# St. Servatius' College, Matara

St. Servatius' College is a boys' school located in Matara, Sri Lanka. The school was established in 1897 by recently arrived Belgian Jesuit missionaries, led by Joseph Van Reeth, first bishop of Galle and Father Augustus Standaert. St. Servatius' College is a national school, which provides primary and secondary education. This is the only school in Sri Lanka where three Governors of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka were educated. This is the only school in Sri Lanka that has produced national team captains in the sports of cricket, football and volleyball.

## History

St. Servatius' College was founded when the Bishop of Galle, Joseph Van Reeth (in French), wanted to create an educational infrastructure in the newly established diocese, and called on the Belgian Jesuits for help.
Father Augustus Standaert and a few other Belgian Jesuits arrived in Galle in 1896, and on 2 November 1897, the priests opened an English medium school on a small plot of land on the banks of the River Nilwala in Pallimulla, Matara. The school opened with five students in 1896, and within two years it had grown to accommodate 54 students.
In August 1898, a new structure was erected for the school. As the construction funds came from the St. Servatius Jesuit school of Liège, Belgium, the Matara school adopted the name of this patron saint: Servais de Tongres, a 4th-century Belgian missionary, and one of the first bishops in the area around Tongeren, Maastricht, and Liège.
After some years the school was moved to its present location in Kotuwegoda, Matara. In 1961, as part of a government program to take over private schools, the school was adopted by the Ministry of Education, although it remained administered by Roman Catholic fathers until 1965.
Currently, over 3,000 students are enrolled at St. Servatius' College. The school employs over one hundred staff, led by principal H. K. L. B. Virajith. It was made a Sri Lankan national school in 1993.

## Principals

| Ordinal | Officeholder | Period |
| 1 | Rev. Fr. Augustus Standaert | 1897–1901 |
| 2 | Rev. Fr. Adolph Closset | 1901–1905 |
| 3 | Rev. Fr.Anthony Weapon | 1905 |
| 4 | Rev. Fr. W. Wickramasinghe | 1905–1910 |
| 5 | Rev. Fr. A. Beernaert | 1910 |
| 6 | Rev. Fr. Samson Costa | unknown |
| 7 | Rev. Fr. E. Frutsaert | 1922 |
| 8 | Rev. Fr. Olivier Feron | 1922–1930 |
| 9 | Rev. Fr. S. G. Perera | unknown |
| 10 | Rev. Fr. S. Crubg | unknown |
| 11 | Rev. Fr.E. Bastineer | unknown |
| 12 | Rev. Fr.Terrence de Silva | 1930–1933 |
| 13 | Rev. Fr.Mark Anthony Fernando | unknown |
| 14 | Rev. Fr.P. M. Baguet | 1942–1945 |
| 15 | Rev. Fr. Angia | 1945 |
| 16 | Rev. Fr. Alles | 1945 |
| 17 | Rev. Fr. C. Guida | 1945–1947 |
| 18 | Rev. Fr. Joe Rajapakse | 1947–1966 |
| 19 | S. E. Munaweera | 1967–1968 |
| 20 | J. Shelton De Silva | 1968–1970 |
| 21 | S. K. H. Jayawardena | 1970–1971 |
| 22 | G. L. Galappaththi | 1971–1985 |
| 23 | K. A. Dharmadasa | 1985–1986 |
| 24 | M. J. Gunasekera | 1987–1997 |
| 25 | A. H. N. Jayaweera | 1997 |
| 26 | M. G. R. M. Wijesinghe | 1997–1998 |
| 27 | D. Jayaweera | 1998–2000 |
| 28 | W. Somawantha | 2000–2001 |
| 29 | Kodippili | 2001–2002 |
| 30 | D. Vidanapathirana | 2002–2008 |
| 31 | Nimalsiri Wanigabadhu | 2008–2012 |
| 32 | Ashoka Kumara | 2012 – April 2013 |
| 33 | K. Ranasinha | April 2013 – October 2014 |
| 34 | M. Rathnasekara | October 2014 – 2018 |
| 35 | K. H. L. M. Kawshalya | 2018 – 2019 |
| 36 | H. K. L. B. Virajith | 2019 – present |

## College houses

College house names are listed in alphabetical order.
* Adolphust -
* Beernaert -
* Standaert -
* Walter -

## St. Thomas'–St. Servatius Cricket Encounter

The St. Thomas'–St. Servatius Cricket Encounter, known as the Battle of the Blues, is the annual cricket match played between the cricket teams of St. Servatius' College and St. Thomas' College, Matara. The match has been played since 1900, and is the second-oldest school cricket series in Sri Lanka.

## Notable alumni

| Name | Notability |
| Sanath Jayasuriya | International Cricket player (1989–2011), Member of Parliament for Matara (2010–2015) |
| Ruchira Palliyaguruge | International Cricket umpire (2011-present), first-class cricket player (1989–2008) |
| Kasun Rajitha | International Cricket player (2016–present) |
| Anslem de Silva | Biologist, herpetologist |
| Warnasena Rasaputra | Governor of Central Bank (1979-88) |
| N. U. Jayawardena | 1st Ceylonese Governor of Central Bank (1953-54), founder of Sampath Bank (1986-?) |
| Sunil Mendis | Governor of Central Bank (2004-06) |
| Anura Senanayake | Senior DIG of Sri Lankan Police |
| Bandu Samarasinghe | Actor |
| Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena | Member of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (2004-10) |
| Dullas Alahapperuma | Member of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (1994-2001, 2015-present) |
| Justin Galappaththi | Member of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (2001-04) |
| Mahinda Wijesekara | Member of Sri Lankan Parliament for Matara (1989-94, 2001-04) |
| Chathura Gunaratne | National Footballer (2006-14) |
| Kavindu Ishan | National Footballer (2010-?) |