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La Martiniere for Boys, Kolkata
Past (1850s) vs Present (2019)
Modern day photographed by me, Rudraneel Dutta.
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A very Happy New Year, everybody! I hope you all had a fantastic vacation.
I was unsure about what I should feature as my first post here on this blog. But then it struck me, what could possibly be better than my own school? It is a majestic place that has charmed me since day 1, and still continues to do so, and is a significant part of Calcutta's history and heritage.
So, anything else was obviously out of the question.
And, here we are.
There's obviously a lot to know about this excellent school, but I'd rather not bore you with the same facts that you can find (or have come across, if you're a Martinian) all over. Instead, much in accordance to the aim behind the foundation of this blog, I'd like to highlight and bring you, some significant, but lesser known bits of this institution's history.
Its alright, if some of these are new to you. They were to me too, once. Time moves forward nonetheless, so lets go on a ride against the tide!
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The Legacy of Major General Claude Martin
Major General Claude Martin was a French adventurer, born in Lyon in 1735.
He had the distinction of having served in the French Army, before joining the East India Company’s Army, and eventually commanded the cavalry of the Nawab of Oudh. From humble origins, he had accumulated a vast fortune by the time of his death in 1800, a large portion of which he left in his will for charitable purposes, such as the relief of the poor of Lucknow and Calcutta.
Martin also left funds in his will for the founding of schools in Lucknow, Calcutta and Lyon, known as La Martiniere schools. Martin’s will was complex and inevitably involved much legal wrangling, not being finally settled by the Supreme Court of Calcutta until 1840, some 40 years after his death.
The Calcutta La Martiniere Schools, were the result of Martin’s desire to start a school “for the public good of the town of Calcutta or establish a school for educating a certain number of children of any gender to a certain age, and to have them put prentice to some profession.”
La Martiniere for Boys, situated at 11 Loudon Street in a fashionable quarter of the city, was founded from funds left by General Claude Martin on September 13th 1800 and opened on March 1st 1836.
Through it generations of young lives would find a footing in the world. It took 30 years to dispose of the litigation arising out of the will. Finally, as a result of a Supreme Court decision, The La Martiniere School, opened in Calcutta on 1st of March, 1836. The first body of Governors determined what sort of school La Martiniere was to be. Their report, dated 1835, showing exceptional enlightenment for that age, decided that the school should provide a liberal education, in which foundationers as well as day scholars should participate.
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| La Martiniere, circa 1837 |
Twenty poor girls and
thirty poor boys were to be chosen from the Christian population of Calcutta and they were to be directly educated and supported from school funds. Other Christian students could be admitted on payment of fees.
The main building was then occupied by both boys and girls; the boys being on the eastern, and the girls on the western side. There were iron railings running north and south on both sides of the building, dividing the two departments. Both genders attended the School Chapel.
The School
The building, surmounted by a dome, and set in grounds covering over seven acres, was constructed by J. P. Parker from the design of ]. H. Rattray, and completed on the 31st December 1835 at a cost of £23,000/-.
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| La Martiniere, 1910 |
It contains a Chemical and Physical Laboratory and Lecture Theatre, a Geography Room, a room for Manual Instruction, a dining hall capable of accommodating 190 boys, four dormitories, a hospital with general and infectious wards, a dispensary, and a library. An additional block, containing an Assembly Hall with galleries, eight spacious airy class-rooms and a large Art Room, was completed in 1915.
La Martiniere is a higher secondary school ; its upper forms which were constituted as an affiliated college of the Calcutta University, prepared candidates for the Intermediate Arts and Science Examinations.
The boys participated in all kinds of sports : Swedish drill and boxing classes were held by a qualified instructor. There is a Swimming Bath, Cadet Corps, Wolf Cub Pack and a Boy Scout Troop which has held the King's flag since 1919.
Life at La Martiniere in the Past
The rules and regulations of La Martiniere Schools in Calcutta founded in 1836, one for boys and another for girls, illustrate what educators of the day thought important for children to learn. It states that the education of the children must, as much as possible, focus on the primary design of the schools, “… that of qualifying them for obtaining honest means of livelihood on their leaving it.”
According to the curriculum, boys were to be taught English, English grammar, writing, geography, history (particularly of Britain and British India), Hindustani, Bengali, mathematics, natural history and mechanical philosophy; while girls were to be taught the same, without mathematics and mechanical philosophy, and additionally needlework, knitting, straw-plaiting, and music.
Teaching was six days a week, with Saturdays as half holidays. Regular holidays were 15 days at Easter and 15 days at Christmas.
The children were fed well at the school. Breakfast consisted of bread, butter and tea; and supper was
bread and milk. The main meal of the day followed a set weekly menu, of roast or boiled mutton, bread and vegetables Monday and Thursday; mutton curry, rice, bread and fruit Tuesday and Friday; roast beef, potatoes and rice pudding Wednesday and Sunday; and roast fowls, pulao and vegetables on Saturday.
The anniversary of Claude Martin’s death was also deemed a
holiday, with a public dinner for the boys and girls, where a toast was to be drunk to the memory of the schools founder, and a medal
awarded to the most deserving boy and girl in each division of the school, an occasion that still exists today, and is, as we know it, the "Founder's Day".
The parents or guardians of the children were only permitted to visit them on alternate half holidays, and were not permitted on school grounds at any other time without the express permission of the school secretary.
The "Big Shift" and the Inter-Martiniere Meet
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Inter-Martiniere Meet is nothing new to us at La Martiniere today, for it is the time when the schools converge at alternative venues each year, Lucknow and Kolkata, to compete head-to-head against each other in various events, which many of us so eagerly wait for, but few know the about the events that led to it being held every year.
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| Rugby, Inter-Mart 1963 |
The Inter- Martiniere meet is to commemorate the "
Big Shift", during a time when the Indian Martinians combined. The evacuation to Lucknow of La Martiniere for Boys and Girls, Calcutta has not been covered by school magazines and was an event unparalleled in Martiniere history.
This historic move took place on 24th March, 1942. Hardly any of the staff and students of all four La Martiniere institutions were aware of this mass exodus of the Calcutta Martinieres to Lucknow. The Japanese Imperial Army was rummaging through south-east Asia and the Allies were trying to keep India safe. Calcutta became a stronghold for the allies and thousands of troops billeted there or passed through the city, heading to or returning from the East. For this vast Army and its inevitable accoutrements and paraphernalia, an enormous amount of space was required.
Also returning from the front were the wounded and the existing hospitals were unable to cope with the rush.
Thus this resulted in La Martiniere Calcutta having the choice of either shutting down till war was over, which was unthinkable, or relocating, which was impossible within Calcutta. The logical alternative was Lucknow.
The Big Shift took place in March 1942 and La Martiniere became one till the middle of 1946.
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La Martiniere has always been regarded as one of the finest schools in India.
Here's an excerpt from our Founder's will, to sum it up nicely:
"I give and bequeath the sum of two hundred thousand sicca rupees to the Town of Calcutta to be put at Interest under the protection of Government of the Supreme Court that they may desire an Institution the most necessary for the public good of the Town of Calcutta or establishing a School to educate a certain number of Children of any sex to a certain age, to have them put in apprenticeship to some profession.............and to have them married when at age...........and a medal to be given to the most deserving or virtuous boy or girl"
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I hope I was able enlighten you readers, with some facts and stories, from the past, of our Glorious city, and certainly do hope that you liked it.
It is my desire to continue bringing more such articles for my readers, so stay tuned!
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The information and photographs above have been compiled by me, Rudraneel Dutta, from various sources spanning the World Wide Web, and many other literary publications. All rights belong to respective authors, all and any extraction from the above calls for proper acknowledgement.
