A HISTORY OF SURREY 



On 4. June 1562 the patent or charter was 

 sealed. It recited that William Emerson, 

 John Sayer, Richard Ryall, Thomas Cure and 

 eight others named ' and other discreet and 

 more substantial inhabitants of the parish 

 of St. Saviour's within the Borough of South- 

 wark had lately designed, and erected a 

 Grammar School in which the boys and youths, 

 as well of the poor as the rich, inhabiting 

 within the said parish, might be skilfully and 

 successfully instructed and educated in 

 grammar,' and had asked for a charter. The 

 Queen, therefore, willed that there should be 

 a Grammar School for the education, institu- 

 tion and instruction of the boys and youths 

 of the parishioners and inhabitants, to be 

 called ' the Free Grammar School of the 

 parishioners of the parish of St. Saviour's in 

 Southwark,' and incorporated a body of six 

 ' Governors of the possessions, revenues, and 

 goods ' of the school. There are two remark- 

 able things in this charter ; one is that the 

 school is, in terms, expressed to be for the 

 inhabitants of the parish only, instead of 

 being as usual for the parish and ' the whole 

 countryside ' or ' the neighbourhood ' ; the 

 other is that the school was not called after 

 the reigning sovereign, as was usual from 

 the time of Henry VIII. to that of Charles II. 

 inclusive, even when the Crown contributed 

 not a penny of endowment, but was called 

 simply the Grammar School of the parishioners. 

 Such frank recognition of the facts is unusual. 

 It is probably due to parochial jealousy of 

 the neighbouring parish of St. Olave which 

 was also at this time in process of founding a 

 school, though, as will be seen, it was of a 

 lower grade and actually of a later date. 



The six ' Wardens for the same schoole 

 appoynted elected and named in her grace's 

 said letters pattent,' headed by John Olyve and 

 Thomas Cure,' lost no time in making the 

 statutes,* which the patent empowered them 

 to make with the consent of the bishop, and 

 which had, as we saw, been in coune of pre- 

 paration in October 1560. 



They were headed ' Orders made for the 

 Grammar schole late erected in Southwarke 

 within the paryshe of Saynte Saviour's, other 

 wise called Saynte Mary Overeys, a.d. 1562.' 

 The month and day are not given. 



» Among them Thomas Byll has been misread 

 (Carlisle's Grammar Schools, ii. 583, and elsewhere) 

 into Biff. 



» The original Statutes bound in two parchment 

 leaves from a fourteenth century Norman-French 

 romance, and signed ' Per me Robt. Winton,' are 

 preserved in the muniment safe at St. Olave's 

 SchooL 



The Governors ' with other inhabitants, 

 calynge to mynde that among many good and 

 laudable workes acceptable before God, one 

 of the chefeste and moste principalle is the 

 erection of a grammer schole for the good 

 education and bringynge up of youthe in the 

 love, feare and knolydge of God and his most 

 holy word, in good nourture towarde the 

 worlde and theyr parents, and fynally in 

 letters and understandinge of the tongues 

 in which is hidden and layde up the treasure 

 of all divine and human knolydge ' had 

 founded the school and now made the 

 ' statuts.' These were in the main a trans- 

 script mutatis mutandis of Dean Colet's 

 statutes of fifty years earlier for his ' new 

 Scole of Poules.' They even took the title 

 of ' Hyghe Master ' for the ' chefe teacher,' 

 and surmaster or ' submaster ' for the 

 ' Hussher,' with the requirement of being 

 ' learned in good cleane latten lyterature, 

 and also in greake, yf any suche may be gott,' 

 forgetting that Greek which was the possession 

 of the few in 1512 was known by every young 

 University man in 1562. The ' wages,' 

 however, were much less. Instead of Colet's 

 mark a week, or £34 ip. /^d. a year with a 

 ' livery ' of a gown, the High Master (he is 

 also called ' Hede Master ') of St. Saviour's, 

 had only £20 and the usher £10. There were 

 also some notable differences. While Colet 

 entertained ' children of all nacions and 

 countres indifferently to the noumber of 153 

 ... as they be offeride ' at an entrance fee 

 of 4^., St. Saviours was narrowly parochial. 

 ' All children of the parysshe mete to be 

 entred in to the grammer shal be taught fre, 

 payinge for theyre fyrst entrance to the 

 master 2/. 6d., and Sd. per annum, viz. 2d. 

 a quarter towards bromes and rodds.' The 

 number was limited to 100, ' lest peradventure 

 the masters be oppressed with multitude,' 

 but no ' hable ' parishioner was to be refused. 

 In the week after Michaelmas every boy had 

 to bring a pound of wax candles. No one 

 was to be admitted ' but he shall first be 

 examinede by the master afore the Wardens 

 whether he can rede englyshe and lattyn 

 perfectly and wright his name.' The founders 

 had no idea of their Grammar School being 

 used as an elementary school. 



A special provision, for which there was no 

 counterpart in the ' Fre Scole of Poules,' 

 and it is inserted, probably at a later date, in 

 a different hand, is headed, ' For the better 

 maynetening of ye Master and Usher, 

 allowaunce of xl forayne schollers borne out 

 of ye said parishes.' It provides ' for as much 

 as the schole - . . as yet is not endowed with 

 any sufficient revenues . . . it is . . . agreed 

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