St. Michael's College (the College of St. Michael and All Angels) was founded by Sir Frederick Ouseley in 1856 as a boys Preparatory School. Ouseley created the school to provide a model for the performance of Anglican church music. Choral services were performed daily in term time. The college possessed a library that contained rare books of international importance. Financial difficulties forced its closure in 1985. The buildings were reopened as an independent international boarding school under the name of King's College Saint Michaels in 1990. It closed in June 2020 as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

History

The school was founded in reaction to the decline of Anglican church music in the Victorian period. Ouseley sited it in a remote location so as to insulate it from the influence of London. Designed by renowned English Church architect

Henry Woodyer Henry Woodyer (1816–1896) was an English architect, a pupil of William Butterfield and a disciple of A. W. N. Pugin and the Ecclesiologists. Life Woodyer was born in Guildford, Surrey, England, in 1816, the son of a successful, highly resp ...

, until its closure the school regularly sang 150 settings of evensong; it was the last educational establishment in England to sing the orders throughout the week. In the school chapel the choir is separated from the chancel by an ornate gilded screen topped by candles. The choir is backed by a 'Father' Willis

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

, painted with a representation of St Michael defeating the dragon. Recordings of the choir are listed in the

British Library Sound Archive The British Library Sound Archive, formerly the British Institute of Recorded Sound; also known as the National Sound Archive (NSA), in London, England is among the largest collections of recorded sound in the world, including music, spoken word a ...

and are available on CD in back catalogue editions. A recording of the final Evensong sung at the school in 1985 is found on th
Archive of Recorded Church Music site
The school chapel is now the parish church for the surrounding village o
St. Michael's
which was created to support the creation of the school. Poet Laureate Sir

John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture, ...

spoke of the college, referring to:School history
Retrieved 27 June 2009

"……..the unique atmosphere of St. Michael’s College, Tenbury. I shall never forget my first impression of the place. There was the climb up from the little market town of Tenbury whence some of the lay clerks make their twice daily journey to Mattins and Evensong to lend men’s voices to the boys’ choir, and there before me stretched an enormous common. In the far corner, in a land of blossoming orchards and backed by the blue distance of Clee Hill, rose a chapel, seemingly as large as Lancing. Attached to it were Warden’s house, school buildings, cloister and dining hall, all in a style of the fourteenth century, re-interpreted in local materials for the nineteenth century by architect, Henry Woodyer. After Evensong, where the music was equal to that of the best cathedral choirs, and a walk round the buildings in the quiet of a Worcestershire evening, I visited the large dormitory, which runs almost the whole length of a building parallel with the chapel. Here Christopher Hassall read his poem to the boys and held them spellbound as the stars shone through the narrow Gothic windows in the gabled roof…………"

School crest

The crest on the school tie was a red broadsword on a blue background symbolising

St Michael Michael (; he, מִיכָאֵל, lit=Who is like El od, translit=Mīḵāʾēl; el, Μιχαήλ, translit=Mikhaḗl; la, Michahel; ar, ميخائيل ، مِيكَالَ ، ميكائيل, translit=Mīkāʾīl, Mīkāl, Mīkhāʾīl), also ...

's defeat of the dragon by its colour and the two kinks in the sword.

Musical library

Supported by friends of Ouseley, the library contained such important articles as the original score of

Purcell Henry Purcell (, rare: September 1659 – 21 November 1695) was an English composer. Purcell's style of Baroque music was uniquely English, although it incorporated Italian and French elements. Generally considered among the greatest En ...

's ''

Dido and Aeneas ''Dido and Aeneas'' (Z. 626) is an opera in a prologue and three acts, written by the English Baroque composer Henry Purcell with a libretto by Nahum Tate. The dates of the composition and first performance of the opera are uncertain. It was co ...

'' and

Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concertos. Handel received his training i ...

's own conducting score from the

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

premiere of ''

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' ...

''. It was therefore a site of pilgrimage for musical scholars, including

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

After the school's closure the library was transferred to the

Bodleian Library The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford, and is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. It derives its name from its founder, Sir Thomas Bodley. With over 13 million printed items, it is the second- ...

Organists of the college

*John Capel Hanbury 1856 - 1857 *

John Stainer Sir John Stainer (6 June 1840 – 31 March 1901) was an English composer and organist whose music, though seldom performed today (with the exception of ''The Crucifixion'', still heard at Passiontide in some churches of the Anglican Communi ...

1857 - 1859 (later organist of

Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College (, ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by William of Waynflete. Today, it is the fourth wealthiest college, with a financial endowment of £332.1 million as of 2019 and one of the s ...

and St. Paul's Cathedral) * Langdon Colborne 1860 - 1874 (then organist of

Beverley Minster Beverley Minster, otherwise known as the Parish Church of Saint John and Saint Martin, in Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire, is a parish church in the Church of England. It is one of the largest parish churches in the UK, larger than one-third ...

) *Alfred Alexander 1874 - 1877 (then organist of

Wigan Parish Church All Saints' Church in Wallgate, Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, is an Anglican parish church. It is in the deanery of Wigan, the archdeaconry of Warrington and the Diocese of Liverpool. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List f ...

) *William Claxton 1877 - 1886 *Walter J. Lancaster 1886 - 1889 (then organist of Bolton Parish Church, Lancashire) *Allan Paterson 1889 - 1893 (then organist of

Malvern Priory Great Malvern Priory in Malvern, Worcestershire, England, was a Benedictine monastery (c. 1075 – 1540) and is now an Anglican parish church. In 1949 it was designated a Grade I listed building. It is a dominant building in the Great Malver ...

) *James Lyon 1893 - 1896 (then organist of St. Mark's Church,

Surbiton Surbiton is a suburban neighbourhood in South West London, within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames (RBK). It is next to the River Thames, southwest of Charing Cross. Surbiton was in the historic county of Surrey and since 1965 it has ...

) *Edgar C. Broadhurst 1896 - 1907 *M. Gordon Burgess 1907 - 1910 *J.P. Davis 1910 - 1911 *Norman Charles Woods 1911 - 1912 *Arthur Baynon 1913 - 1916 *Carlton Borrow 1917 *Vivian Stuart 1918 *

Ernest Bullock Sir Ernest Bullock (1890–1979) was an English organist, composer, and teacher. He was organist of Exeter Cathedral from 1917 to 1928 and of Westminster Abbey from 1928 to 1941. In the latter post he was jointly responsible for the music at the ...

1919 *

Heathcote Dicken Statham Heathcote Dicken Statham CBE (7 December 1889 - 29 October 1973) was a conductor, composer and organist of international repute. Early life He was the eldest son of Henry Heathcote Statham (1839-1924) and Florence Elizabeth Dicken (1856-1938). Hi ...

1920 - 1926 *Stanley Thorne 1926 - 1931 *Laurence Crosthwaite 1931 - 1935 *Maxwell Menzies 1935 - 1952 (duties undertaken by Sir

Sydney Nicholson Sir Sydney Hugo Nicholson (9 February 1875 – 30 May 1947) was an English choir director, organist and composer, now chiefly remembered as the founder of the Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) and the compiler of ''The Parish Psalter''. Li ...

from 1940 and C E S Littlejohn from 1941 while Maxwell Menzies was away in the armed forces) * Kenneth Beard 1952 - 1959 (afterwards rector chori at

Southwell Minster Southwell Minster () is a minster and cathedral in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, England. It is situated miles from Newark-on-Trent and from Mansfield. It is the seat of the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham and the Diocese of Southwell and N ...

) * Lucian Nethsingha 1959 - 1973 (afterwards organist of

Exeter Cathedral Exeter Cathedral, properly known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Exeter, is an Anglican cathedral, and the seat of the Bishop of Exeter, in the city of Exeter, Devon, in South West England. The present building was complete by about 140 ...

) * Roger Judd 1973 - 1985 (later Assistant Organist St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle)

Alumni

The St Michael's College Society, an activ
Old Boys and Girls society
from the original

Frederick Ouseley Sir Frederick Arthur Gore Ouseley, 2nd Baronet (12 August 18256 April 1889) was an English composer, organist, musicologist and priest. Biography Frederick Ouseley was born in London, the son of Sir Gore Ouseley, and manifested an extraordinary ...

foundation, and which in 2006 celebrated its centenary, holds a reunion meeting each year. Membership is open to all those with a connection to the 1856 -1985 College days Notable alumni include: *

George Robertson Sinclair George Robertson Sinclair (28 October 1863 – 7 February 1917) was an English Organist#Classical and church organists, cathedral organist, who served at Truro Cathedral, Truro and Hereford Cathedral, Hereford cathedrals. As a young man, Sincla ...

, organist at

Truro Truro (; kw, Truru) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Cornwall, England. It is Cornwall's county town, sole city and centre for administration, leisure and retail trading. Its ...

and

Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...

cathedral, friend of

Edward Elgar Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...

* Harold "Barehands" Bates,

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

officer *

John Blashford-Snell Colonel John Nicholas Blashford-Snell (born 22 October 1936) is a former British Army officer, explorer and author. He founded Operation Raleigh and the Scientific Exploration Society. Early life and education John Nicholas Blashford-Snell was ...

, Explorer * Christopher Robinson, Choirmaster and organist * Jonathan Harvey, composer * Stephen Glover, journalist

More recent history of the buildings

The year after the College closed the school buildings were used as the set for the 1986 Halloween television movie, ''

The Worst Witch ''The Worst Witch'' is a series of children's books written and illustrated by Jill Murphy. The series are primarily about a girl who attends a witch school and fantasy stories, with eight books published. The first, ''The Worst Witch'', was ...

'' based on the fantasy novel by

Jill Murphy Jill Murphy (5 July 1949 – 18 August 2021) was a British author and illustrator of children's books. First published in 1974 at the age of 24, she was best known for the ''Worst Witch'' novels and ''Large Family'' picture books, with sales amo ...

starring

Diana Rigg Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg (20 July 193810 September 2020) was an English actress of stage and screen. Her roles include Emma Peel in the TV series '' The Avengers'' (1965–1968); Countess Teresa di Vicenzo, wife of James Bond, in '' On H ...

Tim Curry Timothy James Curry (born 19 April 1946) is an English actor and singer. He rose to prominence for his portrayal of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the film ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' (1975), reprising the role he had originated in the 1973 London ...

and

Fairuza Balk Fairuza Balk (born May 21, 1974) is an American actress, musician, and visual artist. Influential in popular culture, Balk is known for her portrayals of distinctive " goth-girl" characters, often with a dark edge. She has appeared in numerous in ...

. From 1990 to 2020 the buildings were occupied by a school known as King’s Saint Michael’s College which was an international boarding school with students from many different countries. It closed in 2020. That school specialised in providing education to international students by providing an intensive English language alongside the traditional curriculum of GCSEs and A Levels. The school also ran a University Foundation Course which had links to various universities across the country. During the months of July and August, Saint Michael's ran an English language summer school for students from around the world.

References

External links

St Michael's College Society official website, specific to the original College
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Michael's College, Tenbury 1856 establishments in England Educational institutions established in 1856 2020 disestablishments in England Educational institutions disestablished in 2020 Defunct schools in Worcestershire Boarding schools in Worcestershire Tenbury Wells International schools in England