- de Wyche College
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de Wyche College Motto DVX FEMINA FACTI Established 1583 Type Private Chief Mistress Alison Bayliss Founder Thomas Wyche Location Nursery Lane
Nether Alderley
Cheshire
SK10 4TX
England
Students 140 Gender Female Ages 11–18 Colours White & black Website de Wyche College Coordinates: 53°16′47″N 2°15′33″W / 53.2797°N 2.25923°W
de Wyche College is a private boarding school catering for 140 girls aged 11 to 18, and located near the village of Nether Alderley, Cheshire, England. Founded in 1583 by Thomas Wyche of Davenham, the school is the successor to an earlier collegiate church dating back to the 6th century.[1]
The college uniform, which is worn at all times, comprises a white shirt, black skirt, white training shoes and white socks. The college motto, DVX FEMINA FACTI (‘a woman was leader of the enterprise’), is from Virgil’s Aeneid, in reference to Queen Dido, founder of Carthage. The college crest, as used since 1587, is a quartering of the arms of the Wyche and Brett families, who had formed a marriage alliance in the latter part of the previous century.[2]
The name of the college is derived from the de Wyche family, who in turn derive their name from the ancient kingdom of the Hwicce in the western Midlands (preserved in place names such as Droitwich).[3] The most famous member of the family is Richard of Chichester, also known as Richard de Wyche (1197-1253), who was later canonised.[4]
The college was founded in 1583 as the successor to an earlier establishment that had been founded in 537 in the city of Bath, England, as the Collegiate Church of St Ambrose. This was moved to Worcester in 679, then to Middlewich in 1326 and to Davenham in 1513, before settling in Nether Alderley in 1583.[5]
The college's 16th century building is supposedly haunted by the ghost of a woman in white, though who she might be has never been properly determined.[6]
References
- ^ Gabbitas, The Independent Schools Guide (2011-2012) ISBN 0749464186
- ^ de Wyche College
- ^ Stephen Yeates, The Tribe of Witches: The Religion of the Dobunni and Hwicce (2008) ISBN 1842173197
- ^ The Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Richard de Wyche
- ^ de Wyche College: History of the College
- ^ Fred Woods, Cheshire Ghosts & Legends (1990) ISBN 1853061107
External link
Categories:- Schools in Cheshire
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