St. Servatius' College

St. Servatius' College is a boys' school located in Matara, Sri Lanka. The school was established in 1897 by recently arrived Belgian Jesuit missionaries, led by Joseph Van Reeth, first bishop of Galle and Father Augustus Standaert. St. Servatius' College is a national school, which provides primary and secondary education. This is the only school in Sri Lanka where three Governors of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka were educated. This is the only school in Sri Lanka that has produced national team captains in the sports of cricket, football and volleyball.

St. Servatius College
Location
St Servatius' Road, Kotuwegoda

Matara

Sri Lanka
Coordinates5.943903°N 80.551987°E / 5.943903; 80.551987
Information
TypeNational
MottoLatin: Esto - Vir
English: Be a Man
Religious affiliation(s)Roman Catholic
Patron saint(s)Saint Servatius of Tonegeren
Established2 November 1897 (1897-11-02)
FounderAugustus Standeart
Statuscatholic school
Sister schoolSt. Mary's Convent Matara
PrincipalH. K. L. B. Virajit
Staff200+
Teaching staff150+
Age range6 to 19
Number of students4500+
Color(s)Green and white
   
Song"Esto vir in matara"
SportsCricket, Football, Basketball, Tennis, Volleyball, Rugby, Chess, Karate, Wushu, Swimming
NicknameServatian
Websitewww.servatiuscollege.lk

History

St. Servatius' College was founded when the Bishop of Galle, Joseph Van Reeth(in French), wanted to create an educational infrastructure in the newly established diocese, and called on the Belgian Jesuits for help.[1] Father Augustus Standaert, among others, arrived in Galle in 1896, and on 2 November 1897, the priests opened an English medium school on a small plot of land on the banks of the River Nilwala in Pallimulla, Matara. The school opened with five students in 1896,[2] and within two years it had grown to accommodate 54 students.

Old St. Servatius' College

In August 1898, a new structure was erected for the school. As the construction funds came from the St. Servatius Jesuit school of Liège, Belgium, the Matara school adopted the name of this patron saint: Servatius of Tonegeren, a 4th-century Belgian missionary, and one of the first bishops in the area around Tongeren, Maastricht, and Liège.

Old St. Servatius College Main Hall
Old Joe Rajapaksa Hall

After some years the school was moved to its present location in Kotuwegoda, Matara.[3] In 1961, as part of a government program to take over private schools, the school was adopted by the Ministry of Education, although it remained administered by Roman Catholic fathers until 1965.

St. Servatius College principal and Staff

Currently, over 3,000 students are enrolled at St. Servatius' College. The school employs over one hundred staff, led by principal H. K. L. B. Virajith. It was made a Sri Lankan national school in 1993.[4]

Principals
OrdinalOfficeholderPeriod
1 Rev. Fr. Augustus Standaert 1897–1901
2 Rev. Fr. Adolph Closset 1901–1905
3 Rev. Fr.Anthony Weapon 1905
4 Rev. Fr. W. Wickramasinghe 1905–1910
5 Rev. Fr. A. Beernaert 1910
6 Rev. Fr. Samson Costa unknown
7 Rev. Fr. E. Frutsaert 1922
8 Rev. Fr. Olivier Feron 1922–1930
9 Rev. Fr. S. G. Perera unknown
10 Rev. Fr. S. Crubg unknown
11 Rev. Fr.E. Bastineer unknown
12 Rev. Fr.Terrence de Silva 1930–1933
13 Rev. Fr.Mark Anthony Fernando unknown
14 Rev. Fr.P. M. Baguet 1942–1945
15 Rev. Fr. Angia 1945
16 Rev. Fr. Alles 1945
17 Rev. Fr. C. Guida 1945–1947
18 Rev. Fr. Joe Rajapakse 1947–1966
19 S. E. Munaweera 1967–1968
20 J. Shelton De Silva 1968–1970
21 S. K. H. Jayawardena 1970–1971
22 G. L. Galappaththi 1971–1985
23 K. A. Dharmadasa 1985–1986
24 M. J. Gunasekera 1987–1997
25 A. H. N. Jayaweera 1997
26 M. G. R. M. Wijesinghe 1997–1998
27 D. Jayaweera 1998–2000
28 W. Somawantha 2000–2001
29 Kodippili 2001–2002
30 D. Vidanapathirana 2002–2008
31 Nimalsiri Wanigabadhu 2008–2012
32 Ashoka Kumara 2012 – April 2013
33 K. Ranasinha April 2013 – October 2014
34 M. Rathnasekara October 2014 – 2018
35 K. H. L. M. Kawshalya 2018 – 2019
36 H. K. L. B. Virajith 2019 – present
Rev Fr Joe Rajapaksa

College houses

College house names are listed in alphabetical order.

  • Adolphust -  
  • Beernaert -  
  • Standaert -  
  • Walter -  

St. Thomas'–St. Servatius Cricket Encounter

The St. Thomas'–St. Servatius Cricket Encounter, known as the Battle of the Blues, is the annual cricket match played between St. Servatius' College and St. Thomas' College, Matara. The match has been played since 1900, and is the second-oldest school cricket series in Sri Lanka.

Notable alumni

Category:Alumni of St. Servatius' College

Name Notability Reference
Sanath Jayasuriya International Cricket player (1989–2011), Member of Parliament for Matara (2010–2015) [5]
Ruchira Palliyaguruge International Cricket umpire (2011-present), first-class cricket player (1989–2008)
Kasun Rajitha International Cricket player (2016–present) [6]
Anslem de Silva Biologist, herpetologist
Warnasena Rasaputra Governor of Central Bank (1979-88)
N. U. Jayawardena 1st Ceylonese Governor of Central Bank (1953-54), founder of Sampath Bank (1986-?) [7]
Sunil Mendis Governor of Central Bank (2004-06)
Anura Senanayake Senior DIG of Sri Lankan Police
Bandu Samarasinghe Actor
Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena Member of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (2004-10) [8]
Dullas Alahapperuma Member of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (1994-2001, 2015-present) [9]
Justin Galappaththi Member of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (2001-04)
Mahinda Wijesekara Member of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (1989-94, 2001-04)
Chathura Gunaratne National Footballer (2006-14)
Kavindu Ishan National Footballer (2010-?)

See also

References
  1. "The history of St. Servatius College".
  2. "The history of St. Servatius College".
  3. "Present Premises".
  4. "The College History and the Present". Wordpress. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
  5. Fernando, Leslie (22 June 2008). "Master-blaster Sanath won Observer Outstation Cricketer Award in 1988". Sunday Observer. Archived from the original on 5 July 2009. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
  6. "Kasun Rajitha". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  7. K. Godage (29 October 2010). "NU Jayawardena: The colossus from Tangalle". Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  8. Political stability, vital for economic growth - Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardana
  9. "BUSINESS TODAY -Dullas Alahapperuma Outlines the track record". www.businesstoday.lk. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
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