The Royal School, Armagh

The school owes its existence to a 1608 decree of King James I, which stated that there should be "one free school, at least, appointed in every county, for the education of youths in learning and religion". The decree effectively meant that at least six schools would be created, one in each of the plantation counties of Ulster.

These schools were intended to educate the children of the English and Scottish planters who settled on land forfeited by the earls who fled in 1607. The provision of education was an important part of the wider plantation project.

Seven hundred acres of land at Mountnorris were granted to Archbishop Henry Ussher to finance the school for County Armagh. Each Archbishop since then has played a key role in the life of the Royal School. Ussher appointed John Lydiat, an Oxford graduate, as the first headmaster.

Mountnorris had been a strategic point during the Elizabethan wars. The turmoil of the 1640s and 1650s, however, forced the school to move by the time of Charles II, relocating to the relative security of Armagh City and the redundant Abbey of St Columba in Abbey Street. The school remained there, with the building rebuilt for its centenary, until Archbishop Richard Robinson arrived as Primate in 1765.

The school, like the city of Armagh, owes much to the generosity, foresight and energy of Archbishop Richard Robinson. He found the condition of the city an affront to its reputation and funded an ambitious building programme which included a new school building.

At a cost of £5,078, what is now affectionately known as the Old Building was completed in 1774. It comprised the present boarding wings and the single central storey of the present library, which then served as the schoolroom. Presumably, all the boys were taught in forms, or rather while sitting on forms.

Dr Arthur Greuber was headmaster at the time and invested almost half of the necessary funds, demonstrating his confidence in the school's future.

The 18th century appeared to be a successful period for the school as it established itself as one of the finest schools in Ireland. The school register prepared by Major Ferrar shows strong representation from the Anglo-Irish establishment.

Former pupils included Isaac Corry, who would become the last Speaker of the Irish House of Commons, and Lord Castlereagh, an architect of the Act of Union between Ireland and Britain and an important influence in the reconstruction of 19th-century Europe following the Napoleonic Wars.

Little is known about everyday school life at this time. Many pupils went on to Trinity College Dublin or Oxford. A surviving letter from the young Castlereagh describes the boys re-enacting the storming of the Bastille and other violent events of the French Revolution during their playtime.

Greuber's foresight in exchanging the Abbey Street site for College Hill allowed the school to expand during the 19th century. The extensive estate helped the school become somewhat self-sufficient in agricultural produce and gave boys the opportunity to cultivate their own plots, or those belonging to the headmaster or prefects. The use of the land for this purpose continued into the 20th century during the World Wars.

The additional land also allowed for new buildings and the development of the curriculum and extra-curricular provision. In 1833 there were only 19 pupils, but by 1849 the number had risen to 63, making the school the largest of the Royal Schools in Ulster.

Decline followed, partly as a result of the Act of Union, which made Ireland less of a focus for the Anglo-Irish aristocracy, and perhaps partly because of the historically infamous "barring-out" incidents of 1788-89 and 1823. These events were not unique to British schools, but must have affected the school's reputation.

Further buildings were added, including the present Reid Hall as a gymnasium, along with more dormitories and classrooms. By 1872, the exterior of the Old Building was substantially as it appears today. A sanatorium was also added to isolate pupils who were ill.

The expansion is reflected in the number of pupils and staff. In 1836 there were four teachers for 36 pupils. By 1879 there were 13 teachers for 111 pupils.

In 1881, the Inspector of Grammar Schools described Armagh Royal as "the most successful boarding school in the north of Ireland" and considered Armagh probably the most suitable place for a Royal School in Ireland.

The subjects studied by the boys were demanding: Mathematics, English, French, Latin and Greek for all pupils from Forms I to VI. There was some relief from the classroom, however, when the school's rugby team won the inaugural Ulster Schools' Cup in 1877.

The 20th century saw the school evolve from a fee-paying institution with some free places, serving a largely boarding community, into one attended mainly by day pupils from a wide catchment area.

Compulsory education had already made the school more accessible to those of more modest means. The most significant change came with the 1947 Education Act, which opened what had been seen as an elitist institution to pupils from all backgrounds who were successful in the qualifying examination, or 11-plus.

In response to this change and the inevitable increase in pupil numbers, further buildings were erected alongside the Preparatory Department, which had opened in 1940. A new teaching block was opened on the site of the headmaster's orchard in 1966, followed by the construction of a new Headmaster's Residence.

By the early 1970s there were more than 500 pupils, including 150 boarders. A small proportion of the boarders came from overseas, enriching the cultural mix within the school.

The 1970s and 1980s were difficult decades, with the Troubles and demographic decline in Armagh contributing to a considerable fall in pupil numbers among both day pupils and boarders.

A significant change in the character of the Royal School came in 1986 with the merger of the Royal School and Armagh Girls' High School, the town's girls' grammar school.

There is no precise date for the founding of the Girls' High School, but it is known to have begun as a private establishment early in the 20th century. By 1924 there were two private girls' schools in Armagh. In that year, Richmond High School, located on the Mall, merged its board of management with that of Armagh Girls' High School, although each school continued to operate separately until 1932.

An impressive new building was opened in 1954 to accommodate the enlarged pupil intake following the establishment of a single school and the passage of the 1947 Education Act.

Discussions about creating a co-educational selective school had started and stopped several times over the decades, but concrete proposals were not published until 1983.

The two schools finally merged in August 1986. Although boys and girls now attended classes together, the school continued to operate across two sites, with teachers commuting across the town, until extensions at College Hill were completed in 1990.

The school continues to be part of the civic and cultural life of Armagh. In 1994, the Big School Room in the Old Building was the venue where His Royal Highness Prince Charles announced that Her Majesty the Queen was conveying city status on Armagh.

During President Clinton's visit to Armagh in 1998, the school's Sports Hall became the White House information centre. In 2014, the school was the venue for the announcement of Ireland's bid to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

The school's 400th anniversary in 2008 was marked by a visit from Her Majesty the Queen, accompanied by His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh. They attended a reception at the school and met the headmasters and chairmen of the five Royal Schools in Ulster.

During the visit, the Queen broke with centuries of tradition by attending the first Maundy Thursday service to be held outside England and Wales. The service took place at St Patrick's Cathedral in Armagh, where the Queen presented Maundy purses to 164 people, 82 men and 82 women, recognised for their contributions to church or community life across Northern Ireland.

As part of the anniversary celebrations, representatives from the five Royal Schools were invited by Irish President Mary McAleese to her official residence at Áras an Uachtaráin in Phoenix Park, Dublin.

Further developments have included Furlong House, the Combined Cadet Force building, a Technology and Design Centre, a Fitness and Conditioning Suite and a Conference Room. Four Georgian houses in Armagh's historic Mall have also been purchased and refurbished to provide bespoke accommodation for Sixth Form boarders from across the globe. As part of this redevelopment, a 19th-century Grade II listed coach house was restored for boarding staff accommodation.