Belfast Royal Academy
| Belfast Royal Academy "B.R.A" | |
|---|---|
| File:BRAcrest.jpg | |
| Address | |
 | |
Cliftonville Road,
BT14 6JL | |
| Information | |
| Type | Independent |
| Motto | per vias sapientiae |
| Established | 1785 |
| Founder | Rev. Dr James Crombie D.D. |
| Headmaster | Mr. William S. F. Young, M.A. |
| Number of students | 1600 (approx.) |
| Colour(s) | Maroon and Royal Blue |
| Yearbook | "The Owl" |
| Website | School Website |
Belfast Royal Academy is the oldest school in the city of Belfast, Northern Ireland[1]. It is a co-educational, non-denominational independent school situated in north Belfast. The Academy is one of eight Northern Irish schools whose Headmaster is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC). There are currently approximately 1600 pupils at the school.
History
The Academy was founded in 1785 by Rev. Dr. James Crombie. Originally situated near St. Anne's Cathedral in what is now Academy Street, it moved to its current location on the Cliftonville Road in 1880. For more than a century the school was named Belfast Academy. On 27 November 1887, Queen Victoria granted permission for the school to style itself "Belfast Royal Academy", and its name was officially changed in January 1888[citation needed].
The School Crest
The School Crest comprises the rose, the thistle and the shamrock, along with the Royal Arms, the Arms of the City of Belfast and those of the Province of Ulster. The three significant dates mark the foundation of the school in 1785, the transfer to the present site in 1880 and the approval by Queen Victoria of the designation Belfast Royal Academy in 1888.
Preparatory Department
The school's preparatory department, Ben Madigan Preparatory School, is located on the Antrim Road in the shadow of Cave Hill. Originally opened in 1829, it moved to its current site in 1965. A pre-prep was opened in 1998.
The House System
When a pupil enters the Academy they are placed into one of the houses: Shaw, Currie, Pottinger or Cairns, all named after distinguised past pupils: James Johnston Shaw, Donald Currie, Henry Pottinger, Hugh Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns. Each house has its own colour and pupils wear house ties.
The Honours System
As a pupil progresses through the Academy they can earn honours through hard work in sport and/or in the arts. There are minor honours (which allows a pupil to wear a minor honours tie, which has blue owls on it) and major honours. If a pupil gains major honours in sports they are entitled to wear a maroon blazer with a gold school badge on it and a tie that has yellow owls on it. Pupils who receive a major honours in the arts, such as music or drama, are entitled to wear a blue blazer with a gold school badge.
Notable alumni/ae
- William Hamilton Drummond (1778–1865), Presbyterian minister and poet
- Alexander Mitchell (1780–1868), blind civil engineer and inventor of the screw-pile lighthouse
- James Lawson Drummond (1783–1853), Professor of Anatomy and Medical Physiology, Royal Belfast Academical Institution, 1819–1849
- Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Pottinger (1789–1856), Envoy and Plenipotentiary to China, 1840–1843, first Governor of Hong Kong, 1843–1844, and Governor of Madras, 1847–1854
- William Bruce (1790–1868), Presbyterian minister
- John Thomas Romney Robinson (1792–1882), Director, Armagh Observatory, 1823–1882
- George Benn (1801–1882), historian of Belfast, and distiller
- Robert Patterson (1802–1872), naturalist
- Sir Samuel Ferguson (1810–1886), poet, barrister and antiquarian
- Thomas Andrews (1813–1885), Professor of Chemistry, Queen's College, Belfast, 1845–1879, and physician
- Sir William Ewart (1817–1889), linen manufacturer
- Hugh Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns (1819–1885), Lord Chancellor, 1868, 1874–1880
- John Mulholland, 1st Baron Dunleath (1819–1895), textile manufacturer
- James Witherow (1824–1890), Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, 1878–1890, and writer
- Sir Donald Currie (1825–1909), founder and owner, Castle Shipping Line, 1862–1900, and Union-Castle Line, 1900–1909, and politician
- Joseph Gillis Biggar (1828–1890), Irish Home Rule MP for County Cavan, 1874–1890
- James Bryce, 1st Viscount Bryce (1838–1922), jurist, historian and politician.
- Charles Williams (1838–1904), first Editor, Evening Standard, 1860–1863, first Editor, Evening News, 1881–1884, and war correspondent
- James Johnston Shaw (1845–1910), Whately Professor of Political Economy, Trinity College, Dublin, 1876–1891, judge, and Presbyterian minister
- Robert Charles (1855–1931), clergyman and biblical scholar
- Samuel Cunningham (1862–1946), businessman and Senator of the Parliament of Northern Ireland, 1921–1945
- Frederick Donnan (1870–1956), Professor of Physical Chemistry, and Director, Muspratt Laboratory of Physical Chemistry, University of Liverpool, 1904–1913, and Professor of General Chemistry, University College London, 1913–1937
- Sir Francis Evans (1897–1983), Ambassador to Israel, 1952–1954, Ambassador to Argentina, 1954–1957, and Agent for the Government of Northern Ireland in London, 1962–1966
- John Ward Armstrong (1915–1987), Dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, 1958–1968, Bishop of Cashel, Emly, Waterford and Lismore, 1968–1977, Bishop of Cashel and Ossory, 1977–1980, and Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh, 1980–1986
- Robin Eames, Baron Eames of Armagh (born 1937), Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, 1986–2006
- Douglas Gageby (1918–2004), Editor, Evening Press, 1954–1963, and Editor, Irish Times, 1963–1986
- Sir Donald Murray (born 1923), Lord Justice of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Northern Ireland
- Jack Kyle (born 1925), Ireland rugby union player
- John Cole (born 1928), Political Editor, BBC, 1981-1992
- Denis Weaire, FRS Erasmus Smith Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy, Trinity College, Dublin, and physicist
- James Stirling, CBE, FRS Pro-Vice Chancellor and Professor in Mathematical Sciences and Physics, University of Durham
- Kate Hoey (born 1946), Minister for Sport, 1998–2001
- Sir Paul Girvan (born 1948), Lord Justice of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Northern Ireland
- Ali McMordie (born c.1957), musician, founding member of Stiff Little Fingers
- William Crawley, BBC radio and television presenter
References
- ^ Belfast Royal Academy: The First Century 1785-1885, by A. T. Q. Stewart
- Belfast Royal Academy: The Second Century 1885-1985, by Edward McCamley
- Belfast Royal Academy: 1785-1935, by Hugh Shearman