Royal School, Armagh

There has been a Head teacher of the Royal School since 1608 when Thomas Lydiat was brought by Archbishop Ussher from Oxford to be the Headmaster of the new Royal School. The first recorded Headteacher of a Girls' School in Armagh was Miss Bell appointed in 1900. The Headmaster of the Royal School lived in the fine premises built at College Hill by Archbishop Robinson in 1774. He lived in great style with the records showing that in 1776 his income was £400 per annum -a considerable sum for that time. He also had the income from the apples grown in the walled garden at the back of the school. There were about 400 apple trees and the original apple store later became fIrst the site of the Sanatorium and then later the Preparatory School. There was also a field, where the cark park on the Portadown Road is now which sustained a herd of cows. The Headmaster's Drawing Room is now the Board Room of the school where the Board of Governors meets and the other living accommodation is now used for Boarders. It is recorded that in the 19th century there were 12 servants in the school and a photograph with this article is that of Robert Graham a Butler at the school in 1888. The walled garden and the orchard are no more. A considerable section of the wall remains to surround classrooms constructed in 1966 and in 1990. A fine house was then built in Georgian style in 1970. This now overlooks the main car park and the school. The photographs of a number of the previous Headteachers are included in this article but unfortunately the photographic record is incomplete.

Headmasters of the Royal School
1608-2002

1608 Thomas Lydiat
1635 John Starkey
1657 George Savage
1667 William Warren
1672 Thomas Mabb
1674 Issac Collier
1684 Thomas Wadman
1690 Joseph Crump
1700 Richard Martin
1740 Charles Carthy
1754 Arthur Grueber
1786 Thomas Carpendale
1817 George Millar
1848 William Henry Guillemard
1869 William Moore Morgan
1891 Thomas Gordon
1897 Alister Colla McDonnell
1904 Henry Hirsch
1929 Wilfred Hutchings
1964 James Brennan
1978 Wilfred Mulryne
1988 Thomas Duncan
2002 - to date Paul Crute
 

William Henry Guillemand

William Moore Morgan

Thomas Gordon

Alister McDonnell

Henry Hirsch

Wilfred Hutchings

James Brennan

Wilfred Mulryne

Thomas Duncan