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HERTFORDSHIRE.

ALDENHAM.

THE FREE GRAMMAR-SCHOOL.

FOUNDED 1597, A.D.

THIS free-school was founded under the authority of letters paten from Queen Elizabeth, by Richard Platt, Esq. alderman and brewe of London, who by his will directed, that in the election to the master ship, the fellows of St John's College, Cambridge, should nominat three masters of arts, of whom the Court of Assistants of the Brewers Company, the trustees of the estates, should elect one. There are forty scholars on the foundation of the school, who are required to be the sons of persons who do, or shall, possess the freedom of the Brewers Company.

This school is also endowed with eight Exhibitions, each of the yearly value of £40, for four years, for pupils proceeding to the univer sities of Oxford or Cambridge, who have been admitted at the school for three years, and are not more than nineteen years of age at the Midsummer examination, when the exhibitions are granted.

BUNTINGFORD.

THE GRAMMAR-SCHOOL.

ELIZABETH FREEMAN, relict of William Freeman, Esq. of Aspeden Hall, in the county of Hertford, by her will, declared that, if in her lifetime she did not convey the house and land purchased of Mr William Watson, of Buckland, in the county of Hertford, then her executors should, immediately after her death, convey the same for the sole benefit of the school and schoolmaster of Buntingford for ever.

It is probable that this school was founded by Mr William Freeman before his death, which took place in 1623. It must have been founded before 1633, the year of Mrs Freeman's decease, for Seth Ward received the rudiments of his education at the school; and he was bom in 1617.

1681. Seth Ward, D.D. Bishop of Salisbury, a native of the town of Buntingford, who was himself educated at this school, gave £1000, with which was purchased an estate at Wimbish, in Essex, and settled by him upon the master, fellows, and scholars of Christ's

College, Cambridge, for the endowment of four Scholarships, each of £12 per annum, for scholars from this school. The bishop afterwards purchased fee-farm rents to the value of £22. 11s. per annum, to be settled for the same uses as the estate at Wimbish. He ordered the scholarships to be first paid, and the surplus to be equally divided between the master and fellows of Christ's College and the master of Buntingford school. These four scholarships are appropriated to persons born in Hertfordshire and educated in Buntingford school; and of them such as are born in the parish of Aspeden or town of Buntingford, cæteris paribus, to be preferred.

If, upon a vacancy, none of Buntingford school are qualified, the master and fellows are to inquire for a Hertfordshire scholar in the university, and if any such be found, he is to be admitted to the scholarship. If no such supply is to be met with, upon notice given by the college to the master of Buntingford school, he is to signify to the masters of the neighbouring schools in Hertfordshire (particularly Stortford, Hitchin, Ware and Hertford) the time appointed by the College for the admission, the number of vacancies, and qualification of persons eligible, that they are Hertfordshire born, and educated in some free and public school, licensed in this county, to the end that any one so qualified may offer himself to the College. If upon this notice, none offer himself, the College may elect out of their own students the most deserving.

These scholarships may be holden a year after Master of Arts, provided that degree be regularly taken, although the person be elected fellow.

HERTFORD.

THE FREE GRAMMAR-SCHOOL.

FOUNDED 1617, A.D.

THE Grammar-school in the town of Hertford was founded by Richard Hale, Esq. of Cheshunt, in the fourteenth year of the reign of James I. In the letters patent, it is expressed to have been "pro eruditione et instructione puerorum et juvenum in lingua Latina et alia politiori literatura." It was subsequently called, according to the express desire of the founder, "The School of Richard Hale, Esq." for the instruction and bringing up of children and youth of the inhabitants of the town of Hertford, in the Latin tongue, and other literature.

The heir-at-law of the founder appoints the master of the schoo and is invested with power "to add and alter, change, disallow, disannul any of the statutes, as often as he or his assigns shall thin fit or needful, for the good government of the school."

In case of a vacancy in the mastership, by death or otherwis during the minority of the heir-at-law, or his successors, the corpora tion of Hertford, who are styled Governors, have a right to appoint

master.

1661. Bernard Hale, D.D. by his will, devised property fo founding scholarships, each of 20 marks per annum, at St Peter College, Cambridge. These scholarships are now 25 in number (See p. 210.)

BISHOP STORTFORD.

THE GRAMMAR-SCHOOL.

THIS School was founded in the latter half of the sixteenth century. The first mention made of the school is in connexion with a Mrs Margaret Dane or Dean, who by her will dated the 15th May, 1579, left £5 per annum for the school. This sum now reduced to about £2 10s. is paid by the Master and Wardens of the Ironmongers' Company.

The school ceased to exist from the year 1768 or thereabouts, but in 1850 it was revived under the appellation of "the High School," and about £550 was raised by subscription to build a school-house.

The most important matter connected with the school is a scarce and most valuable collection of books, the gift of former scholars and masters of the school. There are four scholarships at Christ's College, Cambridge, open to scholars from this school in default of properly qualified students from Buntingford School. (See p. 299.)

HUNTINGDONSHIRE.

HUNTINGDON.

THE GRAMMAR-SCHOOL.

AT what period and by whom this grammar-school was founded is not known, but the endowment now forms part of the revenue of the master and the co-frater of the Hospital of St John in Huntingdon, which was founded by David, Earl of Huntingdon, in the reign of Henry II. The estates belonging to the hospital are considerable. The purposes for which they were devised, are said, in an inquisition

taken at Huntingdon on the 5th April, 1570, to be "for the maintenance and relief of poor people and the keeping of a free grammarschool, at the cost and charges of the said house for the time being."

1558. Mr Robert Broadbanke founded a scholarship at Christ's College for a native of Huntingdon, if there be one meet for the same. (See p. 296.)

1683. Thomas Miller, Esq. founded a scholarship at St Peter's College, with a preference to a student from the grammar-school at Huntingdon. (See p. 211.)

COUNTY OF KENT.

CANTERBURY.

THE KING'S SCHOOL.

FOUNDED 1542, A.D.

THE King's School at Canterbury was founded by Henry VIII. who, by the Charter of Foundation which he granted, in the 33rd year of his reign, to the Dean and Chapter of the Cathedral Church of Christ, constituted the school a part of it-to consist of a master, an usher, and 50 scholars *.

"When the Cathedral Church of Canterbury was altered from monks to secular men of the clergy, viz. prebendaries or canons, petty canons, choristers, and scholars. At this erection were present Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop, with divers other commissioners. And nominating and electing such convenient and fit persons as should serve for the furniture of the said Cathedral Church, according to the new foundation, it came to pass that, when they should elect the children of the grammarschool, there were of the commissioners more than one or two who would have none admitted but sons or younger brethren of gentlemen. As for other, husbandmen's children, they were more meet, they said, for the plough, and to be artificers, than to occupy the place of the learned sort; so that they wished none else to be put to school but only gentlemen's children. Whereunto the most reverend father the Archbishop being of a contrary mind, said, "That he thought it not indifferent so to order the matter; for," said he, "poor men's children are many times endued with more singular gifts of nature, which are also the gifts of God, as with eloquence, memory, apt pronunciation, sobriety, and such like; and also commonly more apt to apply their study, than is the gentleman's son, delicately educated." Hereunto it was on the other part replied, "that it was meet for the ploughman's son to go to plough, and the artificer's son to apply the trade of his parent's vocation; and the gentlemen's children are meet to have the knowledge of government, and rule in the com→ monwealth. For we have," said they, "as much need of ploughmen as any other state; and all sorts of men may not go to school." "I grant," replied the Archbishop, "much of your meaning herein as needful in a commonwealth; but yet utterly to exclude the ploughman's son and the poor man's son from the benefits of learning, as

The King's scholars are elected according to merit, to fill τ vacancies, from those boys who have been some time in the school, an who may have come from any part of the kingdom, and must between the ages of nine and fifteen years: an exception, however, made in favour of those who have been choristers in the Chapel Roy and in Canterbury Cathedral.

1569. Archbishop Parker founded, out of the revenues of Eas bridge Hospital, two Scholarships of £3.6s. 8d. each, in Corpus Chris College, during the space of 200 years, for the maintenance of tw scholars, natives of Kent, and educated in this school, to be nom nated by the dean of Canterbury and the master of Eastbridge Hos pital, and to be called "Canterbury Scholars," and to have all th benefits which any other scholars enjoyed in the College. Arch bishop Whitgift, in his ordinances relating to that hospital (which were confirmed by Act of Parliament in 1585) renewed this foundation which is now perpetual; but instead of the dean's he made the arch. bishop's consent necessary to the appointment. (See p. 255.)

though they were unworthy to have the gifts of the Holy Ghost bestowed upon them as well as upon others, is as much to say as that Almighty God should not be at liberty to bestow his great gifts of grace upon any person, nor nowhere else but as we and other men shall appoint them to be employed, according to our fancy, and not according to his most goodly will and pleasure, who giveth his gifts both of learning, and other perfections in all sciences, unto all kinds and states of people indifferently. Even so doth he many times withdraw from them and their posterity again those beneficial gifts, if they be not thankful. If we should shut up into a strait corner the bountiful grace of the Holy Ghost, and thereupon attempt to build our fancies, we should make as perfect a work thereof as those that took upon them to build the tower of Babel; for God would so provide that the offspring of our firstborn children should peradventure become most unapt to learn and very dolts, as I myself have seen no small number of them very dull, and without all manner of capacity. And to say the truth, I take it, that none of us all here, being gentlemen born (as I think), but had our beginning that way from a low and base parentage; and through the benefit of learning, and other civil knowledge, for the most part all gentlemen ascend to their estate. Then it was again answered, that the most part of the nobility came up by feats of arms and martial acts. "As though," said the Archbishop, "that the noble captain was alway unfurnished of good learning and knowledge to persuade and dissuade his army rhetorically; who rather that way is brought into authority than else his manly looks. To conclude: the poor man's son by painstaking will for the most part be learned, when the gentleman's son will not take the pains to get it. And we are taught by the Scriptures that Almighty God raiseth up from the dunghill, and setteth him in high authority. And whensoever it pleaseth him, of his Divine Providence, he deposeth princes unto a right humble and poor estate. Wherefore, if the gentleman's son be apt to learning, let him be admitted; if not apt, let the poor man's child that is apt enter his room." With words to the like effect, such a seasonable patron of poor men was the Archbishop.-Strype's Memorials of Cranmer.

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