King's College (), often referred to simply as King's or K.C., is a boys' government-operated secondary school located at 63A Bonham Road, Mid-levels, Hong Kong. It serves as a secondary education institution for pupils from forms 1–6. The school building has been a declared monument of Hong Kong since 2 December 2011.
School history
West Point School (1857–1879)
In 1857, West Point School was established at West Point next to the West Point Police Station. The boys' school was a free village school supported by the Government standHong Kong Government Gazette 1860. Retrieved 29 April 2016.Hong Kong Government Gazette 1871. Retrieved 29 April 2016. "The Village Schools, which are free schools supported entirely by Government, are twelve in number. They stand in the following order of efficiency, as tested by an examination of each school." Page 3 and one of the second batches of the earliest government schools in Hong Kong.Education in Hong Kong Pre-1841 to 1941: Fact and Opinion Materials for a History of Education in Hong Kong by Anthony Sweeting . Retrieved 29 April 2016.Chronological and Statistical Table of the Government Schools on the Island of Hong Kong. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
In 1878, Governor Hennessy advocated the enhancement of the English Language and English speaking among the natives of Hong Kong, leading to the introduction of English teaching in Saiyingpun School and English training for the Chinese teachers. The Acting Inspector of Schools stated that he felt confident that it would sooner or later be found necessary to enlarge the teaching staff in order to meet the demand for English teaching.Hong Kong Government Blue Book 1878. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
The first Principal in 1859Hong Kong Government Gazette 1860. Retrieved 29 April 2016. was Li King-chau,Chronological and Statistical Table of the Government Schools on the Island of Hong Kong. Retrieved 29 April 2016. who died in 1870.Hong Kong Government Gazette 1871. Retrieved 29 April 2016. Cha Lun-kokChronological and Statistical Table of the Government Schools on the Island of Hong Kong. Retrieved 29 April 2016. and Chu AtukHong Kong Government Gazette 1860. Retrieved 29 April 2016. were the teachers. The latter was appointed to teach English in the school and also taught in Taipingshan Government School. Although their geography and composition results were weak compared with other schools, all other aspects were very satisfactory.Hong Kong Government Blue Book 1877. Retrieved 29 April 2016. The Saiyingpun Punti School ranked as good in 1877.Hong Kong Government Gazette 1878. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
The number of boys was 62 in 1859, separated into four classes.Hong Kong Government Gazette 1860. Retrieved 29 April 2016. Girl students were admitted since 1868 in Punti whereas 1872 in Hakka section. In Punti section, the number increased a lot from the year of 1876 to 1878. The number of students in Punti section reached 100 in the year of 1876.Hong Kong Government Gazette 1877. Retrieved 29 April 2016. According to the statistics recorded in the Hong Kong Government Gazettes and Blue Books from 1857 to 1879, the total number of students in the school increased steadily to 200 students approximately in the last few years.
The hours of tuition were from 6 to 8 am, 9 am to 12 pm and 1 to 4:30 pm.Hong Kong Government Gazette 1858. Retrieved 29 April 2016. Hakka section was established in 1866 while the original one renamed as Punti section, the school divided into two sections respectively since then.Hong Kong Government Gazette 1867. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
The Chinese Elementary Books, their Classics, Geography and the English Language are taught by competent native teachers.Hong Kong Government Gazette 1858. Retrieved 29 April 2016. Moreover, several kinds of books are required to study in the government schools are as follows. Native books including Yau Hok, Trimetrical Classic, Thousand Character Book, Four Books, Five Classics and Chinese Grammar. Foreign books for instance New Testament, Muirhead's Geography, Do. History of England, Sacred History, Trimetrical Classic as well as Ten Commandments. English books for example Serious of Lessons, Morrison's Chinese-English Grammar, Circle of Knowledge and Geography.Chronological and Statistical Table of the Government Schools on the Island of Hong Kong. Retrieved 29 April 2016. The Punti section increased from the fifth in 1868Hong Kong Government Gazette 1869. Retrieved 29 April 2016. to the second two yearsHong Kong Government Gazette 1871. Retrieved 29 April 2016. after in the order of efficiency between the government schools. The Hakka section was improving during the first several years of establishment.Hong Kong Government Gazette 1869. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
Saiyingpun School (1879–1926)
In 1872, the school was renamed from West Point School to Saiyingpun School.Hong Kong Government Gazette 1873. Retrieved 29 April 2016. It was relocated to 35–41 Third Street in 1879. It was one of the first batches of boys' government schools that provided junior Chinese and English education in various subjects. The first Principal (formally entitled "Master"), Mr. Fung Fu, received education in the US and was deeply influenced by the development of democracy in the West. During 1905, Mr. Fung held the post of a translator at the China Daily, a newspaper founded by local intellect Chen Shao-bai, Dr. Sun Yat Sen's dearest friend in his juvenile years.
Upon establishment, Saiyingpun School provided education from the eighth grade to the fourth grade (equivalent to primary five to secondary three nowadays). The then-Inspector of Schools, Dr. Eitel, allowed parents to choose between letting their children be taught both English and Chinese or exclusively English. Among 61 students in 1879, 46 chose the latter. After a few months, with the exception of one student, all students came under an English-medium education.
According to the Government Notification in 1880, the appraisal of the Education Bureau reported that Saiyingpun School had an outstanding performance, and thus was classified as "Rank 1". In 1880, Saiyingpun School operated with 74 students; by 1891 the total number of students amounted to 146. The campus in Third Street was no longer able to accommodate the increasing number of students. The school was relocated to 119 High Street.
According to "College Years of the Father of the Republic" written by Professor Lo Heung-lam, Kong Wing-wen and Lau Sz Fuk, enrolled in the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese in 1887, the same year as Dr. Sun Yat Sen started his college life there. According to an article published in the 2002nd issue of the Christian Weekly, it stated that Kong and Lau used to be students in "Saiyingpun Fung Fu School". Lau graduated in 1895 with a degree in western medicine. The Master of Saiyingpun School between 1879 and 1903 was Mr. Fung Fu. With reference to his term of office, it is believed that the "Saiyingpun Fung Fu School" mentioned in the essay refers exactly to Saiyingpun School, that is currently King's College. If this assumption is correct, it is convinced to say that Lau Sz Fuk is among the earliest Kingsians ever to study western medicine.
In 1902, Mr. W. H. Williams took over as the Master of Saiyingpun School. In June 1905, Mr. Alfred Morris replaced Mr. W. H. Williams as the Master, the latter was transferred to Victoria British School earlier in January that year. During Master Morris' tenure, the number of students rose in 1906 to 490(Hong Kong Government Administrative Report, 1907) and the school campus was inadequate to facilitate studies and extra-curriculum activities of the students. In the Report of the Inspector of Schools published in 1905, Saiyingpun School students were rated "excellent" in English writing. According to the 1905 Report of the Inspector of Schools, after Master Morris took office, he immediately made the school start early even during the winter time to ensure students had enough time for extra-curricular activities like visits and swimming in the afternoon.
There are only fragments about the subject curriculum of Saiyingpun School from the Hong Kong Government Administrative Reports. For instance, in the 1922 Report, it was stated that students in Saiyingpun School excelled in map reading, handwriting, English conversation and composition. For extra-curricular activities, apart from volleyball, football, swimming and picnic activities, the 1922 Report stated that students were charity enthusiasts as well. Students raised a total of $800 for the Swatow Relief Fund. The scout team also helped Charitable Association to raise a total of $11,000. Students also received recognition in their extra-curriculum activities, for example, the Ambulance Division got Distinction of Winning Ralph Shield(Report of Director of Education).
In 1921, the government reserved $50,000 for the construction of a new school at the chosen location at 63A Bonham Road.(Hong Kong Government Administrative Report, 1921)AR 1926. Page 3.. Retrieved 1 May 2016. "Saiyingpun School, which had an honourable career since it was founded in 1891, passed on to a higher destiny in September. In its magnificent new quarters on Bonham Road, re-named by His Excellency King's College, great achievements are expected from it under the able headmastership of Mr. Morris." According to the Heritage Appraisal of King's College on the AMO's webpage, the new school was given an honourable name, "King's College", named after reigning King George V of the United Kingdom. When the construction was completed in March 1926, the seventh and the eighth classes of Saiyingpun School were moved into the new school. Then in September, the remaining classes were relocated. At the same time, the new school started to admit new students into newly established first, second and third classes. From then on, students completed the fourth class and obtained a qualification from the Junior Graduation Examination, they could be promoted to the third class in King's College instead of having to be transferred to the senior levels at Central School.AR 1926. Page 11.. Retrieved 1 May 2016. "Boys are no longer sent to Queen's College after passing the (Class 4) Examination but remain at King's College, which now classes preparing for the Matriculation Examination."
King's College (1926–)
Background and origins
King's College was founded on its present site in 1926. The school premises now stands on what was once the site of a Roman Catholic church called St. Anthony's built in 1892 'ex voto'.that is to say, its construction was funded by the contributions of the faithful St. Anthony's was later demolished and replaced by an eponymous church in Pokfulam Road, which still stands today. Beside St Anthony's stood the Sacred Heart Chapel (1864–1892). This was built a few years before St Anthony's was built by the architect Mr. M.A. D'Aquino, and blessed in March 1879.according to the report in Catholic Register of that year The land jointly occupied by the church and the chapel was named Inland Lot 755, and was the property of the Roman Catholic Church. Sometime after the construction of St Anthony's, probably because having two churches in such close proximity was seen as an inefficient use of holy land, the Sacred Heart Chapel was converted into an orphanage and school under the care of the Canossian Sisters – the Ling Yuet Sin Kindergarten of the present day. In 1920, there was a requisition order by government authorities for a portion of Inland Lot 755, the section where the Church of St Anthony stood.
Establishment and Pre-war era