Introduction
Introduction
One way of regarding a history is to see it as a narrative of change over time. Despite schools being innately conservative bodies, change is constantly present – either as modification or as transformation. In this short narrative of Bishops from the 150th anniversary year 1999 to the 175th anniversary in 2024, the emphasis has been on recording the changes that have taken place, brought about by intention or by accident, from within the school, or pressures from outside.
Who brings about change in an independent South African school? The answer to that requires identification of where the most power resides. In the case of Bishops, that power is with the Council, a body created by Act of the Cape Parliament in 1891, in which the school which had been under the control of the Archbishop, was handed over to the Council to run it in terms of the agreement contained in the Act. (In the event of the school not living up to these conditions, the assets of the school revert to the Archbishop.) However, the prime duty of the Council is oversight, and operational control is given to the person the Council appoints as Principal. The Principal in turn authorizes other members of staff to carry out specific functions. Change then can follow from the decisions of people within that hierarchy. Council and its Chair have the most power to require change, followed by the Principal onwards. Ironically, the students are, in a sense, the most important component of the school but are least able to effect change. They can influence or colour the shade of each year, but essentially, they are the customers, rather than the agents of change. Readers will note that there is not much attention paid to the achievements of the students – these achievements, marvellous as they are, are reported on in the magazines and annuals published by the school. To attempt to report on all these would be far beyond the scope of this history, and it would be invidious to cherry pick only some.
Another consideration in the selection of material to include was to examine to what extent Bishops might be justified in claiming to be one of the top schools in South Africa. There is no objective method that can do this, and schools have such different aims and purposes. This means that measures are subjective. But examining the role and place of schools in the community and the nation can illustrate those features which are significant and relevant in the life of the South African nation. So no judgment is intended in this narrative – but readers will be able to find reporting on those features in which the school excels.
The whole question of names assigned under apartheid to different groups of people continues to throw up some potentially awkward moments. Bishops moved during this time from a largely white school to a much more heterogenous community. For purposes of this history, the word ‘black’ covers all people who were historically termed ‘non-white’, or what is also refered to as ‘people of colour’.
Likely audience?
Much consideration has been given to the question of who the likely audience of this brief History might be. For certain, this is not intended as part of the marketing of Bishops. Prospective parents and futue students will read it but what they will encounter is just a sequenced story of events and changes that have occurred during the short period of 1999 to 2024. Hopefully, people who attended the school during this time will read it and encounter memories which might have faded. But even they will not have been at Bishops for the complete period, and maybe they will see their own experiences against the larger background of development and improvement. And those ODs who had left the school before 1999 might read this story and compare the account of these years to their own experiences.
It would not be possible to include everything that is known of what happened at the school. Some events or incidents have been excluded, because this is a brief and concise history, not a complete or detailed study. Some people might want to ascribe bias to the choices of what was included and what not – what that simply means is that their bias does not align with the bias of the writer.
The Diocesan College Magazine 1894 - 2016
The material that is included in this History is taken from the school magazines. From 1999 up till 2016, the Diocesan College Magazine was published quarterly, and from 2017, annually. The magazine changed from being a magazine of record to a summation of what had taken place during the year. It has been interesting to see how the largely print medium of the earliest magazines has given way to the largely visual approach of the most recent. (That is of course true of all publications in general.) The first colour photographs in the DC Magazine were in the March 1998 issue. The quality of the reproductions is varied – as were their originals in the magazines.
All the photographs used in this website have been sourced from the Magazine, the Bishops Archives, the Bishops social media, or some private individuals.
It is also true that quite often, events of some significance were recorded neither in print or in photographs which means that some events which people might regard as being very important are not included in this history. It is also true that sometimes, events of some importance are not recorded as a matter of policy or discretion.
Acknowledgements
A large number of people have been consulted and have been very helpful in securing the narrative. Tony Reeler and Joc Wrensch initiated the project as part of the 175 celebrations and provided the initial guidance. My thanks to everyone with whom I had discussions – John Gardener, Grant Nupen, Guy Pearson, Tony Reeler, Midge Hilton-Green, Greg Brown, Geoff Everingham, Mike Bosman, Simon Peile, Joc Wrensch, Peter Westwood, Mark Mitchell, Marcus Bizony, Noell Andrews, Sharlene Groom, Paul Murray, Brian Robertson, Nikki Matthews, Mukesh Govan, Shelley Windell, Di Murray, Felicity Clemence, Rosemary Wilke, Sharlene Lawrence, Sally Bowes, Peter Hyslop, Phil Court, Warren Wallace, Michelle van Schalkwyk, and Sharon Williams. Kyle Langeveld designed the website and gave much assistance and guidance to me during the whole process. To all of these, I give my heartfelt thanks.
