Cheltenham College

Cheltenham College was founded in July 1841 by two Cheltenham residents — G. S. Harcourt and J. S. Iredell — at a meeting at Harcourt's home in November 1840. It was the first of the great mid-Victorian "Proprietary Schools" founded to educate the sons of gentlemen and to provide an alternative to the then-elite ancient public schools. The college originally opened in three houses along Bays Hill Terrace in central Cheltenham and within two years moved to its present site, with Boyne House as the first College Boarding House. The school was uniquely divided into a Classical Side and a Military Side from foundation until the mid-twentieth century, recognising the Cheltenham Spa's role as a centre for retired Indian Army officers; the Military Side prepared boys directly for Sandhurst and the Royal Military Academy, and produced a substantial cohort of British Army general officers and Indian Army officers across the late Victorian and early twentieth-century era.

The 1893 book Great Public Schools by E. S. Skirving, S. R. James, and Henry Churchill Maxwell Lyte included Cheltenham College among the ten greatest English public schools — a striking ranking for a school then only fifty years old. The College is governed by the Cheltenham College Council and is a member of the HMC.

The school today educates around 750 pupils aged 13-18 in the Senior School, with full boarding and day provision; additional pre-prep (Kingfishers) and junior provision serves ages 3-11. The Head from 2026 is Chris Townsend, previously of Highgate School. The Cheltenham College fees of £37,000-£50,500 per annum place it among the most expensive boarding schools in the United Kingdom.

Cheltenham first admitted girls in 1969 (sixth form), opened its first girls' house in 1981, and became fully co-educational in 1998. The college maintains a separate identity from the sister school Cheltenham Ladies' College, which was founded in 1853 on a different site under a different governance structure. Cheltenham College's alumni — "Cheltonians" — include a particularly strong cohort of senior military officers reflecting the Classical/Military Sides tradition, alongside Royal Academicians, Olympic athletes and Russell Group academics. The college operates a substantial bursary programme and remains one of the most distinctive Victorian-era English public schools.