St Albans School is a

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 ...

(English independent school) in the city of St Albans in Hertfordshire. Pre-sixth form admission is restricted to boys, but the

sixth form In the education systems of England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepare for A-l ...

has been co-educational since 1991. Founded in 948 by Wulsin, St Albans School is the oldest school in Hertfordshire and one of the oldest schools in the world, being located on a 500 acre site. The school is known for its academic prowess, achieving excellent results and gaining several places at the top universities, specifically Oxbridge. The school now has state-of-the-art science facilities unlike any other school in the country, also having educated a multitude of scientists, a few examples being Stephen Hawking, who dedicated some of his success to the school (Formally, the only place that taught him maths) and Ian Grant. The school created The Stephen Hawking Society as part of a tribute to the former pupil. As part of this, many famous scientists such as the 2001 Nobel Prize winner, Dr Tim Hunt, have given lectures at the school. The headmaster is Jonathan Gillespie, appointed in 2014, he has taught at various schools such as

Highgate Highgate ( ) is a suburban area of north London at the northeastern corner of Hampstead Heath, north-northwest of Charing Cross. Highgate is one of the most expensive London suburbs in which to live. It has two active conservation organisat ...

and

Fettes college Fettes College () is a co-educational independent boarding and day school in Edinburgh, Scotland, with over two-thirds of its pupils in residence on campus. The school was originally a boarding school for boys only and became co-ed in 1983. In ...

and was educated at

Selwyn college, Cambridge Selwyn College, Cambridge (formally Selwyn College in the University of Cambridge) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1882 by the Selwyn Memorial Committee in memory of George Augustus Selwyn (18 ...

. His first experience of headship was at

Lancing College Lancing College is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in southern England, UK. The school is located in West Sussex, east of Worthing near the village of Lancing, on the south coast of England. ...

School arms

* The school

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

is composed of the cross of

Saint Alban Saint Alban (; la, Albanus) is venerated as the first-recorded British Christian martyr, for which reason he is considered to be the British protomartyr. Along with fellow Saints Julius and Aaron, Alban is one of three named martyrs rec ...

together with the School motto. The cross of Saint Alban is a gold

saltire A saltire, also called Saint Andrew's Cross or the crux decussata, is a heraldic symbol in the form of a diagonal cross, like the shape of the letter X in Roman type. The word comes from the Middle French ''sautoir'', Medieval Latin ''saltatori ...

(a cross, signifying that Alban was martyred, but diagonal, as he was beheaded, not crucified) on a blue field (or, in heraldic terms, ''Azure, a saltire Or''). The current school motto is ''Non nobis nati'' ("Born not for ourselves"). This dates back to the family of the 12th century Geoffrey de Gorham (Master and subsequently Abbot of St Albans), deriving from Cicero's ("Non nobis solum nati sumus"; "We are not born for ourselves alone"), and was used until the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

. It was re-introduced in 1994, thereby stressing the link between the School before and after the dissolution of the monastery in 1539. ''Non nobis nati'' replaced the previous motto ''Mediocria firma'' ("The middle road is best"), used between the 16th and 20th centuries. This was the motto of the Bacon family at Gorhambury (including Sir Nicholas and Sir

Francis Bacon Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (; 22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626), also known as Lord Verulam, was an English philosopher and statesman who served as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England. Bacon led the advancement of both ...

). This formed part of the Bacon coat of arms, which for instance can still be seen outside the Verulam Arms public house in nearby Welclose Street and inside St Mary's Church,

Redbourn Redbourn is a village and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England, lying on Watling Street, from Harpenden, from St Albans and from Hemel Hempstead. The civil parish had a population of 5,113 according to the 2011 Census. The three tiers of ...

History

Pre-Reformation history

The school was founded within St Albans Abbey by Abbot Wulsin in 948 and was the first school in the world to accept students not intending to join a religious order, being the first school open to the wider public.F.J. Kilvington, A Short History of St Albans School (1986) By the 12th century, the School had built for itself such a reputation that the famous Norman scholars

Geoffrey de Gorham Geoffrey de Gorham (Goreham, Gorron), sometimes called Geoffrey of Dunstable or of Le Mans (died at St Albans, 26 February 1146), was a Norman scholar who became Abbot of St Albans Abbey, 1119 to 1146.Alexander Neckam Alexander Neckam (8 September 115731 March 1217) was an English magnetician, poet, theologian, and writer. He was an abbot of Cirencester Abbey from 1213 until his death. Early life Born on 8 September 1157 in St Albans, Alexander shared his b ...

applied for the post of Master.

dissolution Dissolution may refer to: Arts and entertainment Books * ''Dissolution'' (''Forgotten Realms'' novel), a 2002 fantasy novel by Richard Lee Byers * ''Dissolution'' (Sansom novel), a 2003 historical novel by C. J. Sansom Music * Dissolution, in mu ...

of the Abbey in 1539. By the 12th century, the school was one of the largest in the British Isles. On 16 September 1309, the school was given new statutes, including scholarships for poor students. The school and Abbey were sacked in 1381 during the

Peasants' Revolt The Peasants' Revolt, also named Wat Tyler's Rebellion or the Great Rising, was a major uprising across large parts of England in 1381. The revolt had various causes, including the socio-economic and political tensions generated by the Blac ...

. (The revolt's leader John Ball, was also a former pupil of the school.) By the 15th century, the school was located in buildings in Romeland and inside the Abbey Gateway, which from 1479 housed schoolmaster's

press Press may refer to: Media * Print media or news media, commonly called "the press" * Printing press, commonly called "the press" * Press (newspaper), a list of newspapers * Press TV, an Iranian television network People * Press (surname), a fam ...

. The

St Albans Press The St Albans Press was the third printing press set up in England, in 1479. It was situated in the Abbey Gateway, St Albans, a part of the Benedictine Monastery of St Albans. The name of the printer is unknown, only referred to by Wynkyn de Worde ...

continues today, in a semi-dormant form, as "John Insomuch Schoolmaster Printer 1479 Ltd", making the school the oldest extant presses in the world.DIRECTORS' REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5 APRIL 2007
ST ALBANS SCHOOL

Post-Reformation history

After the

of the Abbey in 1539, Richard Boreman, the last Abbot, became Headmaster and the school moved to a chapel near St Peter's church in St Albans after its buildings in Romeland were demolished by Sir Richard Lee for building materials to rebuild

Sopwell Priory Sopwell Priory (also known as Sopwell Nunnery) was a Benedictine nunnery founded around 1140 on the site of an ancient hermitage in Sopwell, Hertfordshire, England. After the Dissolution, the priory was torn down and a Tudor manor house construct ...

into a country house.Rickmansworth Historical Society – St Albans dissolution of monastery
Rickmansworthhistoricalsociety.btck.co.uk. Retrieved on 13 December 2011. In 1549, to put the school on a firmer foundation, the last Abbot was granted the right to maintain a Grammar School by a private Act of Parliament. Around 1545, the school outgrew its St Peter's church premises and moved again to the Lady Chapel at the east end of the Abbey, bought for the huge sum of £100, and it was separated from the rest of the abbey with a wall made of smashed stones from the ancient shrine of St Alban. In 1553 the Crown sold the rest of the Abbey Church to the town for £400 (the value of the lead on its roof) and became a

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

parish church for the new Borough of St Albans. In 1570 Sir Nicholas Bacon,

Lord Keeper of the Great Seal The Lord Keeper of the Great Seal of England, and later of Great Britain, was formerly an officer of the English Crown charged with physical custody of the Great Seal of England. This position evolved into that of one of the Great Officers of S ...

and father of Sir

, then living at nearby

Gorhambury Old Gorhambury House located near St Albans, Hertfordshire, England, is a ruined Elizabethan mansion, a leading and early example of the Elizabethan prodigy house. It was built in 1563–68 by Sir Nicholas Bacon, Lord Keeper, and was visited ...

, gave the school new statutes and re-endowed the School by successful petitioning

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

for a Wine Charter (extended by

King James I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until hi ...

in 1606). The only other educational institutions with the same privileges to tax the alcohol trade in their localities were the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

and the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...

. The income from taxation on wine and beer sales in the St Albans continued to fund the school until 1922, when they were surrendered to the Treasury in return for £1200 in the Oxford and St Albans Wine Privileges (Abolition) Bill. Other benefactors from this period include Sir Richard Platt, Citizen of London, sometime Master of the

Worshipful Company of Brewers The Worshipful Company of Brewers is one of the livery companies of the City of London. London brewers are known to have organised as a group in the 13th century. Their first royal charter was granted by Henry VI in 1438. In 1643, Parliamen ...

and later founder of

Aldenham School Aldenham School is a co-educational independent school for pupils aged eleven to eighteen, located between Elstree and the village of Aldenham in Hertfordshire, England. There is also a preparatory school for pupils from the ages of five to ele ...

, who 'conveyed to the Mayor and Burgesses, and their Successors for ever' former-Abbey land on George Street in St Albans for the benefit of the school, and Charles Hale, whose relative Richard Hale later founded a grammar school in the town of Hertford.N. Carlisle, "A concise description of the endowed grammar schools in England" (1818) Queen Elizabeth I and Sir Nicholas Bacon also founded the school's library in 1570, which moved from Sumpter Yard in the 19th century to the Abbey Gateway, and then in the 1980s to an impressive converted 19th century neo-Gothic hall, opened by Colin Renfrew, then Master of

Jesus College, Cambridge Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's full name is The College of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist and the glorious Virgin Saint Radegund, near Cambridge. Its common name comes fr ...

. The library collection now holds over 16,000 volumes and Elizabeth I is still regarded as the 'Benefactor Royal' of the St Albans School Library. Other significant benefactions to the school include a gift of clay pits near St Albans made in 1582 and a significant amount of land by Charles Woollam, an Old Albanian, in the 19th century, including playing fields at Belmont Hill and St Alban's "Holy Well", which was a site for medieval pilgrimage. In 1626, King Charles I visited the school in a royal inspection. His visit to St Albans was recorded by a royal crest being built into one of the fireplace surrounds in the Abbey Gateway and this room is still called the "King Charles Room" in honour of his visit. After over three centuries in the Lady Chapel, in 1871, due to the restoration of the Abbey and the re-instatement of the Lady Chapel, the school moved into the Abbey Gateway (which had been built in 1365 and, following the dissolution, had been used as a prison for 300 years; now a scheduled ancient monument). Between 1907 and 1976, it was a

direct grant A direct grant grammar school was a type of Selective school, selective secondary school in the United Kingdom that existed between 1945 and 1976. One quarter of the places in these schools were directly funded by central government, while the rem ...

grammar school, keeping the name St Albans School for most part not least because of the existence of 2 separate Boys' and Girls' Grammar Schools in St Albans and was generally referred to simply as a Direct Grant School. In the 1960s and 1970s many of the pupils at the school enjoyed a free education, paid for by public funds. From 1980 to 2005, it also offered free places to poor but academically talented pupils under the

Assisted Places Scheme The Assisted Places Scheme was established in the UK by the Conservative government in 1980. Children who were eligible were provided with free or subsidised places to fee-charging independent schools - based on the child's results in the school ...

. Since the 1970s, the school has also offered a large number of scholarships and bursaries up to 100% of the school's fees, funded from its endowments. Since the 19th century, there have been many additions to the school site, which now comprises a very interesting architectural mixture of buildings dating from the Roman-era cellar, where the archives are kept under the Abbey Gateway, to modern extensions built in the 1990s.Hertfordshire HER & St Albans UAD
heritagegateway.org.uk The school also includes the oldest room in the world regularly used as a classroom, the 12th century West Gate Room, which was incorporated from a previous gateway into the current Abbey Gateway in the 1360s.

Ptolemy Dean Ptolemy Hugo Dean (born 1968) is a British architect, television presenter and the 19th Surveyor of the Fabric of Westminster Abbey. He specialises in historic preservation, as well as designing new buildings that are in keeping with their hist ...

is the current school architect. The Woollam Playing Fields, a couple of miles away to the north of the city, provides an extensive, modern, outdoor sports facility for the School and the Old Albanian Sports Club. At over 100 acres, it was the largest sporting development in Western Europe until the construction of the Olympic Park in East London for the 2012 games. The site was officially opened in October 2002 by Prince Richard, The Duke of Gloucester. Woollam's was built on part of a 400-acre farm owned by the school, which also contains a field studies centre used by the school's biology department. In 2003, the school opened a new Drama Department building and theatre in Romeland, on the site of the medieval school's building, called the "New Place". The summer of 2012 saw the completion of a new sports centre on site, with sports hall, swimming pool, climbing wall, fitness suite and dance studio. Another recent development was the acquisition of Aquis Court, an office building adjacent to the school, which provides facilities for the sixth form, with a new common room, cafeteria and classrooms, while the art department also has new facilities.

Religion and musical education

The school still maintains links with

St Albans Cathedral St Albans Cathedral, officially the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban but often referred to locally as "the Abbey", is a Church of England cathedral in St Albans, England. Much of its architecture dates from Norman times. It ceased to be ...

, which doubles as the school's chapel. Services are held there every Monday and Friday morning during term time, and special events held there include the annual Founders' Day and two carol services, led by the school choir, who still wear black and blue gowns in the same style as worn by undergraduates at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

and similar to those worn by monks at the Abbey in medieval times. In addition, the school's music staff are usually linked with the Abbey's musical staff. Andrew Parnell, organist and harpsichordist, was assistant master of music at the Abbey as well as being master of music and choirmaster at the school from 1976 to 2001.

Simon Lindley Simon Lindley (born 10 October 1948) is an English organist, choirmaster, conductor and composer. He was Leeds City Organist from 1976 to 2017 (named City Organist Emeritus in Summer 2017) and is Organist Emeritus of Leeds Minster, having been o ...

also held these posts a few years earlier;

John Rutter John Milford Rutter (born 24 September 1945) is an English composer, conductor, editor, arranger, and record producer, mainly of choral music. Biography Born on 24 September 1945 in London, the son of an industrial chemist and his wife, Rutte ...

's 1974 carol ''Jesus Child'' bears a dedication "for Simon Lindley and the choir of St Albans School".

Academic tradition

Scientific tradition

The school also has a long scientific tradition, stretching back to the Norman era, when

Alexander Neckam Alexander Neckam (8 September 115731 March 1217) was an English magnetician, poet, theologian, and writer. He was an abbot of Cirencester Abbey from 1213 until his death. Early life Born on 8 September 1157 in St Albans, Alexander shared his b ...

became master of the school. Since the advent of modern science, the school has produced many famous scientists and mathematicians including cognitive scientist

Colin Cherry Edward Colin Cherry (23 June 1914 – 23 November 1979) was a British cognitive scientist whose main contributions were in focused auditory attention, specifically the cocktail party problem regarding the capacity to follow one conversatio ...

, physicist Ian Grant, cosmologist Stephen Hawking (inspired by

Dikran Tahta Dikran Tahta ( hy, Դիքրան (Տիգրան) Թահթա, 7 August 1928 – 2 December 2006) was a British mathematician, teacher and author. He was also the maths teacher of Stephen Hawking. Early life Dikran Tahta was a descendant of Is ...

, a teacher at the school who later worked at the

Open University The Open University (OU) is a British public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate students are based in the United Kingdom and principally study off- ...

), and mathematician Christopher Budd. In the light of its long scientific heritage, the school was awarded a large sum of money in 2007 by the Wolfson Foundation to rebuild its physics laboratories to university standards.It has maintained a reputation for being a science and maths oriented school.

Historical tradition

St Albans School has also produced some notable historians and historiographers. In medieval times, the school and one of its alumni,

Matthew Paris Matthew Paris, also known as Matthew of Paris ( la, Matthæus Parisiensis, lit=Matthew the Parisian; c. 1200 – 1259), was an English Benedictine monk, chronicler, artist in illuminated manuscripts and cartographer, based at St Albans Abbey ...

, were closely associated with the St Albans school of medieval

historiography Historiography is the study of the methods of historians in developing history as an academic discipline, and by extension is any body of historical work on a particular subject. The historiography of a specific topic covers how historians ha ...

, and developed one of the first consistent methods of historical writing. More recently; two teachers in the award-winning Ancient History department published a book on Roman sources in 2010. Some notable historians who are alumni of the school include Colin Renfrew, an archaeological historian and former Disney Professor of Archaeology at the

Ernest Gellner Ernest André Gellner FRAI (9 December 1925 – 5 November 1995) was a British- Czech philosopher and social anthropologist described by ''The Daily Telegraph'', when he died, as one of the world's most vigorous intellectuals, and by ''The ...

, an anthropological historian, Professor

Malcolm Schofield Malcolm Schofield, (born 19 April 1942) is a British classicist and academic, specialising in ancient philosophy. Having taught at Cornell University and the University of Oxford, he joined the University of Cambridge in 1972 as a lecturer in cla ...

of St John's College, Cambridge, and more recently

Justin Pollard Justin David Pollard (born 30 January 1968) is a British historian, television producer, writer and entrepreneur. He is best known for his work on such films as '' Elizabeth'' and ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' and TV series including ''Vikings'' ...

, a TV historian, and Peter Sarris, a specialist on the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

and a fellow of

The school today

St Albans School is predominantly a single-sex school for boys, but has accepted girls into the sixth form since 1991. It is a member of the

Headmasters' Conference The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC) is an association of the head teachers of 361 independent schools (both boarding schools and day schools), some traditionally described as public schools. 298 Members are based in the Uni ...

of leading public schools. In its earlier days it was known as the Free School of St Albans, City of St Alban Grammar School or St Albans Grammar School.N. Carlisle, "A concise description of the endowed grammar schools in England" (1818) p. 508 It is often (erroneously) referred to as "The Boys' School", "St Albans Boys" and "The Abbey School" (thereby causing confusion with The Abbey C of E Primary School nearby which is almost always referred to as "The Abbey School", and the adjacent but now defunct ''Abbey National Boys' School'', a name which is still borne by a building in nearby Spicer Street). The school operates a house system. The current system, which came into use in September 1996, assigns all members of the school to one of four houses. These are named after notable former pupils and staff: Hawking, Renfrew, Hampson and Marsh. Previously the house names were Abbey, Breakespeare, Debenham, Pemberton, Shirley, Woollams and School House. In 1967 the School acquired what was then a derelict hill farm in the Brecon Beacons. The property, Pen Arthur, was fully restored and is now a well-equipped Field Studies Centre. Academic departments use Pen Arthur for field trips and study weekends throughout the year, and it plays a key part as a base for outdoor activities organised by the CCF and

Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme The Duke of Edinburgh's Award (commonly abbreviated DofE) is a youth awards programme founded in the United Kingdom in 1956 by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, that has since expanded to 144 nations. The awards recognise adolescents and young ...

. During their first year at the school, all pupils go to Pen Arthur for a week, during which time they participate in many "outward-bound" activities such as caving, hiking and even visiting a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

gold mine Gold Mine may refer to: * Gold Mine (board game) *Gold Mine (Long Beach), an arena *"Gold Mine", a song by Joyner Lucas from the 2020 album ''ADHD Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characteri ...

Old Albanians

Former pupils of the school can use the title OA or "Old Albanian" after their name and are members of the Old Albanian Club. The Old Albanian Club has its own sports facilities at Woollam's, clubs, societies and also its own social networking website at www.oaconnect.co.uk. image:Pope Hadrian IV.jpg, Pope Adrian IV image:John-ball-rebel-1.jpg, John Ball image:LordChancellorWilliamCowper.jpg,

William Cowper, 1st Earl Cowper William Cowper, 1st Earl Cowper, ( ; 10 October 1723) was an English politician who became the first Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain. Cowper was the son of Sir William Cowper, 2nd Baronet, of Ratling Court, Kent, a Whig member of parlia ...

image:Stephen Hawking.StarChild.jpg, Stephen Hawking

12th century

* Cardinal Boso (d. c. 1181), third English Cardinal *

Nicholas Breakspear Nicholas is a male given name and a surname. The Eastern Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Anglican Churches celebrate Saint Nicholas every year on December 6, which is the name day for "Nicholas". In Greece, the name and its ...

(c. 1100–1159), who became Pope Adrian IV (1154–1159), the only English Pope. *

(1157–1217), scientist and teacher

13th century

, monk and historian

14th century

* John Ball, Christian radical political thinker and leader of the

of 1381 * William Grindcobbe, a leader in St Albans of the

of 1381 *

Richard of Wallingford Richard of Wallingford (1292–1336) was an English mathematician, astronomer, horologist, and cleric who made major contributions to astronomy and horology while serving as abbot of St Albans Abbey in Hertfordshire. Biography Richard was bor ...

(1292–1336) English mathematician who made major contributions to

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, g ...

astrology Astrology is a range of divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of celestial objects. Di ...

and

horology Horology (; related to Latin '; ; , interfix ''-o-'', and suffix ''-logy''), . is the study of the measurement of time. Clocks, watches, clockwork, sundials, hourglasses, clepsydras, timers, time recorders, marine chronometers, and atomic clo ...

(late 14th century) a leader in St Albans of the

of 1381

15th century

John Whethamstede John Whethamstede (died 20 January 1465) was an English abbot and one of the leading literary figures in fifteenth-century England. Life He was a son of Hugh and Margaret Bostock, and was born at Wheathampstead in Hertfordshire, owing his name, ...

(or Bostock) (c. 1392–1465), scholar, writer and Abbot of St Albans Abbey

16th century

* Walter Curle (1575–1647), Bishop of Winchester * Robert Wright (1560–1643), first Warden of

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road. Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...

and Bishop of Lichfield & Coventry

17th century

* Henry Blount (1602–1682), traveller and writer *

(c. 1665–1723),

Lord Chancellor The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. Th ...

of Great Britain, grandfather of

William Cowper William Cowper ( ; 26 November 1731 – 25 April 1800) was an English poet and Anglican hymnwriter. One of the most popular poets of his time, Cowper changed the direction of 18th-century nature poetry by writing of everyday life and sce ...

, poet and hymnodist *

William Dobson William Dobson (4 March 1611 (baptised); 28 October 1646 (buried)) was a portraitist and one of the first significant English painters, praised by his contemporary John Aubrey as "''the most excellent painter that England has yet bred''". He ...

(1611–1646), painter to Charles I * Major-General John Hill (?c. 1680–1735), M.P., army officer, politician and courtier * Francis Pemberton (1624–1697), Lord Chief Justice

18th century

William Domville William Domville (or Domvile) (1609–1689) was a leading Irish politician, barrister and Constitutional writer of the Restoration (1660), Restoration era. Due to the great trust which the English Crown had in him, he served as Attorney General ...

, Bt (1742–1833),

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional pow ...

1813 * Thomas Walsh (1776–1849), Roman Catholic Bishop and Vicar Apostolic, Midlands and London Districts

19th century

* Colonel Sir Hildred Carlile, 1st Bt, M.P. (1852–1942), army officer, politician and philanthropist * Alfred Faulkner (1882–1963), civil servant – Permanent Under-Secretary for Mines * Henry Montague Grover (1791–1866), writer and theologian * Coulson Kernahan (1858–1943), essayist, novelist and editor *

Frank Toovey Lake Frank Toovey Lake (1849–1868) died while serving in Japan with the British Royal Navy. After his death at the age of 19, he was interred on the island of Sanuki Hiroshima in the Seto Inland Sea. Since his burial – and until the present d ...

(1849–1868) Naval Officer who was part of

Richard Henry Brunton Richard Henry Brunton FRGS MICE (26 December 1841 – 24 April 1901) was the so-called " Father of Japanese lighthouses". Brunton was born in Muchalls, Kincardineshire, Scotland. He was employed by the government of Meiji period Japan as ...

's team who surveyed lighthouse sites around Japan *

Max Pemberton Sir Max Pemberton (19 June 1863 – 22 February 1950) was a popular English novelist, working mainly in the adventure and mystery genres.LeRoy Lad Panek, ''After Sherlock Holmes: The Evolution of British and American Detective Stories, 1891– ...

(1863–1950), novelist and editor *

Aubrey George Spencer Aubrey George Spencer (8 February 1795 – 24 February 1872)''DEATH OF THE BISHOP OF JAMAICA'' The Morning Post (London, England), Monday, 26 February 1872; pg. 6; Issue 30645 was the first bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Newfoundland and Be ...

(1795–1872), first Anglican Bishop of Newfoundland *

Thomas Spencer Wells Sir Thomas Spencer Wells, 1st Baronet (3 February 181831 January 1897) was surgeon to Queen Victoria, a medical professor and president of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. Early life He was born at St Albans, Hertfordshire and receive ...

(1818–1897), surgeon * William Whitaker, (1836–1925), geologist * Charles Williams (1886–1945), poet, novelist, publisher and theological writer

20th century

Rod Argent Rodney Terence Argent (born 14 June 1945) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and record producer. In a career spanning more than 50 years, Argent came to prominence in the mid 1960s as the keyboardist, founder and leader of the ...

(b. 1945), musician, founder member of

The Zombies The Zombies are an English Rock music, rock band formed in the early 1960s in St Albans and led by keyboardist and vocalist Rod Argent and vocalist Colin Blunstone. The group had a British and American chart-topper, hit in 1964 with "She's Not ...

Keith M. Ashman Keith M. Ashman (born 13 December 1963) is a British theoretical astrophysicist, educated at St Albans School, Hertfordshire, and Queen Mary College (Bachelor's), University of London (PhD). He was a professor at the University of Missouri-Kan ...

(b. 1963), theoretical physicist and globular clusters expert * Paul Atkinson (1946–2004), musician, founder member of

Ian Bell Ian Ronald Bell (born 11 April 1982) is an English former cricketer who played international cricket in all formats for the England cricket team and county cricket for Warwickshire County Cricket Club. A right-handed higher/middle order batsm ...

(b. 1962), co-author of Elite * Tolaji Bola (b. 1999), association footballer * Christopher Budd (b. 1960), mathematician * Johnson Cann (b. 1937), geologist *

(1914–1975), cognitive scientist *

Ralph Chubb Ralph Nicholas Chubb (8 February 1892 – 14 January 1960) was an English poet, Printer (publisher), printer and artist. Heavily influenced by Walt Whitman, Whitman, William Blake, Blake, and the Romanticism, Romantics, his work was the creati ...

(1892–1960), poet, printer and artist * Sally Connolly (b. 1976), literary critic, author, and academic * Charles "Nick" Corfield (b. 1959), mathematician, computer programmer, and founder of several startup companies in Silicon Valley *

Rogers Covey-Crump Rogers Henry Lewis Covey-Crump (born 1944) is an English tenor noted for his performances in both early music and contemporary classical music. He has sometimes been identified as an ''haute-contre'' tenor. He has performed for over 50 years i ...

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* Charles Crawford (b. 1954) British diplomat and speechwriter *

Graham Dow Geoffrey Graham Dow (born 4 July 1942) is a retired British Anglican bishop. He was the Bishop of Carlisle from 2000 to 2009, the 66th holder of the office. He is a well-known Evangelical. Early life Born in 1942, in Edmonton, London, Dow was ed ...

(b. 1942), Bishop of Carlisle *

Bruce Duncan Robert Bruce Duncan (10 October 1928 – 7 May 2005) was an Australian politician. He was the member for Lismore in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1965 to 1988, first as a member of the Country Party and then as an independ ...

(b. 1938), Anglican priest * Chris Duffield (b. 1952), Town Clerk and Chief Executive of the Corporation of the

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since 2003 *

Larry Elliott Larry Elliott is an English journalist and author who focuses on economic issues. He is the economics editor at ''The Guardian'', and has published seven books on related issues, six of them in partnership with Dan Atkinson. Early life Elliott ...

, Economics Editor of the Guardian * Brigadier Ted Flint (b. 1960), former Signal Officer in Chief of the British Army *

(1925–1995), philosopher and social anthropologist *

Dave Gibbons David Chester Gibbons (born 14 April 1949) is an English comics artist, writer and sometimes letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries ''Watchmen'' and the Superman story "For the Man ...

(b. 1949),

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winning comic book artist and co-creator of ''

Watchmen ''Watchmen'' is an American comic book maxiseries by the British creative team of writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons and colorist John Higgins. It was published monthly by DC Comics in 1986 and 1987 before being collected in a single-vo ...

'' * Jack Goody, (1919–2015), social anthropologist * Andrew Grant (b. 1968), novelist * Ian Grant (b. 1930), mathematical physicist * John Grimaldi (b. 1955), musician, songwriter, member of

Argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to ...

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, political correspondent for

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* Patrick Burnet Harris (b. 1934), former Bishop of Southwell *

Tim Hart Tim Hart (9 January 1948 – 24 December 2009) was an English folk singer and multi-instrumentalist, best known as a founding member of British folk rock band Steeleye Span. Early years Tim Hart was born in Lincoln, England, but moved to St ...

(1948–2009), musician, founder member of electric folk band Steeleye Span * Stephen Hawking (1942-2018), cosmologist and theoretical physicist *

Tony Hendra Anthony Christopher "Tony" Hendra (10 July 1941 – 4 March 2021) was an English satirist, actor and writer who worked mostly in the United States. Educated at St Albans School (where he was a classmate of Stephen Hawking) and at St John's Co ...

(b. 1941), satirist and writer * General Sir Richard Lawson (b. 1927), Commander-in-Chief of Allied Forces Northern Europe 1982–96 * Yann Lovelock (b.1939), writer and interfaith worker *

Ed Macfarlane Edward David Macfarlane (born 15 May 1984) is an English singer, songwriter, musician, record producer and the lead vocalist of the English electronic music band Friendly Fires. He is often called by the nickname "Ed Mac" to avoid confusion with ...

, member of the St Albans-based

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band

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* Gregory Paul Martin (b. 1957), actor and writer * Christopher Morris (b. 1938), TV news presenter, journalist and author *

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(1898–1939), Hollywood character actor * Mike Newell (b. 1942), film director * Ray Pahl (1935–2011), sociologist *

Tony Penikett Antony David John "Tony" Penikett (born November 14, 1945) is a mediator and negotiator and former politician in Yukon, Canada, who served as the third premier of Yukon from 1985 to 1992. Early life and political activity Born in Sussex, Engl ...

(b. 1945), writer and Canadian politician * Charles Pereira (1913–2004), tropical agriculturist and hydrologist *

(b. 1968), writer and historian * Colin Renfrew (b. 1937), archaeologist *

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(b. 1999), cricketer * Joss Sheldon (b. 1982), author *

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(b. 1937), businessman *

Arthur Swinson Arthur Horace Swinson (1915–1970) was a British Army officer, writer, playwright, and historian. A prolific playwright, he authored more than 300 works. Swinson was born in St Albans, Hertfordshire, to Hugh Swinson and Lilla Fisher Swinson. ...

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(1944-2019), BBC Radiophonics Engineer * Zac Mills (b.1999), perations Analyst* Kane Vincent-Young (b. 1996), association footballer *Azeem Alam (b. 1993), BEM, academic doctor and entrepreneur

Notable teachers

image:James Shirley.jpg,

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1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort to assassinate Emperor Hiro ...

in Los Angeles) and World Record holder (1:49.7) * John Harmar was headmaster from 1626 to 1635 Kilvington 1970, pp. 128. *

Peter Hurford Peter John Hurford OBE (22 November 1930 – 3 March 2019) was a British organist and composer. Life Hurford was born in Minehead, Somerset, to Gladys Hurford (née James) and Hubert Hurford, a solicitor. He was educated at Blundell's School ...

(1930-2019), organist *

(b. 1948), organist * John Mole (b. 1941), poet, critic and jazz clarinettist.

Poet in Residence since 1998 (under the

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's ''Poet in the City'' scheme) *

(1157–1217), scientist and teacher *

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(1880–1961), poet * Andrew Parnell (b. 1954), organist (master of music, 1976–2001) *

(1596–1666), playwright *

(taught at the school 1955–1961), mathematician who taught Stephen Hawking * Alistair Jolly (b. 1948), critic

In popular culture

* Some scenes, including the opening croquet game, of the BBC comedy ''

All Gas and Gaiters ''All Gas and Gaiters'' is a British television ecclesiastical sitcom which aired on BBC1 from 1966 to 1971. It was written by Pauline Devaney and Edwin Apps, a husband-and-wife team who used the pseudonym of John Wraith when writing the pilot ...

'' were filmed at the school. * The school was used as a site of part of the film '' Incendiary'' (2008). * The school was mentioned in the 2004 film ''

Alfie Alfie may refer to: Theatre and film * ''Alfie'' (play), a 1963 play by Bill Naughton * ''Alfie'' (1966 film), a film based on the play starring Michael Caine * ''Alfie'' (2004 film), a remake of the 1966 film * ''Alfie'' (2013 film), an Indi ...

''. * The school featured in episode of Anneka Rice's show '' Treasure Hunt'' * The school and areas around it substitute for Oxford colleges in ''

Morse Morse may refer to: People * Morse (surname) * Morse Goodman (1917-1993), Anglican Bishop of Calgary, Canada * Morse Robb (1902–1992), Canadian inventor and entrepreneur Geography Antarctica * Cape Morse, Wilkes Land * Mount Morse, Churchi ...

'' * The school and Cathedral feature in BBC children's programme Grange Hill (Series 6, Episode 6 1983)

References

External links

Official school website

Independent Schools Inspectorate – St Albans School
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Albans School Independent schools in Hertfordshire Schools in St Albans 948 establishments Educational institutions established in the 10th century Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference 10th-century establishments in England Boarding schools