St. Servatius' College is a boys' school located in Matara, Sri Lanka. The school was established in 1897 by recently arrived Belgian Jesuit missionaries, led by Joseph Van Reeth, first bishop of Galle and Father Augustus Standaert. St. Servatius' College is a national school, which provides primary and secondary education. This is the only school in Sri Lanka where three Governors of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka were educated. This is the only school in Sri Lanka that has produced national team captains in the sports of cricket, football and volleyball.

History

St. Servatius' College was founded when the Bishop of Galle, Joseph Van Reeth , wanted to create an educational infrastructure in the newly established diocese, and called on the Belgian Jesuits for help.

Father Augustus Standaert and a few other Belgian Jesuits arrived in Galle in 1896, and on 2 November 1897, the priests opened an English medium school on a small plot of land on the banks of the River Nilwala in Pallimulla, Matara. The school opened with five students in 1896, and within two years it had grown to accommodate 54 students.

In August 1898, a new structure was erected for the school. As the construction funds came from the St. Servatius Jesuit school of Liège, Belgium, the Matara school adopted the name of this patron saint: Servais de Tongres, a 4th-century Belgian missionary, and one of the first bishops in the area around Tongeren, Maastricht, and Liège.

After some years the school was moved to its present location in Kotuwegoda, Matara. In 1961, as part of a government program to take over private schools, the school was adopted by the Ministry of Education, although it remained administered by Roman Catholic fathers until 1965.

Currently, over 3,000 students are enrolled at St. Servatius' College. The school employs over one hundred staff, led by principal H. K. L. B. Virajith. It was made a Sri Lankan national school in 1993.

Principals Ordinal Officeholder Period1 Augustus Standaert1897–19012 Adolph Closset1901–19053 Anthony Weapon19054 W. Wickramasinghe1905–19105 A. Beernaert19106 Samson Costaunknown7 E. Frutsaert19228 Olivier Feron1922–19309 S. G. Pereraunknown10S. Crubgunknown11 E. Bastineerunknown12 Terrence de Silva1930–193313 Mark Anthony Fernandounknown14P. M. Baguet1942–194515 Angia194516Alles194517C. Guida1945–194718 Joe Rajapaksa1947–196619 S. E. Munaweera1967–196820J. Shelton De Silva1968–197021 S. K. H. Jayawardena1970–197122 G. L. Galappaththi1971–198523 K. A. Dharmadasa1985–198624 M. J. Gunasekera1987–199725 A. H. N. Jayaweera199726M. G. R. M. Wijesinghe1997–199827 D. Jayaweera1998–200028 W. Somawantha2000–200129 Kodippili2001–200230D. Vidanapathirana 2002–200831 Nimalsiri Wanigabadhu2008–201232 Ashoka Kumara2012 – April 201333 K. RanasinhaApril 2013 – October 201434 M. RathnasekaraOctober 2014 – 201835K. H. L. M. Kawshalya 2018 – 201936H. K. L. B. Virajith2019 – 202637Samitha Kurukulasooriya2026 – present

College houses College house names are listed in alphabetical order. Adolphust - Beernaert - Standaert - Walter -

Cricket

The St. Thomas'–St. Servatius Cricket Encounter, known as the Battle of the Blues,124th Battle of the Blues St. Servatius’ favoured, aiming to break over five decade hoodooBig Match: Matara's 118th Battle of the Blues begins is the annual cricket match played between the cricket teams of St. Servatius' College and St. Thomas' College, Matara. The match has been played since 1900, and is the second-oldest school cricket series in Sri Lanka.

Notable alumni

Name Notability ReferenceInternational Cricket player (1989–2011), Member of Parliament for Matara (2010–2015)International Cricket umpire (2011–present), first-class cricket player (1989–2008)International Cricket player (2016–present)Anslem de Silva Biologist, herpetologistGovernor of Central Bank (1979–88)1st Ceylonese Governor of Central Bank (1953–54), founder of Sampath Bank (1986-?)Governor of Central Bank (2004–06)Senior DIG of Sri Lankan Police ActorMember of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (2004–10)Political stability, vital for economic growth - Minister Lakshman Yapa AbeywardanaMember of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (1994-2001, 2015–present)Member of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (2001–04)Member of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (1989–94, 2001–04)National Footballer (2006–14)National Footballer (2010-?)26th Commander of the Sri Lanka Army (2026–present)

See also List of Jesuit schools Basilica of Saint Servatius Servatius of Tongeren Joseph Van Reeth

References

External links St. Servatius' College Official Web Site St. Servatius' College on Viki