1797 Rugby School rebellion

Last updated

Rugby School in 2004 Rugby School 850.jpg
Rugby School in 2004

The 1797 Rugby School Rebellion was a mutiny of the boys at Rugby School after the headmaster, Dr Henry Ingles, demanded that boys from the fifth and sixth forms should pay for the repair of a local tradesman's windows after they had been smashed by the school's pupils. The rebellion saw many of the school windows broken and its furniture burnt before the boys withdrew to an island on the school grounds. A local justice of the peace read the Riot Act, while soldiers crossed the island's moat from the rear and took the boys prisoner.

Contents

The rebellion was only one of several that took place at Rugby. The school was not alone in seeing disruption: several other public schools also saw trouble between 1710 and 1832.

Rugby School and discipline in 18th century public schools

Rugby School—founded in 1567—was one of the original seven public schools, along with Winchester, founded in 1382; Eton College, founded in 1440; Shrewsbury, founded in 1552; Westminster, founded in 1560; Harrow, founded in 1571; Charterhouse, founded in 1611. [1] [2]

Discipline at public schools in the 18th and 19th centuries was poor. According to the sociologists Kenneth Sheard and Eric Dunning, the reason lay in the balance of power between pupils and masters. Because the children of the upper class had previously been educated at home by tutors, these took the position of paid staff, and were therefore seen as socially inferior by their pupils. Sheard and Dunning consider that the tutors, "confronted with pupils who were aristocrats and gentlemen, ... became hesitant and uncertain in the execution of their role". [3]

At its worst, the breakdown in discipline led pupil rebellions at several institutions. In 1710 the pupils of Winchester rebelled over their beer ration. The school further rebelled in 1770, 1774, 1788 and 1793; Eton revolted in 1728, 1768 and 1783; Harrow had their protest in 1771; and Rugby's first revolt came in 1786. Some were peaceful—the first Eton rebellion had been a walk-out by pupils with no violence—others were accompanied by threats, violence and damage to the school. [4] [5]

At the time of the rebellion, Rugby's headmaster was Dr Henry Ingles. He was appointed to the position in 1794 after having been the headmaster at Macclesfield School. A gloomy man and a strict disciplinarian, the pupils nicknamed him the Black Tiger. [6] [7]

November 1797

The Island, a Bronze Age burial mound, at Rugby School The Island, Rugby School.jpg
The Island, a Bronze Age burial mound, at Rugby School

In November 1797 Ingles found Astley, a pupil from Gascoigne's boarding house, firing cork bullets at the study windows of Mr Gascoigne, the housemaster. Ingles asked the boy where he had purchased the gunpowder, and was informed it was from Rowell's, a local outlet that combined a grocers, booksellers and ironmongers. [8] [7] When Ingles confronted Rowell, the shopkeeper denied selling the powder and showed Ingles his sales book, in which the sale had been recorded as tea. Ingles took the shopkeeper's word over that of Astley, and the boy was flogged for lying. Astley told his friends about the flogging and the reason for it. Angered, Astley's friends smashed the windows of Rowell's. [9] [10]

When Ingles heard of the vandalism, he said that all the members of the fifth and sixth forms would pay for the damage. The boys drew up a round robin response—hiding the identity of the ringleaders—in which they refused to pay. [11] [lower-alpha 1] The headmaster threatened punishment as a result. That Friday, after fourth lesson, [lower-alpha 2] the boys placed a home-made petard—a small bomb used to blow open doors—against a school door, which was blown off its hinges. [14] [15] [lower-alpha 3]

The following day the school bell was rung by the boys to signal the next part of the rebellion; at the same time fags were sent to the boarding houses to rally boys to the main school building. The windows of the main building were all broken and the school's furniture—including its wainscot panelling—were thrown into the Close, the large main field in front of the school, where it was set alight. Also added to the pile were Ingles's books; Billy Plus, the school butler rescued some of the more expensive copies from the fire. [17] [18] The passage between School House, one of the boarding houses, and the main school building was nailed shut by the boys to stop Ingles—who lived in at the boarding house—gaining access into the school. [19]

Willoughby Cotton, one of the ringleaders, in later life. Willoughby Cotton.JPG
Willoughby Cotton, one of the ringleaders, in later life.

As Saturday afternoons were free of lessons, many of the masters had already left the school grounds. Ingles sent messages for them to return, but most were too far away to be found (two were fishing in the River Avon, another was out shooting rabbits). [20] Ingles sent a message to Mr Butlin, a local banker and the town's justice of the peace. It was market day in Rugby, so Butlin asked the horse-dealers, with their long droving whips to assist. He also asked an army recruitment party, headed by a sergeant, for their assistance. An armed guard, with fixed bayonet, was placed at School House, and the remainder of the soldiers, together with the horse-dealers and special constables, approached the Close. [21]

The rebellious schoolboys left the bonfire of furniture, and retreated to "the Island", a Bronze Age burial mound on the side of the Close, surrounded by a water moat, up to 6 feet (1.8 m) deep and 20 to 30 feet (6.1 to 9.1 m) wide; after crossing the ditch, the boys drew up the wooden drawbridge. [19] [22] While Butlin distracted the boys, by reading them the Riot Act, the soldiers circled round behind them and crossed the moat on the opposite side and took them prisoner. [23]

Aftermath

Ingles had locked himself into School House while the events unfolded, but he emerged at the conclusion of the event. He immediately expelled the ringleaders and had many others flogged. [19] [24] One of the ringleaders was subsequently identified as Willoughby Cotton who entered the army shortly afterwards and led troops in Jamaica to put down a slave rebellion in 1831; [25] [26] of those expelled, one later became a bishop, another a marquess. [27]

The rebellion was not the last to occur in public schools, nor even at Rugby: the school was the location of further revolts by the boys in 1820 and 1822. Between 1797 and 1832 there were ten further rebellions in schools, four at Eton, three at Winchester and one each at Charterhouse, Harrow and Shrewsbury. [4]

Notes and references

Notes

  1. A "round robin" is a document in which the signatures are written in a circle, in order to give none any prominence. [12]
  2. Fourth lesson would have finished either at 4 or 5 pm. [13]
  3. The door in question is given either as that of School House, one of the boarding houses, [16] [10] or Ingles's classroom door. [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rugby School</span> Public school in Warwickshire, England

Rugby School is a public school in Rugby, Warwickshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winchester College</span> Public school in Winchester, England

Winchester College is an English public school with some provision for day attendees, in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 as a feeder school for New College, Oxford, and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of the nine schools considered by the Clarendon Commission. The school has begun a transition to become co-educational, and has accepted male and female day pupils from September 2022, having previously been a boys' boarding school for over 600 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eton College</span> Public school in Eton, Berkshire, England

Eton College is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore, making it the 18th-oldest school in the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC). Originally intended as a sister institution to King's College, Cambridge, Eton is known for its history, wealth, and notable alumni, known as Old Etonians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Webb Ellis</span> English cleric and alleged inventor of rugby

William Webb Ellis was an English Anglican clergyman who, by tradition, has been credited as the inventor of rugby football while a pupil at Rugby School. According to legend, Webb Ellis picked up the ball and ran with it during a school football match in 1823, thus creating the "rugby" style of play. Although the story has become firmly entrenched in the sport's folklore, it is not supported by first hand evidence, and is discounted by most rugby historians as an origin myth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifton College</span> Public school in Bristol, England

Clifton College is a public school in the city of Bristol in South West England, founded in 1862 and offering both boarding and day school for pupils aged 13–18. In its early years, unlike most contemporary public schools, it emphasised science rather than classics in the curriculum, and was less concerned with social elitism, for example by admitting day-boys on equal terms and providing a dedicated boarding house for Jewish boys, called Polack's House. Having linked its General Studies classes with Badminton School, it admitted girls to every year group in 1987, and was the first of the traditional boys' public schools to become fully coeducational. Polack's House closed in 2005 but a scholarship fund open to Jewish candidates still exists. Clifton College is one of the original 26 English public schools as defined by the Public Schools Yearbook of 1889.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fettes College</span> School in Edinburgh, Scotland

Fettes College is a co-educational private boarding and day school in Craigleith, Edinburgh, Scotland, with over two-thirds of its pupils in residence on campus. The school was originally a boarding school for boys only and became co-ed in 1983. In 1978 the College had a nine-hole golf course, an ice-skating rink used in winter for ice hockey and in summer as an outdoor swimming pool, a cross-country running track and a rifle shooting range within the forested 300-acre grounds. Fettes is sometimes referred to as a public school, although that term was traditionally used in Scotland for state schools. The school was founded with a bequest of Sir William Fettes in 1870 and started admitting girls in 1970. It follows the English rather than the Scottish education system and has nine houses. The main building, called the Bryce Building, was designed by David Bryce.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tonbridge School</span> Public school in Tonbridge, Kent, England

Tonbridge School is a public school in Tonbridge, Kent, England, founded in 1553 by Sir Andrew Judde. It is a member of the Eton Group and has close links with the Worshipful Company of Skinners, one of the oldest London livery companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sherborne School</span> Public school in Sherborne, Dorset, England

Sherborne School is a 13–18 boys public school and boarding school located beside Sherborne Abbey, in the parish of Sherborne, Dorset. The school has been in continuous operation on the same site for over 1,300 years. It was founded in 705 AD by St Aldhelm and, following the dissolution of the monasteries, re-founded in 1550 by King Edward VI, making it one of the oldest schools in the United Kingdom. Sherborne is one of the twelve founding member public schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference in 1869 and is a member of the Eton Group and Boarding Schools Association.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bedford School</span> Public school in Bedford, England

Bedford School is a 7–18 boys public school in the county town of Bedford in England. Founded in 1552, it is the oldest of four independent schools in Bedford run by the Harpur Trust. Bedford School is one of the oldest boys' schools in the United Kingdom, and was the winner of the Independent Boys School of the Year Award at the Independent Schools of the Year Awards in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">House system</span> School system of dividing students into groups to foster loyalty

The house system is a traditional feature of schools in the United Kingdom. The practice has since spread to Commonwealth countries. The school is divided into units called "houses" and each student is allocated to one house at the moment of enrollment. Houses may compete with one another at sports and maybe in other ways, thus providing a focus for group loyalty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bradfield College</span> Public school in Bradfield, Berkshire, England

Bradfield College, formally St Andrew's College, Bradfield, is a public school for pupils aged 13–18, located in the small village of Bradfield in the English county of Berkshire. It is noted for its open-air Greek theatre and its triennial Greek Play.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Leys School</span> Public school in Cambridge, England

The Leys School is a co-educational private school in Cambridge, England. It is a boarding and day school for about 574 pupils between the ages of eleven and eighteen, and the head is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oakham School</span> Public school in Oakham, Rutland, England

Oakham School is a public school in Oakham, Rutland, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fagging</span> Young school pupils used as servants

Fagging was a traditional practice in British public schools and also at many other boarding schools, whereby younger pupils were required to act as personal servants to the eldest boys. Although probably originating earlier, the first accounts of fagging appeared in the late 17th century. Fagging sometimes involved physical abuse and/or sexual abuse. Although lessening in severity over the centuries, the practice continued in some institutions until the end of the 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bloxham School</span> Public school in Oxfordshire, England

Bloxham School, also called All Saints' School, is a private co-educational day and boarding school of the British public school tradition, located in the village of Bloxham, three miles (5 km) from the town of Banbury in Oxfordshire, England. The present school was founded in 1860 by Philip Reginald Egerton and has since become a member of the Woodard Corporation. The current headmaster is Paul Sanderson, who took over from Mark Allbrook in 2013. The school has approximately 515 pupils.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merchiston Castle School</span> Public school in Edinburgh, Scotland

Merchiston Castle School is an independent boarding school for boys in the suburb of Colinton in Edinburgh, Scotland. It has around 470 pupils and is open to boys between the ages of 7 and 18 as either boarding or day pupils; it was modelled after English public schools. It is divided into Merchiston Juniors, Middle Years and a Sixth Form.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Worksop College</span> Public school in Nottinghamshire, England

Worksop College is a British co-educational private school for both boarding and day pupils aged 13 to 18, in Worksop. It sits at the northern edge of Sherwood Forest, in Nottinghamshire, England. Founded by Nathaniel Woodard in 1890, the school is a member of the Woodard Corporation and Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, and has a strong Anglo-Catholic tradition.

The Oratory Prep School is a Roman Catholic day and boarding school for some 330 boys and girls aged from two to thirteen, founded in 1925.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Public school (United Kingdom)</span> Fee-charging schools in England and Wales

In England and Wales, a public school is a type of fee-charging private school originally for older boys. They are "public" in the sense of being open to pupils irrespective of locality, denomination or paternal trade or profession; nor are they run for the profit of a private owner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal College, Colombo</span> Public school in Sri Lanka

Royal College, Colombo is a selective entry boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started by Joseph Marsh in 1835, it was established as the Colombo Academy by Sir Robert Wilmot-Horton in January 1836, as part of the implementation of the recommendations of the Colebrooke Cameron Commission (1833), and was the first government-run secondary school for boys in the island.

References

Sources