La Martiniere College: Everything You Need To Know

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La Martiniere College, Lucknow would soon be starting its 175th academic session, a landmark for any educational institute in the world. To say that La Martiniere is just another big school would be an understatement. The institution has several achievements under its feet that no other school in India can lay claim on.

The History

The first academic session of the school began in 1845, 45 years after the death of Major General Claude Martin, a native of France serving in the English East India Company. Martin in his will had stated that upon his death an educational institution for boys should be established at his place of residence in Lucknow called Constantia. After years of legal disputes, the first day of classes was held on October 1, 1845, a day which is now celebrated every year as Constantia Day.

Another important milestone in the school’s history came during the Revolt of 1857 in Lucknow. Residency, a British stronghold was under siege by the revolting populace. A group of boys from La Martiniere along with their Principal George Schilling were tasked with helping the British forces defend the stronghold. The school was granted Military Honours by the British Empire for defending the Residency and till date remains the only educational institute in India to be given this honour.

Initially, only the sons of British Officers were allowed to study at La Martiniere but as time progressed  Indians were also granted the right to study at the prestigious institute. Now, more than 5000 boys are studying at La Martinere College, Lucknow. The students are divided among Day-Scholars and Resident Scholars.

Each student is assigned a house when they leave pre-school. The Four Houses at La Martiniere are Lyons (Yellow), Hodson (Red), Cornwallis (Green) and Martin (Blue). All the intra-college competitions are held along the lines of these houses.

Campus: The La Martiniere College Estate

The Institute consists of two campuses called the Junior School Campus and the Constantia Campus. Three academic blocks make up the Junior School Campus which houses classes for the Pre-School Section (Nursery and Preparatory)  and the Junior Section (Standards 1 to 4). Class 5 onwards the students are shifted to the Constantia Campus which consists of the Middle School (Standards 5 to 8) and the Senior School (Standards 9 to 12). The Constantia Campus also contains the four dormitories where the residential scholars live.

Constantia, the residence of the founder of the college is the centre point of the senior campus. In the basement of the main building lies the tomb of the Late General. The library and the College Chapel are placed above the tomb. Facing Constantia is The Laat, a monolith with its base in the Gomti River. The East Terrace lies between the Laat and the main building where the assembly is held till this day. As the college faces the Gomti River, the water would overrun the college during the monsoon season, there have been documented accounts of students coming to the school on boats. A Bund was later constructed to keep the water out. Over the years the Gomti River has subsided and now a park has been constructed around the Laat.

The College Office is located on the North Wing of the main building as well as the Computer Labs. The South Wing houses classrooms for the Middle School. Two large halls lie adjacent to Constantia, the Spence Hall serves as the college auditorium while the Sykes Hall serves as the dining hall for the resident scholars.

Above the Sykes Hall is the science department of the college. Chemistry, Physics, Biology and BioTechnology Labs are located here.

The size of the Martiniere Estate is around 400 acre which has allowed the school to construct fields for various sports including Cricket, Football, Golfing, Archery and even Horse Riding. The campus also has a Tennis faculty and a skating arena. The institute is one of the few remaining schools in India to have a boxing arena as well as a Baseball pitch.

The Polo Ground is a large open field located opposite the Junior School Campus serves as a multipurpose sports field. The Annual Athletic Meet is held on this field. ‘Fairydale’ which is located on the South Side of the campus is used extensively for Cricket. Located parallel to the ‘Bulls Ring’ is the college swimming pool.

The favourite hangout place of the students on the Constantia Campus is the fully air-conditioned College Canteen. The Canteen serves the now iconic ‘Bun-Tac’, a dish made of bun and butter.

Academics

La Martiniere College is affiliated to Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE). The 10th Standard students write the ICSE board examination while the 12th Standard students write the ISC board examinations. English is a compulsory subject for all students studying at La Martiniere. Other Languages taught at La Martinere include Hindi, Sanskrit, French and Urdu. While Hindi is compulsory till 10th Standard, students can choose between French, Sanskrit and Urdu from 5th Standard onwards.

Each year is divided into two terms. The examinations for the First Term are held in September while examinations for the Final Term are held in March. Students with academic achievement are awarded on the Prize Day.

Commerce subjects such as Commercial Studies and Economics are offered in 9th Standard. After their 10th Standard board examination, students can decide between Science, Commerce and Humanities streams. In ICSE 2019 Examinations 347 candidates were offered pass certificates. The topper of the batch was Druv Misra with an astounding 97.8%. In ISC 2019, Dhaval Gupta was the topper in the commerce department with 99.25%(Ranking 4th in India). Adnan Aslam in science with 98.25%. Abhinav Yadav in Humanities with 97.50%.

The teacher to student ratio is 1:25 which ensures individual attention to each student. La Martiniere College was ranked as the 9th best day school in India by Education World and Centre for Forecasting Pvt Ltd (C fore) along with being ranked as the second best school in Lucknow by Uniform Application.

The La Martiniere Boarding House

La Martiniere has a boarding strength of over 500 students, from classes 3rd to 12th, from every corner of the country, and this number keeps increasing with each passing year. The boarding house has also been able to attract students even from neighbouring countries such as Nepal. The boarding routine which dedicates equal time to studies and sports sees to it that every residential scholar excels at all the avenues of school life. The boarding house is divided into four dormitories which are treated as home by the students.

Co-Curricular Activities

La Martiniere College, Lucknow offers a wide range of Co-Curricular Activities for the holistic growth of its students. The twenty plus clubs that the school offers form the basis of life outside the classroom for the students. They not only concentrate on the physical development of the student but also in inculcating skills like leadership, teamwork and discipline. Specific time has been allocated for CCA activities every week, Tuesdays in the Junior Campus and Thursdays in the Constantia Campus.

The NCC

The National Cadet Corp is an integral part of student life at La Martiniere. The students can become part of the NCC as early as the 5th Standard. Being a part of the NCC teaches students discipline and officer like qualities. Marching is an important aspect of the NCC, marchpasts are held of occasions such as Republic Day, Independence Day and Prize Day. A march past competition is held between the different wings of the NCC in December called the Hashman Memorial Drill Competition. Several NCC camps are held throughout the academic year.

Sports

Availability of fields for individual sports has allowed La Martiniere to establish clubs for these sports. Apart from the usual sports clubs like Cricket, Football, Hockey, Badminton, Tennis, the school offers some unusual ones like Archery and Horse Riding. The College has two stables which are home to more than fifteen horses, professional trainers teach horseback riding early in the morning.

The vacant plot on the west side of the campus has been converted into an Archery Range for the students interested in that sport. The college Shooting Range is a hangout spot for students with good aim, some of whom have been won National Level Championships.

Boxing returned to La Martinere in 2016 after a very long hiatus. Inter House matches are held regularly. The newest sport to enter La Martiniere is Baseball which was started in 2018. Taking advantage of the nearby flowing Gomti River, the school has started its own Rowing Club.

Public Speaking

Debating and Elocution have been an eminent part of CCA at La Martiniere. Multiple debating and elocution competitions are held throughout the year. There is a longstanding tradition of boys participating in inter-school competitions such as the Frank Anthony Memorial Debates.

Another recent development in the infrastructure of the school has been the opening of the Media Lab in the North Wing. The newly formed Media Club operates the school’s own radio station.

CCA Organization

La Martiniere College Extra Co-Curilicar Organization(LEO) is a student-run body that organizes Constantia, a week-long cultural fest filled to the brim with inter-school competitions. OXARO was another student-run organization that was primarily involved in arranging interschool sports competitions and various tech-based events but it has now been absorbed by LEO.

La Martiniere MUN Society

La Martiniere has been organizing Model United Nations since 2014, the boys regularly participate in MUN conferences throughout India. The MUN club is dedicated to helping the boys craft their public speaking skills. Recently at the United Ambassadors’ Model United Nations Conference in Geneva, Switzerland the delegation from La Martiniere was adjudged the Best Delegation.

Notable Alumni: The Pride of La Martiniere

Equal focus on CCA and academics is a staple of La Martiniere College, Lucknow and has been for many years and will continue to be so. The holistic education offered at La Martiniere has produced many achievers.

Mr Ranjendra K Pachauri, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007.

Denzil and Trevor Keelor, Veer Charkra Awardees for 1971 Indo-Pak War.

Mr Rajinder Khanna, former RAW Chief and Deputy National Security Adviser of India.

Maj. Tushar Gauba, 2005 Batch who was offered the Kriti Chakra in 2019.

Group Captain Anubhav Tripathi a pupil of the Batch of 1995 of Martin House, was awarded the Vayu Sena Medal, 2019.

Dushyant Singh, Additional Director General of Police,1978 Batch, was awarded the President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service.

Santosh Mehrotra, a major Indian figure in National and International affairs.

Ashok Soota, executive chairman and co-founder of Happiest Minds Technologies.

Vinod Mehta, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Outlook Magazine

Mukul Deva, eminent author of thriller novels

Akash Banerjee, political satirist, 2000 Batch

Ali Fazal, a major Bollywood and Hollywood actor, appearing in movies like Furious 7(2015)