St. Michael's School, established in 1874 by the Community of St Michael and All Angels, is a public school with a boarding option for girls located in

Bloemfontein Bloemfontein ( ; ), also known as Bloem, is the capital and the largest city of the Free State (province), Free State province in South Africa. It is often, and has been traditionally, referred to as the country's "judicial capital", alongsi ...

, Free State, South Africa. It is the third oldest girls school in South Africa. Its brother school is St. Andrew's School, which is located nearby in the suburb of

Westdene Westdene is an area of the city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex. It is a northern suburb of the city, west of Patcham, the A23 road, A23 (London Road) and the Brighton Main Line, London to Brighton railway line, north of Withdean and northe ...

. Originally a private school, St. Michael's later become a government-aided school, but still retains its

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

foundation. The current principal is Mrs. Noèline Stumpfe.

History

St Michael's is the oldest girls' school North of the

Orange River The Orange River (from Afrikaans/Dutch language, Dutch: ''Oranjerivier'') is a river in Southern Africa. It is the longest river in South Africa. With a total length of , the Orange River Basin extends from Lesotho into South Africa and Namibi ...

. It was founded by Bishop Webb in 1874, and in the same year, the first Mother Superior, Sister Emma, and five volunteers arrived in Bloemfontein to become the Community of Saint Michael and All Angels. Henrietta Stockdale, who became a famous member of the nursing fraternity in this country, was among these. Her statue stands in the grounds of St Cyprian's Cathedral in Kimberley. The school was originally built on the western boundary of Bloemfontein, where the Sand du Plessis Theatre now stands, in Markgraaff Street. The school moved to its present site in Brandwag in 1970. The foundation stone was laid by Bishop Frederick Amoore. Many precious relics were also transferred and can be seen in the archives, in the chapel and in and around the school complex. In 1975, the Rev. Mother Mary Ruth and the sisters retired from their administrative, academic and hostel duties in the school. Currently, governance is vested in the school parent community represented by an elected board of governors as a school governing body. St Michael's has an Anglican tradition with an Anglican chaplain and a chapel where worship services are conducted regularly. The bishop of the Diocese of the Free State is also the school

visitor A visitor, in English and Welsh law and history, is an overseer of an autonomous ecclesiastical or eleemosynary institution, often a charitable institution set up for the perpetual distribution of the founder's alms and bounty, who can interve ...

and serves on the school board of governors.

Notable alumni

* Anne Cleaver (South Africa's first female doctor) * Annie Botha (wife of

Louis Botha Louis Botha ( , ; 27 September 1862 – 27 August 1919) was a South African politician who was the first Prime Minister of South Africa, prime minister of the Union of South Africa, the forerunner of the modern South African state. A Boer war v ...

) * Shirndré-Lee Simmons (birth 2000), South African field hockey player

References

1874 establishments in the Orange Free State Anglican schools in South Africa Boarding schools in South Africa Educational institutions established in 1874 Schools in the Free State (province) {{SouthAfrica-school-stub