A King's Scholar is a scholar of Eton College, who has passed the College Election examination and is therefore admitted into a house, College, which is the oldest Eton house and comprised solely of King's Scholars. Eton College, or just Eton, is a world-famous British Independent school for boys founded in 1440 by King Henry VI. There are, at any one time, around 70 King's Scholars, and they are distinguished by the black gown which they wear. The other pupils at the school, more than 1200 of them, all boys, are known as Oppidans.

This gown is said to be the basis of the nickname "Tugs", from the Latin "gens togata", i. e. "toga'd people", although this particular slice of Eton argot has become less commonly heard in recent years.

As there are 70 King's Scholars, and they are in College for five years, approximately 14 are admitted per year (a "block" in Eton argot), and share every aspect of school life with the Oppidans (or Etonians who have entered Eton via Common Entrance), including lessons and school sport. They also have the privileged position of eating all their meals in College Hall, the old central hub of the school which has seen many distinguished diners in its long history including Elizabeth I. One other difference is that Collegers usually play the wall game in the winter term for the full five years, while Oppidans tend only to play it in their last year. The Eton wall game originated at Eton College. It has similarities to both the modern sports of Rugby union and football.

They also live in the central area of the school off School Yard, the fulcrum around which the school revolves, where both Eton College Chapel and Lupton's Tower are situated. The boarding house in which Collegers live includes New Buildings and Chamber. Chamber, the older section, includes rooms which look out onto School Yard, while New Buildings is on the reverse side and contains the majority of the boys' living spaces.

King's Scholars have the letters KS attached to their surnames in the school lists. Oppidans who have distinguished themselves academically are called Oppidan Scholars — they receive no financial benefit, but have OS attached to their surnames in the school lists.

King's Scholars at King's College Cambridge

The term King's Scholar is also used for those who obtain firsts at King's College Cambridge, who receive a small prize. This is a historical hang-over from scholarships endowed by the college's founder. (King's College Cambridge and Eton College were both founded by Henry VI, and are sister colleges. ) At King's it is rumoured that the right to use K. S. after a name is a privilege of King's Scholars, but the legal status of this is not clear.

The term King's Scholar is also used for scholars at Kings School Canterbury.

Famous ex-King's Scholars

• Lewis Gielgud, intelligence officer and Red Cross worker
• Harold Macmillan (later 1st Earl of Stockton)
• Boris Johnson, Mayor of London
• Eric Arthur Blair (pen name George Orwell)
• Aldous Huxley
• Douglas Hurd (Baron Hurd of Westwell)
• John Maynard Keynes
• Sir Robert Walpole
• Lord Hailsham
• Michael Beloff (Barrister)
• Julian Huxley
• Alfred Ayer
• J. B. S. Haldane
• Peter Warlock (composer)
• Richard Porson
• Cyril Connolly
• Cuthbert Ottaway (first England soccer captain and all-round athlete)
• Martin Taylor (businessman)
• James Arbuthnot (politician)
• Jamie Borwick, Lord Borwick, industrialist
• Charles Moore (Journalist)
• Noel Malcolm (writer)
• Pico Iyer (novelist)
• Arthur Rhys Davids D. Lewis Evelyn Gielgud, MBE ( June 11 1894 – February 25 1953, Paris) was a British scholar writer intelligence officer (Maurice Harold Macmillan 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC (10 February 1894 &ndash 29 December 1986 was a British Conservative Politician Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964 is a British Politician and Journalist. Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950 who used the Pseudonym George Orwell, was an English writer Aldous Leonard Huxley (26 July 1894 &ndash 22 November 1963 was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. Douglas Richard Hurd Baron Hurd of Westwell, CH, CBE, PC (born 8 March 1930 is a senior British Conservative Politician John Maynard Keynes 1st Baron Keynes CB (ˈkeɪnz "cains" (5 June 1883 &ndash 21 April 1946 was a British Economist whose ideas Robert Walpole 1st Earl of Orford, KG, KB, PC (26 August 1676 &ndash 18 March 1745 known before 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a Viscount Hailsham, of Hailsham in the County of Sussex is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The Honourable Michael J Beloff QC (b 1942 is a prominent English Barrister. Sir Julian Sorell Huxley FRS ( 22 June 1887 &ndash 14 February 1975) was an English Evolutionary biologist Sir Alfred Jules ("Freddie" Ayer ( October 29, 1910 &ndash June 27, 1989) better known as A John Burdon Sanderson Haldane FRS ( 5 November 1892 &ndash 1 December 1964) known as Jack (but who used 'J Peter Warlock was a Pseudonym of Philip Arnold Heseltine (30 October 1894 - 17 December 1930 an Anglo -Welsh composer and music critic Richard Porson ( 25 December 1759 &ndash 25 September 1808) was an English classical scholar. Cyril Vernon Connolly ( 10 September 1903 - 26 November 1974) was an English intellectual literary critic and writer Cuthbert John Ottaway ( 19 July 1850 - 2 April 1878) one of the most talented and versatile sportsmen of the 1870s was the first captain Martin Taylor, born 1952, is a businessman and former chief executive of Barclays Bank. James Norwich Arbuthnot (born 4 August 1952) is a British Conservative Party politician Charles Moore (born 31 October 1956) is a British Journalist and former editor of The Daily Telegraph (1995-2003 Noel Robert Malcolm FBA FRSL (born December 26 1956) is an English historian writer and columnist Pico Iyer (born 1957 is a British -born Essayist and Novelist of Indian descent Arthur Percival Foley Rhys Davids, DSO, MC and bar (26 September 1897 - 27 October 1917 was an ace fighter pilot during the First World War. S. O. , M. C. With bar. (First World War flying ace)
• Ralph Dominic Gamble M. Captain Ralph Dominic Gamble MC was born in Simla, India in 1897 C. (Army Officer)
• Robin Milner FRS (Computer scientist)
• John Paul Morrison (Inventor/discoverer of Flow-based programming)
• James Kenneth Stephen (Poet and suspect in the Jack the Ripper case)
• Stephen Wolfram (creator of Mathematica)
• Robert Armstrong, Baron Armstrong of Ilminster (originator of 'economical with the truth')
• Ferdinand Mount (journalist)
• Timothy Gowers (Fields Medal-winning mathematician)

External links

• Glossary of Eton Terms