18. Ties There used to be very few ties until under the Headmastership of Mr Able (1997-2009) who re- portedly added to the tie system. Later, Dr Spence opened “pandora’s tie box” (according to Mr Jolly). There used to be cravats which were worn in the summer. 19. Lego James Caird Set 40729 ‘Shackleton’s Lifeboat’ was released alongside Set 10335 ‘The Endurance’. The model comes with the James Caird sitting on its sledge with a crate of supplies and tools, a small stove, a camera on a tripod and minifigs of Ernest Shackle- ton and Frank Hurley. This set officially adds both Shackleton and Dulwich College into the diverse canon of the Lego world, something which few schools have ever achieved. Date: November 2024 20. HISTORIC Graffiti Behind the Old Library, there’s a collection of names of old students scraped into the walls of the Library. The clay brick makes it easy to sculp into. The tradition seems to have started with MA Stan- iforth who has the earliest date scratched into the wall (1925-1931) and seems to have been a rite of passage for those leaving the College. Many boys have scratched their names into the wall over the years. Date: 1925 A special thanks to Mr Witts and Mr Jolly in the Archives for helping me identify and ex- plain these objects. Thank you, Mr Llewellyn and Mr Smith for information of the Upper School Cup, and thank you, A’yaan for your photo. ◎
4. Foundation site document Alleyn had no children of his own and amassed a great fortune. He wanted to found a school. When he asked permission, he was initially turned down because the government wanted his wealth to go to them. We know from Alleyn’s diary that he was not discouraged after this, so he wined and dined Sir Francis Bacon (the Lord Chancellor) in an effort to achieve his wish. Finally, permission was granted and so this document was the original foundation deed of Alleyn’s establishment. Date: 13 September 1619 5. Old Time Tuition This painting depicts how the standards of teaching had slipped in the old site before they moved to the current location of the College. Although it’s hard to gain a positive impression of the teacher by the fact that he is still in bed and smoking a pipe whilst teaching, it’s important to mention that the first lesson of the day was at 6 in the morning. It’s also interesting to note that the student uniform at the time seemed to be a cassock (so if you think the uniform is bad now…). You can still find this painting today in the periodical room. Date: 1828 6. PG Wodehouse Book This book records the money that PG Woodhouse, the legendary writer and OA, earned from his various literary pursuits that were started at his final years at the college. It was noted that he earnted10 shillings and 6 pence for a contribution to the ‘Public School’ magazine with an article on “some aspects of game captaincy”. Subsequent entries record his ongoing career including the moment in September 1902 when he “chucked” his banking job and “started out on his wild lone as a freelance”. Date: February 1900 7. Faust Costume List This is a list of costumes that Henslowe and Alleyn had at their disposal. Some were generic, others were assigned to certain roles and others were linked to actors’ names, showing the impact of celebrity at the time. This costume list was drawn up during the times of the “sumptuary laws”, which dictated who could wear what sort of clothes. For instance, nobles could wear fancy clothes whilst
11. PHOTO of Crystal Palace The Crystal Palace was built for the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park in 1851 as a venue to display scientific and technical wonders from throughout the world. When the Great Exhibition ended, it was rebuilt and expanded at Sydenham Hill. The Crystal Palace played an important role in the expansion of Dulwich College because the College allowed for the creation of the railway lines that ran through the College grounds. It meant they could raise enough money to invest into building the current school site. Date: Circa 1900. 12. DONATION OF James Caird After completing his heroics in the James Caird on the Imperial Trans-Arctic expedition, Sir Ernest Shackleton still wanted to return to the frozen south. Sadly, Shackleton passed away during the Quest expedition due to a heart attack and as a fitting tribute, his friend, John Quiller Rowett offered the James Caird to their old school, Dulwich. This letter shows the receipt of the offer which was accepted, although the boat did not arrive until 1924, when the Shackleton memorial building was created, and it is now in the Science block. Date: 1922 13. 1st edition of the Alleynian Technically the very first Dulwich College school magazine was a short-lived publication unimaginatively called ‘Dulwich College Magazine’, which ran for 12 editions between 1864–1865. Then, after a hiatus, a new magazine, The Alleynian was launched in February 1873 and has been published ever since, coming in many formats. The one you are reading is the 713 th edition. Date: February 1873 . 14. upper school house Cup After the standard of participation in sport had declined during wartime, the Master, George Smith devised a new “House system” which was announced in the March 1920 edition of The Alleynian . The whole College was divided into six Houses: Drake, Grenville, Marlowe, Raleigh, Sidney and Spenser (Howard and Jonson were added in the 1980s). Approximately 100 boys were in each house. At the end of the year, the Cock House Cup
When I was asked to write this piece for The Alleynian I was initially interested in how I could contrast the image of today’s Dulwich College with that of the one Edward Alleyn founded all those years ago in 1619. However, in the process of researching and selecting the objects for this article, I realised that there is very little difference behaviourally between us and the boys who have walked the College grounds for hundreds of years. I have tried my best to show this in this article. I also hope to show that even the most seemingly irrelevant objects can tell us so much about history, and even ourselves. To quote the brilliant movie, The Holdovers: “if you truly want to truly understand the present, or yourself, you must begin in the past. You see, history is not simply the study of the past; it is the explanation of the present.” 1. Chalice of Edward Alleyn According to the theory of Mrs Lucy, Keeper of the Archive, this chalice was a marriage present to Edward Alleyn from his stepfather-in-law, Philip Henslowe. It’s important to note the use of religious imagery on this cup. Take, for example, the scallop shell in the middle which symbolises the baptism of Christ in Christian iconography. This illustrates the piety of Alleyn and shows that religion was a key motivator throughout his life and in founding the College. Date: 18 of June 1592 2. The Cornflower Said to be Edward Alleyn’s favourite flower (a wreath of blue cornflowers was laid on his tomb in 1907) it was adopted by the school at some point during the 19th Century for its blue hue. It was traditionally worn on Founder’s Day and occasionally by OAs at dinners. Perhaps one day the cornflower will make a return to the official school uniform? 3. Sports BlazEr This was given to boys who played for the school in two major sports – the Cricket 1 st XI and Rugby 1 st XV – and a minor sport. The blazer depicted is before 1935 because of the crest, which had to be changed. Date: 1920–1935
most people could not. However, this did not apply to the theatre. Therefore nobles could sell off their clothes (like a 17th Century version of Depop) to the theatres without the risk of being fined. However, there were many instances of actors being fined wearing these clothes outside the theatre! Date: Circa 1590–1600 8. The First Folio Published seven years after Shakespeare’s death, this is the reason why we all have to study Shakespeare in school (thanks a lot, First Folio!). The Folio was the first full official collection of William Shakespeare’s plays which included such hits as The Tempest, Twelfth Night, Macbeth and Julius Caesar . The book was incredibly important in securing Shakespeare’s legacy and therefore makes it a beloved book. Although there are still 200 copies of the Folio that still exist, this one is incredibly important (according to Mr Witts) as it is only 58% completed. The pages ripped out indicate the popularity of each play at the time – tragedies were the most the popular plays in the Restoration period and the comedies and histories, which the college were left with, were not as entertaining. Date: 1623 9. First All-School Photo The first all-school picture was taken in 1919, only a couple of months after the signing of the Treaty of Versailles. Many of the teachers still wore their military uniforms. In total there are 691 boys in the picture. Date: October 1919. 10. A Science Society REPORT The first society founded at Dulwich College was the Science Society. It was joined by the Photo- graphic Society. They would regularly hold yearly exhibitions in the Lower Hall with items in the case and prizes for who could win the best display. This ties into a time in which there were lectures in classrooms about contemporary science with the Wodehouse Library actually being a lecture hall for science (STEM students, don’t get any ideas…). The lectures covered a huge range of topics, such as hot air ballooning, minerals and the wonders of asbestos. Date: 1883
(a rather unfortunate name) was awarded to the house with the highest number of points across the year. In 2011, this was changed, and the Steve Hoyle Shield was commissioned. It was named after Steve Hoyle, who was Master of the House system for many years at the College. The shield is awarded, each year, in the final joint assembly of Years 12 and 13, to the House which has accumulated the most points over the course of the academic year, over 46 separate competitions. Date: March 1920 15. War Memorial The Dulwich College war memorial was designed by WH Atkin-Berry, an alumnus of the College. It was unveiled at the Dulwich College Founder’s Day of 1921. It now commemorates the alumni of the College who died in both the First and Second World Wars. The only time the entirety of the College gathers in one place is around the Memorial in November to commemorate Remembrance Sunday. Date: 17 June 1921 16. House Drama Cup According to Mr Jolly, the House Drama Cup for Best Actor was created at some point during the 1950s after the War. For a while it was the Fencing Cup and so the Cup had to be shared between both the Sport and Drama departments. At one point, it even had to be returned from China because one pupil had taken it away with him abroad. The Cup is also a reliable soothsayer of brilliant actors; past winners include Dominic Davidson, Laurie Davidson and Oscar-nominated Chiwetel Ejiofor. Date: 1950s 17. The Dulwich Experiment This newspaper reports the success of The Dulwich Experiment. This was a successful pioneering scheme that took place after the Second World War. Under the Mastership of AH Gilkes’ son, Christopher, a great majority of boys at the College were on scholarships from neighbouring councils. Their fees were paid from local taxes. This scheme lasted from 1945–1970, and subsidised pupils at private schools whose parents could not afford the fees. In the latter half of the 20 th century the Dulwich Experiment was heavily associated with the academic renaissance of the College. Date: 1945–1970
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THE ALLEYNIAN 713
OPINION, INTERVIEWS & FEATURES
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