Figure 1.--Boys at Harrow are seen here attending a memorial service for Old Harrovian Winston Churchill in 1965. |
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We have obtained some information on Harrow. A Harrow school uniform can be seen on the social class page. Some Harrovians wore light-coloured waistcoat, which were permitted to wear with their Eton suits on special occasions. Eton boys were restricted to buttonholes. The Eton suit continued as the dress for juniors at Harrow into the 1960s. A photograph shows boys attending a memorial service for Old Harrovian Winston Churchill in 1965. A HBC reader has provided us some information on the Harrow uniform during the 1970s-80s.
Harrow is one of the best know Engklish public schools. The School was founded in 1572 by John Lyon of Preston, under a Royal Charter issued by Queen Elizabeth I.
Lyon was a member of the gentry and Harrow at the time was a more rural setting, albeit ner London. Lyon wanted a school for local boys. He was particularly adament about educating boys and Harrow is still to this day a single gender school.
Harrow begin to take its current shape in the Victorian era. It was at this time the school rolls was significantly expnded. Britaon needed administrators for its new-found empire. Existing public schools expanded and new schools were founded.
Most of Harrow's boarding houses were built at this time. Harrow by the 19th century was no longer a school for local boys, but one of the most prestigious public schools in Britain, attended by well-to-do boys from all over the country. The Harrow governers founded John Lyon School in the 1870s which focused on the education of local boys.
The School is located at Harrow on the Hill in northwestern London.
The Harrow uniform took its tradition form in the 19th century. The formal Harrow school uniform can be seen on the social class page. Some Harrovians wore light-coloured waistcoat, which were permitted to wear with their Eton suits on special occasions. Eton boys were restricted to buttonholes. We note boys wearing both top hats and boaters. The Eton suit continued as the dress for juniors at Harrow into the 1960s. The photograph shows boys attending a memorial service for Old Harrovian Winston Churchill in 1965 (figure 1). In addition to the formal uniform we note caps and blazers worn for games.
A Harrow graduate tells us about the uniform he wore, "I attended Harrow School between the ages of 13 and 18, from the late-1970s to the early -80s. It was - and is - a school steeped in tradition which pervades every aspect of school life, including the uniform and the way in which it is worn."
The uniform worn from Monday to Saturday consists of a solid blue blazer - known as a “bluer” - dark blue sweater, white shirt, black tie, grey trousers and black shoes. The bluer has no emblem of any kind on the breast pocket, even though the school crest and motto (“stet fortuna domus”) are ancient and well respected, and has a rough texture. The tie is pure black in mourning for Queen Victoria, a tradition that is unlikely to change! All of this is topped off by a straw Harrow Hat with a blue band. This is not a boater, this crown is much shallower, the crown is 2inches high and the brim (wider than that of a boater) is 3inches wide. Harrow School is spread out over a wide area (the whole of the town of Harrow on the Hill), with major public roads running right though it, and walking to lessons wearing that hat is no joke, believe me. Of course, when 700 other boys are doing the same thing, nobody really notices or worries too much about it.
On Sundays the school attends chapel, and the students wear morning dress, consisting of a cut-away tailcoat (similar to those worn in the mid 19th Century) black waistcoat, black tie, white shirt, and striped formal trousers held up by braces - plus the ubiquitous hat. Boys under 5ft have to wear a ‘Harrow Short-coat’ (a tailcoat without tails. Simaler to an Eaton-jacket but cut straight at the back) but otherwise the outfit is the same. The entire school did not attend Chapel in tails on Sundays. Pupils of religious denominations other than Church of England (COE) were not compelled to attend chapel on Sundays. They could worship at a church / institution nearby, ie Catholic in their Bluer to avoid embarrassment. [Hanna]
Some uniform traditions are so old that nobody remembers why they exist, or pretends that there is a logical reason to them, but they are enforced and obeyed just the same. For example, the blazer - bluer - cannot be buttoned up by anyone who has been at the school less than three years (a “three-yearer”), and an umbrella, when carried, must be unfurled at all times by everyone except school monitors (prefects). There were personalised waistcoats that could be worn on Speech day and the numerous other House Clours/Ties/Fez’s.
[Hanna]
Uniform privileges are bestowed by virtue of age, rank, or sporting proficiency. A three-yearer can wear a white cravat-type scarf inside their shirt instead of a tie in the afternoons, and many sports allow those representing the school to wear special ties, as do some of the more exclusive clubs. Additionally, the main school sports - rugby, cricket, and Harrow Football (a unique game which I will not explain here) - allow those in the school first team to wear special blazers, not unlike those worn by rowing enthusiasts at the Henley Regatta.
School monitors are a class apart and have the school crest on the ribbon around the rim of their boaters and on their ties. Furthermore, on Sundays they wear top hats and carry black canes, looking for all the world like they’ve stepped though a time warp from the mid 19th century. The ‘Phil Athletic Club’ (a club for the schools foremost sportsmen) may wear a black bow-tie and ‘The Guild’ (a club for the schools most scholarly boys) may wear a maroon tie with the school crest on it and a maroon waistcoat on Sundays. ‘Bloods’ (Boys who are in the schools top team for a major sport) may wear grey waistcoats on Sundays. ‘Triple-Bloods’ (a boy in the school foremost team for three sports) may wear a red bow-tie. The Head-Boy has all the aforementioned privileges and on special occasions wears a white bow-tie, black trousers, white waistcoat, evening-tails (the same as the rest of the school) and, of course, a top-hat and cane.
Although the uniform as described above has not changed much - and probably will not change much more - with passing time, society in general has become less formal over the years and this is reflected in the wearing of casual clothes inside boarding houses and at certain special events - such as dances and parties - involving other young people from outside the school. Overall, however, Harrow is a place which thrives on tradition and encourages a respect for it in many ways, not least of which is the wearing of proper uniform.
Hanna, Matthew, Harrow pupil 1975-79, E-mail message, December 23, 2004.
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