Founded
by Henry VIII, Christ's Hospital was built during the reign of Edward
VI on a site once owned by the Franciscans to accommodate and educate
orphans. The orphans were clothed in blue-coats, and for many years
Christ's Hospital was colloquially referred to as the Blue-Coat School.
Most of the Tudor establishment burned to the ground during the Great
Fire of London in 1666 - the cloisters (pictured above) were one
of the few fragments which remained - and the hospital was rebuilt in
the late seventeenth century according to a design by Sir
Christopher Wren (picture below; the distortion was caused by the
engraving being very tightly bound). See another
view of of Wren's Christ's Hospital.
By
the late eighteenth century Christ's Hospital accommodated over one
thousand orphans, both boys and girls. The children learned writing
and arithmetic, while those who indicated a "proper indication
of genius" also learned Greek and Latin. Many children also learned
drawing. Each Easter the orphans walked in procession to Christ's Church
(formerly St Bride's) in solemn procession, carrying emblems of their
learning - globes, quadrants, pens and the like. On their return journey
they stopped at the Mansion
House, where each child received a small amount of money and some
refreshment.
In
1902 the school removed to Horsham, Sussex, and the old buildings demolished
to make way for the Post Office.
