History of Winchester College

Winchester was to operate as a feeder or Latin grammar school[1] to New College, also founded by Wykeham.

Extensive bequests were made to ensure the longevity of the institution; the 70 scholars were to be maintained through these alongside the staff.

[6] New College was also dedicated to St Mary; the naming reflects the school and university's religious affiliations as well as educational purpose.

[15] As the college was a religious as well as educational establishment, it was threatened with closure during Henry VIII's reign.

[18] In the early modern period, under Henry, Edward, Elizabeth and James, royal visits were accompanied by presentations of Latin and a small amount of Greek occasional poetry, composed by the pupils.

Elizabeth also granted an exemption to allow Winchester, Eton and elsewhere to conduct their religious services in Latin, to help pupils to improve their skills in the language.

[19] Among the school's Latin scholars to make their mark, Christopher Johnson stands out from this period as particularly praised by his contemporaries.

[22] James ordered the school to provide accommodation for judges who were to try Sir Walter Raleigh for treason at the town's courts.

When Parliamentary forces took over the town in autumn 1645, and ransacked many buildings including the cathedral, the school avoided serious damage to its property.

[24] From the 1860s, ten boarding houses, each for up to sixty pupils, were added, greatly increasing the school's capacity.