|
The Ecole Privee St. Front was an all boys' school conected to the St. Front Cathedral. The school and cathedral was in Périgueux, a town located in Aquitaine, an important province in southwestern France. Before the Roman invasion, it was a Celtic capital. The boys at the school are dressed for winter with sweaters, jackets, and coats, but most seem to be wearing short pants. We also see some of the boys wearing knickers and long pants. Interestingly, the teacher wears a beret, but none of the boys. We had never heard of St. Fronto. The name of the saint and cathedral is variusly spelled St. Font or St. Fronto. His life is based largely on legendary sources. He was a 1st century bishop. He was born in Lycaonia (an area in the the interior of Asia Minor, north of Mount Taurus. He became a Christian as a young man and was baptised by St. Peter, becoming one of his 72 disciples. He accompanied Peter to Antioch and then to Rome. Peter sent his and a priest named George north to convert the Gauls. He became the first bishop of Perigueux. Which is of course why the school is named after him.
Ecole means school in French. It generals refers to a primary school, although the term is variously used over time. Ecole Privee of course means a private school. We also notice private schools called colleg=ges. We think the difference is generally the size of the school and the age range. Colleges generally have primary and secondary programs. Most private schools in Franbce are assoiciated and supported by the Catholic Church.
The school and cathedral was in Périgueux, a small, picturesque town located in Aquitaine, an important province in southwestern France. Aquitaine played an notable role in French history. Aquitaine was one of the provinces controlled by the Normans and after the Norman conquest of England, the English Plantagenet dynasty. Aquitaine thus played an major role in the Hundred Years War. Périgueux before the Roman invasion was a Celtic capital. Périgueux is a Romanized name of Celtic origins. As in Britain, the primary Celtic cultural influence that remasins is olace names. Périgueux comes comes from the Celtic words meaning 'the four tribes'. They were the Celtic (the French buse cthe term Gallic) people that inhabited the regin before the Roman conquest conducted by Julius Caesar (1st centuyry BC). The Celts were, however, not builders and thus left few archetecural traces. The Romans of course were builders and thus there are Roman remains. A Gallo-Roman villa has been crowned by a glass roof Jean Nouvel designed. The ancient city is located on one side of the town. The medieval and Renaissance district is on the other side. Here there is an impressive medieval church and cathedral. The region is also know for its pâté de foie gras.
We had never heard of St. Fronto. The name of the saint and cathedral is variusly spelled St. Font or St. Fronto. His life is largekyb based largely on legendary sources. He was a 1st century bishop. He was born in Lycaonia (an area in the the interior of Asia Minor, north of Mount Taurus. He became a Christian as a young man and was baptised by St. Peter, becoming one of his 72 disciples. He accompanied Peter to Antioch and then to Rome. Peter sent his and a priest named George north to convert the Gauls whoi at the time were conquered people within the Roman Empire. Of course converting the Gauls was an important step in the cultural Romanization of the Celtic people and thus a critical step in the development of Western civilization. St. Front became the first bishop of Perigueux. Which is of course why the school and cathedral are named after him.
The first importabt church in Périgueux was a dedicated to Saint Stephen (Cathédrale Saint-Étienne-de-la-Cité de Périgueux) (8th-9th centurties). It still exists and continues to operate as a church. The locals call it the Old Church. A more important church was built using a Greek Cross plan to dome vault its interior, an uncommon approach in the West (12th century). This design shows a strong Byzantine influence. It is now called the New Church. It was much later designated a cathedral (1669) and dedicated to St. Front (Cathédrale Saint-Front de Périgueux). The Cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Périgueux. Paul Abadie remodeled the cathedral, one might say rebuilt it, and added the cupolas and thin minaret-like towers a rare Islamic touch (19th century). The resulting style has been called neo-romanesque. Subsequently, Abadie designed the much better known Sacre-Coeur on Montmartre in Paris which clearly shows the influence of the St. Front Cathedral.
Ecole Privee St. Front was a private all boys' school conected to the St. Front Cathedral. We have few details about the school. There may have also been a school for the girls, but we are not sur about this. It appears to be a primary schhool with boys up to their younger teens. We notice a Ecole Saint Front Primare, but we believe this is atate primary locatEd in Périgueuxe, but as the school was 120 years old, perhaps it was priginally the private cathedral school. Unfortunately we have not been able to find any information on the school's history.
We do not know when the Ecole Privee St. Front was founded, but presume it was the late-19th or early-20th century. At this time we have only been able to find a few images anbd no written text about the school over time. We have found a few images. The images we have found are limited to a brief period from the 1940s-50s.
Related Chronolgy Pages in the Boys' Historical Web Site
[Main Chronology Page]
[The 1880s]
[The 1890s]
[The 1900s]
[The 1910s]
[The 1920s]
[The 1930s]
[The 1940s]
[The 1950s]
[The 1960s]
[The 1970s]
[The 1980s]
Related Style Pages in the Boys' Historical Web Site
[Main school uniform page]
[Main country page]
[Long pants suits]
[Short pants suits]
[Socks]
[Eton suits]
[Jacket and trousers]
[Blazer
[School sandals]
Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing School Uniform Pages
[Return to the Main French School Uniform Individual School Page]
[Main School Uniform Page]
[Australia]
[England]
[France]
[Germany]
[Italy]
[Japan]
[New Zealand]
[Scotland]
[United States]
Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Page
[Introduction]
[Activities]
[Bibliographies]
[Biographies]
[Chronology]
[Clothing styles]
[Country]
[Essays]
[Photography]
[Contributions]
[FAQs]
[French glossary]
[Images]
[Links]
[Registration]
[Tools]
[Boys' Clothing Home]
