,

D. R. Wijewardena Don Richard Wijewardena ( Sinhala:දොන් රිච්ඩ් විජෙවර්ධන) (23 February 1886 – 13 June 1950) was a Sri Lankan press baron who was involved in the Sri Lankan independence movement. A successful entrepreneur ...

File:Basil Arthur Horsfall VC.jpg, Basil Horsfall

References

External links

Official website of S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Thomas the Apostle, College of S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia, Church of Ceylon schools in the Diocese of Colombo Educational institutions established in 1851 Private schools in Sri Lanka Schools in Mount Lavinia 1851 establishments in Ceylon