Wycombe Abbey

Coordinates: 51°37′34″N 00°45′06″W / 51.62611°N 0.75167°W / 51.62611; -0.75167
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Wycombe Abbey
Latin: In fide vade
(Go in faith)
Religious affiliation(s)Church of England
Established1896
FounderDame Frances Dove
Department for Education URN110547 Tables
Chairman of the councilPeter Warren
HeadmistressJ. Duncan
Staff117 Teaching
167 Support[1]
GenderFemale
Age11 to 18[2]
Enrolment650[2]
CapacityApprox. 650[2]
Houses11
Colour(s)  
Websitewww.wycombeabbey.com

Wycombe Abbey is an

independent girls' boarding and day school in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. It is consistently ranked as one of the top all-girls schools in academic results.[3][4]

The school was founded in 1896 by Dame Frances Dove (1847–1942), who was previously headmistress of St Leonards School in Scotland. Its present capacity is approximately 650 girls, aged 11 to 18.[5] The current headmistress is Jo Duncan.

The school is on a 69 hectare campus in central High Wycombe. The land includes woods, gardens, a Cold War bunker (RAF Daws Hill) and a lake, and rises up to 150 metres above sea level in the Chiltern Hills. The freehold is owned by the school; the main house and several buildings at Wycombe Abbey are Grade II* listed.

Wycombe Abbey is included in The Schools Index of the world's best 150 private schools and among the top 30 senior schools in the UK.[6][7]

History

Early history

The "Dove Window" in All Saints' Church, High Wycombe, memorialising Wycombe Abbey's founder, Frances Dove

In the 13th century, the area, with the parish church, was part of the holding of the Abbess of

preparatory school
for Wycombe Abbey.

On the site of the present Wycombe Abbey was a large manor house known as 'Loakes House' which was the seat of the Archdale family, until 1700, when Thomas Archdale sold it to Henry Petty, 1st Earl of Shelburne. The earl, in turn, bequeathed the estate to his grandnephew, William Petty, (who inherited a different Earldom of Shelburne in 1761[8] and became prime minister in 1782). The Shelburnes, though, had a far larger and grander residence at Bowood House in the Savernake Forest and spent little time at Loakes House.

Consequently, Lord Shelburne sold his estates in the area. Loakes House was purchased from them at auction by

Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.[9][10]

World War II

The Air Ministry requisitioned Wycombe Abbey School in March 1942 to serve as the headquarters of the United States Eighth Air Force after the entry of the United States into World War II. It was returned to Wycombe Abbey on 9 May 1946.[11]

International schools

There are additional international Wycombe Abbey schools as follows:[12]

Notable alumnae (Wycombe Abbey Seniors)

See also: Category:People educated at Wycombe Abbey

Notable staff

References

  1. ^ "Staff List". wycombeabbey.com. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "Wycombe Abbey School". Edubase. HM Government. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  3. ^ Griffiths, Sian (21 July 2013). "The richest pickings". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 22 November 2016.
  4. ^ "Schools Guide 2016: Wycombe Abbey". Tatler.
  5. ^ "School census data". Edubase. Departement for Education. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  6. The Bucks Herald
    .
  7. ^ McNamee, Annie (6 April 2024). "These are UK's best private schools, according to a prestigious ranking". Time Out United Kingdom. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  8. ^ Henry Petty was created Earl of Shelburne in 1719, but when he died without heirs in 1751, the earldom became extinct. It was recreated for his kinsman, John Petty in 1753; it was this latter earldom that William Petty inherited.
  9. ^ Historic England, "Wycombe Abbey (parts of Wycombe Abbey School) (1310649)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 22 August 2017
  10. ^ Historic England, "Wycombe Abbey (1000609)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 22 August 2017
  11. ^ "History of the School". Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  12. ^ "Wycombe Abbey International (WAI)". Wycombe Abbey. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  13. ^ "Wycombe Abbey School Changzhou". waiscz.com. Changzhou, China. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  14. ^ "Wycombe Abbey School Hangzhou". waishz.com. Hangzhou, China. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  15. ^ "Wycombe Abbey School Hong Kong". was.edu.hk. Hong Kong. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  16. ^ a b c d e "Wycombe Abbey". Archived from the original on 15 September 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2009.
  17. The Evening Standard. Archived from the original
    on 28 December 2013.
  18. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/51501. (Subscription or UK public library membership
    required.)
  19. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/70074. Retrieved 16 January 2019. (Subscription or UK public library membership
    required.)

Further reading

  • Elsie Bowerman Stands there a School – Memories of Dame Frances Dove, D.B.E., Founder of Wycombe Abbey School (1965)
  • Wycombe Abbey School 1896–1986: A partial history (1989;
    ISBN 0950383619
    )

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wycombe Abbey.
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