La Martinière College is a consortium of bi-national elite private schools, majority of them located in India. They are officially non-denominational private schools with units of two-two branches in Indian cities of Kolkata and Lucknow respectively and in France, the consortium is represented by a number of three branches in Lyons.
La Martinière Schools were founded posthumously by Major General Claude Martin, in the early 19th century. Martin had acquired a large fortune while serving the Nawab of Awadh Asaf-ud-Daula and bequeathed a major part of his estate to establish the schools. His will outlined every detail of the schools, from their location to the manner of celebrating the annual Founder's Day. The seven branches function independently, but maintain close contacts and share most traditions.
La Martinière College, Lucknow was awarded a Battle Honour – 'Defense of Lucknow' for the part the staff and pupils played in the Defence of the Residency at Lucknow during the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857 – the only school in the world so distinguished.
La Martinière Calcutta and La Martinière Lucknow consist of separate girls' and boys' schools, while the three in La Martinière Lyon are co-educational. The Colleges are day schools, but Indian units have boarding facilities as well. Extra-curricular activities, including sports and community service organizations, are emphasized, and music and dance are included in the general curriculum.
Major-General Claude Martin, the founder
Claude Martin was born on 5 January 1735 in Lyon, France. He came to India when he was seventeen. After the French influence declined in India, he served in the British East India Company and rose to the rank of Major-General. After taking up residence in Lucknow, he occupied an important position in the court of Nawab Shuja-ud-Daulah and later his son, Asaf-ud-Daula.
During this period Martin accumulated a fortune of about 4,000,000 rupees. He built the palace of 'Constantia' and his fine house of Farud Baksh, both of which he equipped with luxuries that included a library of some 4,000 volumes written in many languages and a picture gallery containing a collection of works of art.
Martin died in Lucknow on 13 September 1800. According to his will, he was buried in the vault prepared for his remains in the basement of the college in Lucknow.
The major portion of his estate was left for the founding of three institutions, one each at Lucknow, Calcutta and his birthplace Lyon in France. It took 30 years to dispose of the litigation arising out of Claude Martin's will. Finally, as the result of a Supreme Court decision, La Martinière Schools opened in Calcutta, on 1 March 1836.
Though his will had not mentioned any ethnic or religious restrictions on those who would be allowed to apply to the institutions of learning, the La Martinier College in Calcutta (after thirty years of litigation) only permitted European and Armenian Christians to apply. Coming about due to changing attitudes towards race among the Company administration in India, the school only permitted Indian students (of any religious denomination) to apply in 1935.
La Martinière coat of arms
The La Martinière coat of arms was designed by the founder Claude Martin. It is supported by seven flags, each bearing the design of a fish, the emblem of Oudh. The devices on the escutcheon appear to epitomise Claude Martin's life. The ship recalls his voyage to India where he established his fortune. The flag with the pennant represents his career as an officer in the East India Company and with the Nawab of Oudh The setting sun behind the castellated building to the right of the fish has been said to point to the sunset of his days and the large part which the building of "Constantia" played in his later years. The coat of arms and the accompanying motto "Labore et Constantia"" are now shared by all the schools founded by Martin.
The La Martinere College flag consists of the coat of arms on a blue and gold background. The flag is generally flown above the buildings, and used for formal events and celebrations, such as the annual Founder's Day.
The seal is engraved on the school buildings.
College traditions
Founder's Day
Founder's Day is commemorated every year on 13 September, the day Claude Martin died. Some of the traditions of this day include an extended formal assembly in the morning with a faculty march, a speech by a prominent guest or alumnus, the playing of bagpipes, singing of the school song and other selected hymns by the College choir, and the laying of a wreath at Claude Martin's tomb.