5/5 Dhilan S. 1 year ago on Google
The
founding
patron
of
the
school
was
the
philanthropist,
Sir Charles
Henry
De
Soysa
Following
the
arrival
of
the
then Prince
of
Wales
(EdwardVII)
in
Colombo
in
1875,
he
wanted
to
name
the
two
schools
he
intended
to
build
–
Prince
of
Wales
and
Princess
of
Wales.
As
a
result
of
a
letter
sent
on
27
November
1875,
he
received
permission
to
name
the
two
schools
the
Prince
of
Wales’
and
Princess
of
Wales’.
14
September
1876
was
a
memorable
day
for
the
Moratuwa
community;
the
school,
which
was
built
on
a
picturesque
15-acre
plot
of
land
facing
the
Galle
Road,
and
bordered
by
the
Lunawa
Lagoon,
was
ceremonially
opened.
The
then
governor
of
Sri
Lanka,
Sir WilliamGregory,
graced
the
occasion
as
the
chief
guest.
The
school
was
designed
by
Mr
Muhandiram
Mendis
Jayawardena,
and
about
Rs.
300,000/=
was
spent
on
its
construction.
The
school
buildings
were
one
of
the
most
elegant
in
the
country
at
that
time.
The
ceremonial
opening
of
the
St.
John's
Church
and St.John's
College
Panadura built
by
Mudliyar
Susew
De
Soysa
were
also
conducted
on
the
same
day.
Sir
Charles
Henry
De
Soysa
completed
five
school
buildings
over
an
area
of
five
acres
and,
along
with
all
the
necessary
equipment,
opened
the
school
to
the
public
as
a secular institution. He
also
carefully
oversaw
the
administration,
management,
and
maintenance
of
the
school
until
his
death.
In
his
last
will,
he
requested
that
his
eldest
son
Mudalier
J.
W.
C.
de
Soysa
take
over
responsibility
for
the
school,
and
asked
his
wife
to
pay
Rs.
3000/=
to
the
school
annually,
for
maintenance
work.
After Lady Catherine
De
Soysa
died,
Sir
Charles
Henry
De
Soysa's
seven
sons
took
over
stewardship
of
the
school.
They
also
obtained
their
education
at
Prince
of
Wales
College,
and
their
aid
was
vital
for
the
school.
They
endowed
the
school
with
two
plantations
for
its
maintenance
and
recruited
principals
who
were Oxbridge graduates.
Mr.
W.S.
Gunawardena
(B.A.
Calcutta)
was
the
first principal of
the
school
and
served
from
1876
until
1891.
At
first,
it
was
not
operated
as
one
school,
but
as
four
educational
institutes
with
a
total
of
1000
students
and
40
teachers.
They
were:
Prince
of
Wales’
College
Princess
of
Wales’
College
Prince
of
Wales’
College
(native
language)
Princess
of
Wales’
College
(native
language)
The
first
school
prize
giving
was
held
in
1883
with Sir
John
Douglas as
the
chief
guest.
There
were
prize
records
for
all
four
schools.
Prince
of
Wales’
College
and
Prince
of
Wales’
College
(native)
only
had
classes
up
to
Grade
7.
Prince
of
Wales’
College
was
the
higher
school;
it
had
two
divisions
named
Upper
and
Lower.
Apart
from
this,
there
were
two
classes
for
undergraduates.
3
March
was
selected
as
the
Founder's
Day.
Students
attend
the
service
at
the
Holy Emmanuel
church
and
pay
respects
to
the
tomb
of
Sir Charles
Henry
De
Soysa.
Since
the
1960s,
Buddhist
students
have
commemorated
the
Founder's
Day
by
engaging
in Buddhist
rituals.
