Trent College

Trent College is a co-educational, public, boarding School, located in Long Eaton, Derbyshire, England. It was founded in 1868 by Francis Wright; the foundation stone being laid by William Cavendish, 7th Duke of Devonshire.

Origins

In 1865, Francis Wright proposed the foundation of Trent College at a meeting of the Midland branch of the Clerical and Lay Association. At the time, he intended Trent College to be one of many schools established in the region; in fact, it was the only one of its kind in the area.

Francis Wright was an influential man, a partner in the Butterley Company – the greatest industrial concern in Derbyshire by the time of his death – as well as High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire (1842) and Deputy Lieutenant in the counties of Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. He and many of the notable men of Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Nottinghamshire became the founding Directors of Trent College.

The School opened its doors in April 1868 to the first contingent of 53 boys. The first boy registered was H.Lindley. Four months later, the school roll had risen to 118 and, by 1870, 225 boys were registered as pupils. The school’s initial success was hit by the outbreak of Scarlet Fever in 1873 and the death of its first Headmaster, Thomas Ford Fenn, in 1883. Francis Wright was actively involved with the school until his death in 1873. However, the school experienced a new peak of success in 1875 when the chapel was opened in his memory.

The Chapel

The foundation stone of The Chapel was laid after the death of Francis Wright, and is a memorial to him. The building cost £300 and was designed by a Mr Robinson of Derby. The building has been re-modeled three times; firstly in 1949 by Sir Albert Richardson, President of the Royal Academy, then the chancel was re-ordered after the new organ was installed in 1976 and finally in 2001 the pews and lighting were replaced. The west door curtain, was a part of the interior of Westminster Abbey at the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. The wooden collection plates are carved from olive wood and cheese from the Garden of Gethsemane outside Jerusalem, where Jesus Christ was arrested before his Crucifixion. These were a bequest from the Broadhurst family.

Buildings and facilities

The Warner Library is the school library, which was built by pupils in 1929. It contains about 6500 books, fiction, non-fiction and reference materials and has nine networked computer terminals.

Headmasters and Headmistress

Notable alumni

*Rex Alston, Cricket commentator
*Albert Ball VC MC, English First World War fighter pilot
*Sir Arthur Frederick Blakiston, 7th Baronet
*Georgia Groome, actress
*Alexander Obolensky, Russian Prince, and International Rugby Union player for England
*Kukrit Pramoj, thirteenth Prime Minister of Thailand
*Seni Pramoj, three times Prime Minister of Thailand
*Harry Daft (1866 – 1945), England footballer
*John Birch, former Master of the Choristers at Chichester Cathedral

ee also

*List of Victoria Crosses by School

References

External links

* [http://www.trentcollege.net/ Trent College]
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