King's ElyThe School's Terms and Conditions and the Companies House registration would suggest that the School's legal name remains "The King's School, Ely" is an all through public school (English fee-charging day and boarding school) in the city of Ely in England. It was founded in 970 AD, making it one of the oldest schools in the world. It was given its first royal charter by King Henry VIII in 1541, its second by Queen Elizabeth I in 1562, and its third by King Charles II in 1666. The school consists of a nursery, a pre-preparatory school, a prep school, a senior school, a sixth form, and an international school. King's Ely is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. In 2021, The Independent Schools Inspectorate published their report writing that "King's Ely achieved the highest grading possible in every category inspected and was judged to meet or exceed all regulatory standards for independent day and boarding schools."
The school has produced a number of notable alumni, including Edward the Confessor, King of England, Lord Browne of Madingley, former chairman of BP, and James Bowman, countertenor.
King's Ely has featured in the local news for its sports results, and it has produced a bronze medal-winning Olympic athlete, Goldie Sayers, who won a Bronze Medal in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Much of the senior school uses the historic monastic buildings of the cathedral, and major school events and twice-weekly services are held there. One of the boys' boarding houses, School House, is claimed to be the oldest residential building in Europe. In its entirety, the school has over 1,000 pupils. It has a small campus, with other parts in buildings near the city centre. All King's Ely sections share resources such as sports facilities and the refectory in the Monastic Barn (unless in Sixth Form where pupils eat in the Bishop's Palace).
History
General history The school now known as King's Ely is the result of over a millennium of history which originally began with the education of child oblates on the site now occupied by Ely Cathedral in 673 AD at the abbey founded by St Etheldreda. In 840 the site was burned down by the Danes. In 970 the monastery in Ely was restored by Æthelwold, Bishop of Winchester and St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury, and with it the school was re-established, and has existed continuously since then (The school therefore states its establishment as being in 970 as it has operated continuously since then). Following the Dissolution of the monasteries in 1541, many schools connected to monasteries were at risk of abolition, however the school was re-endowed and renamed to The King's School, Ely, by King Henry VIII as one of the seven King's Schools. In 1562 Queen Elizabeth I issued the school its second royal charter. The name was not retained for long however as in 1653, under Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell the school was renamed Ely Cathedral Grammar School. In 1666 the school was awarded its third royal charter by King Charles II. In 1702, upon the accession of Queen Anne the school became known as Queen Anne's School. This was due to the fact that the country now had a queen, and was an exception in this time period as no other queen has resulted in a name change. In 1720 the name The Kings School, Ely returned, until it was shortened in March 2012 to King's Ely as to distinguish the school from the six other King's Schools established or renamed by King Henry VIII in 1541.
When Hereward the Wake led the last Saxon rebellion against William the Conqueror in 1071, the monks of Ely, and therefore the teachers at the school, gave William access to a secret passageway that led to the defeat of the Rebellion and the capture of Ely.
An article in The Illustrated London News from 1882 provided the following which showed the state of the school at that time:"The head master, after some allusion to the former history of the school (in which Edward the Confessor had been educated, and which, in the seventy years after its new foundation by Henry VIII, had developed, into a school of upwards of 300 boys, among whom were many of distinction), recounted the honours achieved in the past year. Among these were successes in the Civil Service and Indian Civil Service examination, an exhibition at Worcester College, Oxford, a first in the May examination at Queens' College, Cambridge, and a second at Peterhouse."In his memoirs from 1955, the Reverend Christopher Campling described the school's state when he became chaplain. "Academic standards were not high, but a few boys gained admission to Oxbridge each year. The music in the school was especially good, because the choristers of the cathedral choir stayed on after their voices had broken."
The first girls were admitted in 1970 and the school has since become fully coeducational. In 2004, Susan Freestone was appointed its first female Head, taking over from Richard Youdale who had been headmaster for 12 years. In 1973, Queen Elizabeth II came to the school to celebrate the anniversary of the monastery, and also attended the school's Visitor's Feast The school keeps a strong link with the cathedral by which it is overshadowed, forming a key part of school life with pupils attending services in the Cathedral at least once per week in Acremont and the Prep School, and twice per week in the Senior School, and being the venue for Start of Term, End of Term, Admission of Scholars, and Prize Giving services, alongside purely religious services.
A Roll of Honour in School House lists 24 Old Eleans who were killed during World War I. Another Roll of Honour is located outside of the Hayward Theatre and features the names of 89 Old Eleans killed while in service of the British Armed Forces during The First World War, Second World War, and The Troubles.
Abolition and later reintroduction of Rugby Union In June 2002, the Principal Richard Youdale aroused media interest and criticism with an announcement that the school would be phasing out rugby which had been introduced in the place of football in the early 1950s. Youdale cited, among other reasons, the increasing popularity of football. The school reinstated rugby in 2005.
Saturday School In 2015 the school scrapped Saturday School, instead lengthening the regular working week, and leaving Saturday morning free for non-academic, non-compulsory activities.
List of known Headmasters and Principals 15th Century John Douham (c. 1448) 16th Century
Ralph Holland (c1541 - 1562) James Speight (1562 - 1596) John Lucke (1596 - 1598)
17th Century
Mark Holdred (1598 - 1604) William Pamplin (1605 - 1609) Daniel Wigmore (1609 - 1619) William Hitch (1619 - 1664) Charles Chadwick (1664 - 1674) Richard Peachey (1674 - 1681) Stephen Hutton (1681 - 1690) William Silvertop (1690 - 1699)
18th Century
Edmund Tenant (1699 - 1725) Henry Gunning (1725 - 1763) William Irwin (1763 - 1776) Caesar Morgan (1776 - 1790) Richard Jeffreys (1790 - 1793)
19th Century
Stephen Stephens (1793 - 1816) George Millers (1818 - 1833) Solomon Smith (1833 - 1834) Office Vacant (1834 - 1838) William Keatinge Clay (1838 - 1843) David James Stewart (1843 - 1848) James Henry Henderson (1848 - 1852) John Ingle (1852 - 1861) John Chambers (1862 - 1870) Richard Winkfield (1870 - 1894)
20th Century
Frederick William Hawes (1894 - 1904) Edward Henry Blakeney (1904 - 1918) Thomas James Kirkland (1918 - 1941) Geoffrey John Cross (1941 - 1947) William Brown (1947 - 1955) Benjamin Edward Noble Fawcett (1955 - 1969) Hubert Ward (1970 - 1992)
21st Century
Richard Youdale (1992 - 2004) Sue Freestone (2004 - 2019) John Attwater (2019 - )
Notable buildings
The Porta Many of Ely's monastic buildings are leased to the school by the cathedral. The imposing Porta is the gateway into the monastic buildings of the cathedral, and now houses the school's largest library, classrooms and a conference room, as well as its archive.British-history.ac.uk City of Ely Monastic Buildings, 'City of Ely: Monastic buildings and palace', A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 4: City of Ely; Ely, N. and S. Witchford and Wisbech Hundreds (2002), pp. 77–82. Retrieved 12 July 2008
Prior Crauden's Chapel
Prior Crauden's Chapel was built in 1324 for John de Crauden. The building is Grade I listed. Small and intimate, it retains much of its original wall decoration. It is used by the school for small congregations and private prayer, its organ played by pupils and staff.
The Queen's Hall
Prior Crauden's Chapel is next to Queen's Hall, another 1330s building, which as the Priory housed boys aged 11–12 in the 1950s. It now serves as the residence of the Principal and his family.
The Infirmary
The Infirmary is one of the oldest surviving of the monastery's buildings, constructed in the 12th century. Located on Firmary Lane near the south transept of the cathedral, the building once housed sick monks, but is now the boarding house for the Ely Cathedral choristers.
Prior's House
Prior's House is used as a boarding house for the Prep School house, Priory House.
Old Hereward Hall
Old Hereward Hall was built in the 1800s and is now used by the school to house classrooms, alongside a portion Wilkinson House.
Hereward Hall
Hereward hall was originally the Ely Theological College, constructed in 1876 and used until 1964 when it transferred into the possession of the school.
Bishop's Palace
The palace was built in the 15th century by Bishop John Alcock and was one of the official residences of the Bishop of Ely until 1941. During the Second World War the palace was used as a base for the British Red Cross, and then as a home for disabled children until its closure in the 1980s. Following this the palace was purchased on a 99-year lease by the Sue Ryder Care organization, although the palace went up for sale again in 2010. Later that year King's Ely took over the lease and had the palace refurbished to be used as the school's Sixth Form Centre. It was opened by the Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester on Friday 25 January 2013. In 1674 a Great London Plane Tree was planted by the Bishop of Ely at the time, Peter Gunning. In June 2002 the Tree Council designated the Great London Plane Tree of Ely as one of the 'Top 50 British Trees'.
School traditions
King's and Queen's Scholars Up to 12 of the top students in Year 12 are nominated as King's Scholars (boys) or Queen's Scholars (girls). Alongside the King's and Queen's Scholars there are also two International Scholars installed each year. They become members of the Cathedral Foundation and also qualify for other privileges such as being married in the Cathedral and being buried in its grounds. King's Scholars were inaugurated by Henry VIII in 1541 and Queen's Scholars at the request of Queen Elizabeth II in 1973 upon her visit to the school. There is no application process for these honorary scholarships, the positions instead being awarded based on pupils' GCSE results.
The Hoop Trundle The Hoop Trundle is performed to mark the re-founding of the school by King Henry VIII, in 1541. After he dissolved the monastery, he bestowed a royal charter on the new school and introduced the first scholars. The bowling of wooden hoops within the precincts of the cathedral, along with other games, was one of the privileges that they were afforded. Female competition was added when Queen Elizabeth II introduced Queen's scholars to the school, who have taken part since. There are both male and female heats leading to a final for which a separate tankard is awarded to both sexes. The course is a 75-yard dash to a post and back along the east lawn of Ely Cathedral bowling the hoop with a wooden stick.
The Osmond Lecture