DULWICH COLLEGE - A HISTORY

Hardback copy of Dr Jan Piggott's new definitive history of the College. Many contemporary 'school histories' are a mixture of prospectus and chatter, but Dulwich College: A History is the chronicle a large and great school deserves. It is the first full history, scholarly, anecdotal and accessible, and is generously illustrated with telling images, many unfamiliar. Two chapters describe the extraordinary life and enterprises of the Founder, Edward Alleyn.
The daily life, fortunes and personalities of the College are traced, quoting contemporary sources, reviving the obscure days of its humble origins as a 'Hospital' and school for twelve orphans and the remarkable characters who from 1857 developed Dulwich College into a famous and prosperous school.
The book gives a ric h account of the rise of the great Alleynian tribe - Governors, Masters, Assistant Masters and former pupils. The gallantry of Old Alleynians in the wars and their intrepid Shackletonian spirit of adventure world-wide make inspiring reading. Appalling wartime conditions at the College, its near death, and its salvation by the 'Dulwich Experiment' preceeded a successful recent era, chronicled up to 2007.
A detailed account is given of music, drama, art and literature, and Terry Walsh writes on the remarkable sporting life and achievements of the College. Graham Able describes the recent Dulwich College ventures into international schools abroad.
The History should appeal to Alleynians everywhere, and also to those interested in educational and social history, in architecture and in London. It covers the involvement of the College over the centuries with Alleyn's bequest of the Dulwich estate that nourished it, and the history of the famous Picture Gallery.
Over ten years of research and three years of writing have gone into this affectionate study of the College, possibly the best book ever written about a school. The book is 408 pages long, and is elegantly designed and illustrated with 160 pictures and photographs.