Cathedral schools began in theEarly Middle Ages as centers of advanced education, some of them ultimately evolving intomedieval universities.[1] Throughout theMiddle Ages and beyond, they were complemented by themonastic schools. Some of these early cathedral schools, and more recent foundations, continued into modern times.
In the laterRoman Empire, asRoman municipal education declined, bishops began to establish schools associated with their cathedrals to provide the church with an educated clergy. The earliest evidence of a school established in this manner is inVisigothicSpain at theSecond Council of Toledo in 527.[2] These early schools, with a focus on an apprenticeship in religious learning under a scholarly bishop, have been identified in other parts of Spain and about twenty towns inGaul (France) during the sixth and seventh centuries.[3]
During and after the mission ofSt Augustine to England, cathedral schools were established as the new dioceses were themselves created (Canterbury 597,Rochester 604,York 627 for example). This group of schools forms theoldest schools continuously operating. A significant function of cathedral schools was to provideboy trebles for the choirs, evolving intochoir schools, some of which still function as such.[citation needed]
Charlemagne, king of the Franks and later Emperor, recognizing the importance of education to the clergy and, to a lesser extent, to the nobility, set out to restore this declining tradition by issuing several decrees requiring that education be provided at monasteries and cathedrals. In 789, Charlemagne'sAdmonitio Generalis required that schools be established in every monastery and bishopric, in which "children can learn to read; that psalms, notation, chant, computation, and grammar be taught."[4] Subsequent documents, such as the letterDe litteris colendis, required that bishops select as teachers men who had "the will and the ability to learn and a desire to instruct others"[5] and a decree of theCouncil of Frankfurt (794) recommended that bishops undertake the instruction of their clergy.[6]
Subsequently, cathedral schools arose in major cities such as Chartres, Orleans, Paris, Laon, Reims or Rouen in France and Utrecht, Liege, Cologne, Metz, Speyer, Würzburg, Bamberg, Magdeburg, Hildesheim or Freising in Germany. Following in the earlier tradition, these cathedral schools primarily taught future clergy and provided literate administrators for the increasingly elaborate courts of theRenaissance of the 12th century. Speyer was renowned for supplying the Holy Roman Empire with diplomats.[7] The court ofHenry I of England, himself an early example of a literate king, was closely tied to thecathedral school of Laon.[8]
 | This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(April 2010) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Cathedral schools were mostly oriented around the academic welfare of the nobility's children. Because it was intended to train them for careers in the church, girls were excluded from the schools. Later on, many lay students who were not necessarily interested in seeking a career in the church wanted to enroll. The demand arose for schools to teach government, state, and other Church affairs. The schools, (some notable ones dating back to the eighth and ninth centuries) accepted fewer than 100 students. Pupils had to demonstrate substantial intelligence and be able to handle a demanding academic course load. Considering that books were also expensive, students were in the practice of memorizing their teachers' lectures. Cathedral schools at this time were primarily run by a group of ministers and divided into two parts: Schola minor, which was intended for younger students, would later becomeelementary schools. Then there was the schola major, which taught older students. These would later becomesecondary schools.
The subjects taught at cathedral schools ranged from literature to mathematics. These topics were called theseven liberal arts:grammar,astronomy,rhetoric (or speech),logic,arithmetic,geometry andmusic. In grammar classes, students were trained to read, write and speakLatin which was the universal language in Europe at the time. Astronomy was necessary for calculating dates and times. Rhetoric was a major component of a vocal education. Logic consisted of the criteria for sound or fallacious arguments, particularly in a theological context, and arithmetic served as the basis for quantitative reasoning. Students read stories and poems in Latin by authors such as Cicero and Virgil. Much as in the present day, cathedral schools were split into elementary and higher schools with different curricula. The elementary school curriculum was composed of reading, writing and psalmody, while the high school curriculum wastrivium (grammar, rhetoric and logic), the rest of the liberal arts, as well asscripture study andpastoral theology.
While cathedral schools are no longer a significant site ofhigher education, manyRoman Catholic,Anglican, andLutheran cathedrals operate asprimary orsecondary schools. Most of those listed below are modern foundations, but a few traces their history to medieval schools.
Among others:
School types | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Byeducational stage |
| ||||||||||||||
| By funding / eligibility |
| ||||||||||||||
| By style / purpose |
| ||||||||||||||
| By location | |||||||||||||||
| By scope | |||||||||||||||
| Historical |
| ||||||||||||||
| Related topics | |||||||||||||||
