Charterhouse School

Charterhouse School is a British public school, located in Godalming in the county of Surrey. It was founded by Thomas Sutton in London in 1611 on the site of the old Carthusian Monastery in Charterhouse Square, Smithfield (see Charterhouse). It is one of the original nine English public schools as defined by the Public Schools Act 1868. Today, pupils are still referred to as Carthusians, and ex-pupils as Old Carthusians or OCs. As of 2006, Charterhouse is Britain's most expensive school with boarding and tutorial fees of £23,955 per annum.

History

The school was moved to its present site in 1872 by the then headmaster, the Revd. Dr. Haig Brown - a decision influenced by the findings of the Public Schools Commission of 1864.

The school bought a 68 acre (270,000 m²) site on top of a hill just outside Godalming. In addition to the main school buildings (designed by architect Philip Charles Hardwick), they constructed three boarding houses, known as Saunderites (once the headmaster's house), Verites and Gownboys (for scholars, who were entitled to wear gowns).

As pupil numbers grew, other houses were built alongside the approach road, now known as Charterhouse Hill. Each was titled with an adaptation of the name of their first housemaster, such as Weekites, Daviesites and Girdlestoneites. The last of these is still referred to as Duckites, reflecting the unusual gait of its original housemaster, even though he retired well over 100 years ago. There are now the original four 'old' houses plus seven 'new' houses, making eleven boarding houses in total. The eleven Houses have preserved a unique identity (each with its own tie and colours) and pupils compete against each other in both sports and the arts.

The Boarding Houses (in order of founding, and with their school abbreviation and house colour) are: Saunderites (S - Orange); Verites (V - Grey, turquoise and black); Gownboys (G - Deep Red); Girdlestoneites (g - White abbreviated to X because sometimes computers are unable to distinguish between g and G). The following are 'new' houses founded circa 1875: Pageites (P - Pink); Lockites (L - Light lime green yellow); Weekites (W - Red); Hodgsonites (H - Blue); Daviesites (D - Green); Bodeites (B - Yellow); and Robinites (R - Purple).

The school continued to expand over the 20th century. Further land was bought to the north and west, increasing the grounds to over 200 acres (809,000 m²), and a new school chapel was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott (perhaps best known for designing the red telephone box) and consecrated in 1927 to commemorate almost 700 pupils who died in the First World War, making it the largest war memorial in England. Around 350 names have been subsequently added to commemorate those who died in the Second World War and other conflicts of the twentieth century. Pupils still attend a short chapel service there five times a week.

Charterhouse was all male until the 1970s when girls were first admitted in the sixth form (the final two years), and this continues to be the case today. Of over 300 sixth formers today, almost a third are girls.

The most significant addition to the campus was seven new Houses, built in the 1970s, replacing late Victorian boarding houses which were demolished in 1977. Other newer buildings include the Art Studio, the John Derry Technology Centre, the Ben Travers Theatre, the Ralph Vaughan Williams Music Centre, the Halford Hewitt Golf Course, the Queen’s Sports Centre, the Sir Greville Spratt athletics track and Chetwynd, a hall of residence for girls. In 2003, the School renovated its onsite Library and its contents and facilities could easily rival many University libraries.

Modern day

Today, pupils can take part in a wide range of sporting activities, including football, hockey, cricket, tennis, fives, fencing, racquets, swimming, squash, water polo, horse riding, sub-aqua, climbing, basketball, badminton, rugby and climbing. Swimming, in particular, has improved greatly in the last two years (as of 2006), with an influx of good swimmers and high coaching standards. The 2005 first XI football team also performed extremely well, having an unbeaten season, barring a solitary defeat in the ISFA Cup. The sport of Fives has also improved greatly and the team is now of the highest standard. The main reason for this is the result of excellent coaching. Cricket also continues to flourish and Charterhouse is famed for having one of the best batting tracks in the South of England. The school produced one of England's finest batsmen and captains in history, Peter May.

The arts are also encouraged at Charterhouse, with plays such as Les Miserables, Julius Caesar and Oliver Twist performed at the Ben Travers Theatre.

Charterhouse is one of the elite public schools in Britain, and its examination results show that it continues to perform well. It was ranked 19th in the 2004 Times school league table of A level results.

A Glossary of some Charterhouse Terms

ADSUM: A roll-call, taken in House (see also JIBS)

BANCO: An evening period for academic work: First Banco: 6.30 - 7.30 pm; Second Banco: 8.00 - 9.00 pm

BROOKE HALL: The name refers both to the building and also, as a collective noun, to those who use it. The term 'members of Brooke Hall' is also current. (The Revd Robert Brooke was Headmaster 1628-43, but was ejected during the Commonwealth for his Royalist tendencies. After the restoration he was allowed to return to free quarters in Old Charterhouse, which was subsequently used as a common room by officers of Charterhouse and known as "Brooke Hall".) Brooke Hall is a club with a quarterly subscription. You will be "dined in" as a new member. Thereafter you pay, and you may bring your own guests. The Brooke Hall Office Secretary is very helpful.

BTT: The Ben Travers Theatre on Queen's Drive, opened in 1983, and named after the playwright who was an Old Carthusian.

CALLING OVER: An assembly, usually three times a Quarter, of each form in the Under School, at which its performance in school is reported to the Master of the Under School by the Form Master.

CARTHUSIAN SOCIETY: Formed in 1939 by the Old Carthusian Club, with membership open to all. It has several objects, one of which is to make grants towards the purchase of equipment for the use of boys, the cost of which the Governing Body cannot reasonably be expected to meet. There is always a member of Brooke Hall on the Committee.

CHAPEL: There are three chapels in the School. Memorial Chapel built as a memorial to Old Carthusians who were killed in the First World War, designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott and consecrated in 1927, and Founder's Chapel (FC), constructed from part of the original chapel, which is approached from the east end of the South African Cloisters. The Millennium Chapel (MMC) is situated in the north-east corner of Memorial Chapel and was consecrated in 2000.

CROWN: The School tuckshop. It is situated on the Long Walk facing under Green, between the Block Houses and the New Houses. It is also sometimes referred to as "Crack".

EXEAT: Half term break in the middle of each Quarter when all pupils go away from Charterhouse. Exeat in LQ is known as 'Queen's Exeat'.

FATHERS: Every new pupil is allotted a "father" (usually only slightly senior to him) to show him the ropes. There is a fortnight's grace before anyone is held accountable for sins of convention.

FIRST BANCO: See BANCO.

HASH: Refers to school work, to the times when it is done, and to a school class. From it arises HASH ROOM.

HEADMASTER'S ADDRESS: A gathering of all Beaks and Pupils in Hall at the end of each Quarter at which the Headmaster addresses the School and presents prizes.

HOMEBILL: The pupils' evening meal.

JDTC: The John Derry Technical Centre, situated between Studio and Armoury and opened in 1980. John Derry (the first British pilot to fly faster than sound) was an Old Carthusian.

JIBS: Evening adsum in Houses.

LONDON CHARTERHOUSE: The original buildings, not far from Smithfield Market, where Thomas Sutton founded his School and Hospital in 1611. When the School moved to Godalming in 1872 the Pensioners, or Brothers, of Sutton's Hospital remained.

PONTIFEX: The annual inter-House cross-country races held in LQ.

QUARTER: Terms are referred to as Quarters. There are three Quarters in the School year - Oration (September), Long (January) and Cricket (April). The 'quarter' refers to the mid-morning break, which is normally after the first two school periods.

RVW: Music Centre (Music School) situated on the south side of Memorial Chapel and opened in 1984. Ralph Vaughan Williams was an Old Carthusian.

SECOND BANCO: See BANCO.

SEND-UP: When a pupil does a piece of work that a Beak considers distinguished he is sent with his work and a sending-up card to the Deputy Headmaster (Under School) and to the Headmaster in the Sixth Form. For every third sent-up copy he/she is awarded a prize.

SUTTON'S HOSPITAL: Part of Thomas Sutton's dual foundation (Hospital and School), which is still housed in Old Charterhouse, London, providing for the Brothers, (see LONDON CHARTERHOUSE).

TICS: See TURNING-UP.

TURNING-UP: The general term for inter-House games which are organised on a league basis.

YEARLINGS: Boys in their first year in the School.

Charterhouse and the origins of football

Charterhouse was one of a select group of English public schools who can claim to have helped shape the rules of modern football. Even today, football is preferred over rugby union as the school’s main winter sport.

When the rules of Association Football were created in 1863, elements of the Charterhouse version of the game were adopted, along with the rules established at Eton, Harrow, Rugby, Westminster and Winchester and later with Lancing College.

In the early years of the FA Cup, teams formed of ex-pupils from these schools dominated the competition. The Old Carthusians F.C. (the name for the team comprised of Charterhouse alumni) won the cup in the 1880/81 season, beating the Old Etonians in the final, and were semi-finalists in the two years that followed. The public school system also provided many of the first England internationals. Rory Fleming also played in the Irish disabled team. They included Charles Wreford-Brown, who is often credited for inventing the word ‘soccer’. He was a pupil at Charterhouse in the early 1880s, and played football for the Old Carthusians and for the national side in the 1890s, including several appearances as captain.

Notable Old Carthusians

External links