James Mundell (died 1762) was a Scottish educator. He founded and ran the exclusive Mr Mundell's school in the West Bow of Edinburgh, from 1735 to 1762. He was uncle of Robert Mundell, rector of Wallace Hall, which adapted the teaching methods of Mundell's Edinburgh school.

Life

Mundell married Agnes Bennet (died 1820), the daughter of a brewer, and their son Robert Mundell (died 1775) became a prominent printer. Agnes Mundell continued her son's business upon his death. James Mundell became a Burgess of Edinburgh on 16 July 1740. He bought the lands of Over Auldgirth in 1752.

James Mundell's school

Mundell's school taught the

humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at the t ...

, to boys and girls, primarily in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

. It served the wealthiest residents of Edinburgh, who were concentrated in the Lawnmarket. In competition with the

High School A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

, Mr Mundell's school had the advantage of being located closer to the most fashionable quarters. Mundell's school admitted younger children than the High School, typically around the age of six, rather than the High School's eight. There were only 2 members of staff: James Mundell himself and an usher, initially his younger brother Alexander Mundell.

Former pupils of the school

According to an official ''List of scholars educated by the Late Mr. James Mundell'', printed in 1789 in Edinburgh by Mundell and Wilson, 568 boys and 94 girls attended the school during its years in operation. The list includes many prominent names: * William Baillie, Lord Polkemmet *

James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 ( N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of his friend and older contemporary the English writer ...

Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...

'', 6th edition, vol. 16 (1824), p. 372 *

William Brodie William Brodie (28 September 1741 – 1 October 1788), often known by his title of Deacon Brodie, was a Scottish cabinet-maker, deacon of a trades guild, and Edinburgh city councillor, who maintained a secret life as a housebreaker, partly fo ...

David Erskine, 11th Earl of Buchan David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

Charles & Caleb Whitefoord, ed. W. A. S. Hewins, ''The Whitefoord papers'' (1898), p. xi * Ilay Campbell * George Fergusson, Lord Hermand * Dr Andrew Hunter * Alexander Monro * Donald Monro * John Monro *

Daniel Rutherford Daniel Rutherford (3 November 1749 – 15 December 1819) was a Scottish physician, chemist and botanist who is known for the isolation of nitrogen in 1772. Life Rutherford was born on 3 November 1749, the son of Anne Mackay and Professor John ...

Caleb Whitefoord Caleb Whitefoord (1734 – 25 January 1810) was a Scottish merchant, diplomat, and political satirist. Life He was born in Edinburgh in 1734, probably in the family home of Whitefoord House on the Canongate, the illegitimate son of Colonel C ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mundell, James 1762 deaths Scottish schoolteachers Schoolteachers from Edinburgh Founders of Scottish schools and colleges 18th-century Scottish people Place of birth missing Year of birth missing People of the Scottish Enlightenment Burgesses in Scotland