Memorial to Queen Victoria
- and her Scottish soldiers

THE idea of building a school in Scotland to commemorate the services of Scottish soldiers and sailors who fell in the South African War was first mooted in 1901.
It was not till the autumn of the following year, however, that the idea began to take shape. And, as the Empire was at that time mourning the loss of
Queen Victoria, it was decided that the school should serve the dual purpose                of
commemorating Scotland's fallen hero’s and also act as a memorial to the late Sovereign.
England had had for many years a similar school in London, Ireland boasted one based in Dublin, and the want of such a school was felt by all the Scottish regiments.
The idea was taken up enthusiastically by those same regiments, their friends and by the Scottish public in general.
The money collected for the purpose by public subscription eventually amounted to £65,000.
The raising of these funds, the formation of an executive council, the selecting of plans, the choosing of a suitable site, the intricate negotiations as to the constitution of the school between the War Office and the Commissioners, and many other sundry matters, resulted in several years passing before the actual building materialised.
Building work did not start on the site at Dunblane until 1906 with the school being officially opened by King Edward VII on September 28, 1908.
The first batch of boys entered the school in summer 1909, 50 being selected from those who were nominated and a further 30 being

chosen as priority cases by the Commandant.
Four other boys joined the school at the time, two being transferred from the Duke of York's Royal Military School and two from the Royal Hibernian School.
On June 18, 1910, Waterloo Day, the memorial chapel was formally opened and dedicated by the Right Rev Dr McAdam Muir, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.
The swimming bath, the gift of local businessman Edmund Pullar, was also completed in 1910.
Three years later the hospital             and
gymnasium were added with the original playhall, library and science room following in 1914.
The facilities were considered excellent by the standards of those times and it was not till after the 1939-45 war that it began to be          considered somewhat "old-fashioned".
It was also about this time that the War Department, faced with   modern requirements of accommodation, ruled that the space available would necessitate the reduction of the school's capacity from 250 boys to 220.
Most were aware,
however, that this was an uneconomic move as it cost as much to staff the school for 220 as it did for 250.
 

About 1950 the Commissioners decided to bring the whole scheme of education at the school up to date to conform fully with the current system of primary and secondary education in Scotland.
This led to the introduction of civilian teachers into what had previously been an all-military teaching staff and it’s plans for a complete new teaching and accommodation block.
The construction of a new two court squash block in 1961 started the activity and the following year work got underway on a new three-storey teaching and junior dormitory building.
The block opened in 1963   with   a   new playhall following in 1964   and    a   new library in 1967.
It took more than 70 years for Queen Victoria School to settle into the accommodation and routine which allows it to operate so effectively today.
And now the winds of change are set to blow through the establishment once again when Appeal '90 reaches its required target and attracts the £600,000 necessary to fund the building of a new games hall for the school.