King's College, Auckland
Independent, day & boarding school
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
King's College (Latin: Collegium Regis; Māori: Kīngi Kāreti), often informally referred to simply as King's, is an independent secondary boarding and day school in New Zealand. It educates over 1000 pupils, aged 13 to 18 years. King's was originally a single sex boys school but has admitted girls in the Sixth and Seventh forms (Years 12 and 13) since 1980, and in the Fifth form (Year 11) since 2016.[3] King's was founded in 1896 by Graham Bruce. King's was originally situated in Remuera, Auckland, on the site now occupied by King's School, Remuera, in 1922 the school moved to its present site in the South Auckland suburb of Ōtāhuhu.[4]
| King's College | |
|---|---|
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| Location | |
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| Coordinates | 36.9584°S 174.838160°E |
| Information | |
| Other name | King's |
| Type | Independent, Day & Boarding |
| Motto | Latin: Virtus Pollet (Good Character Prevails[1]) |
| Religious affiliation | Anglican |
| Established | 1896; 130 years ago |
| Ministry of Education Institution no. | 89 |
| Headmaster | Patrick Gale |
| Years | 9–13 |
| Gender | Junior: Boys Senior: Co-ed |
| Enrolment | 1,235[2] (March 2026) |
| Colour | Maroon |
| Socio-economic decile | 10 |
| Affiliations | G20 Schools Round Square Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference |
| Alumni name | Old Collegians |
| School Song | Carmen Regale |
| Website | www |
The school has strong links to the Anglican church; the Anglican Bishop of Auckland and the Dean of Auckland are permanent members of the school's board of governors. The college is a member of the Round Square group. King's celebrated its 125-year anniversary in 2021, while the 40 year anniversary of girls attending King's was celebrated in 2020.[5]
King's is included in The Schools Index of the world's 150 best private schools and the top 5 Australasian private schools.[6]
Senior leadership
Enrolment
As a private school, King's College, Auckland charges tuition fees to cover costs. For the 2025 school year, tuition fees for New Zealand residents are $32,200 per year. Boarding fees are an additional $18,640 per year.[8]
As of March 2026, the school has roll of 1,235 students, of which 155 (12.6%) identify as Māori.[2] As a private school, the school is not assigned an Equity Index.
Sports
King's College competes in the 1A Rugby Competition and has won 16 times, most recently in 2019.[9] The annual King's College v Auckland Grammar School rugby game is one of the oldest rivalries in New Zealand schoolboy rugby. The King's 1st XI Cricket team won the Gillette Cup in consecutive years between 2009 and 2011, producing notable cricketers with the most recent being Tim Southee.
Teaching and community activities
The school, like some others in New Zealand, offers students Cambridge A-Level, and IGCSE courses as well as those from New Zealand's national qualification, the National Certificate of Educational Achievement.
The school co-ordinates a service programme which aids the South Auckland community.
Houses
All students are organised into Houses, which form separate communities within the College.[10]
| Name | Established | Gender | Boarding or Day | Colour |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| School | 1922 | Boys | Boarding | Red
|
| St John's | 1922 | Boys | Boarding | Blue
|
| Parnell | 1924 | Boys | Day | Gold[11]
|
| Selwyn | 1945 | Boys | Boarding | Green
|
| Marsden | 1947 | Boys | Day | White
|
| Peart | 1947 | Boys | Day | Sky blue
|
| Major | 1959 | Boys | Day | Black
|
| Averill | 1961 | Boys | Day | Brown
|
| Middlemore | 1984 | Girls | Boarding | Maroon
|
| Greenbank | 1997 | Boys | Day | Grey
|
| Taylor | 2006 | Girls | Day | Purple
|
| Marion Bruce | 2020 | Girls | Day | Teal
|
Traditions
School song
The school song of King's College is the Carmen Regale, the melody of which was composed by Dutchman Eduard Kremser and the lyrics were authored by I G G Strachan.[12][13] The school song is shared, among some other things, with King's School in Remuera.
Heritage listings
Three locations within King's College are included on the Heritage New Zealand List. King's College Chapel, designed by Richard Abbott, is a late Gothic style brick chapel opened in 1925 and is listed as a category 1 historic place.[14] King's College Main Block, and the statue dedicated to former headmaster Charles Thomas Major are both category 2 historic places.[15][16]
Notable alumni
King's alumni or former pupils are traditionally named Old Boys or Collegians.
Academic
- George Cawkwell – ancient historian
- Richard F. Thomas — classicist
Arts
- Noel Bamford – architect
- Jack Body – composer
- John Batten – actor
- Marton Csokas – actor
- David de Lautour – actor
- Miles Gregory – founder of Pop-up Globe
- Laura Hill – actor
- Elizabeth Marvelly – singer[17]
- Jamie McDell – singer
- George Tole – architect
- James Wallace – businessman, arts patron, and convicted sex offender
- KJ Apa – actor[18]
Business
- Jamie Beaton - founder of Crimson Education
- Sam Chisholm – former chief executive Nine Network and British Sky Broadcasting
- Rob Fenwick – Sustainable Advisory Panel
- Hugh Fletcher – chief executive of Fletcher Challenge
- Douglas Myers – brewer, philanthropist
- David Richwhite – merchant banker (of Fay, Richwhite)[19]
Public service
- John Manchester Allen (1901–1941), MP for the National Party[20]
- Douglas Rivers Bagnall, DSO DFC (1918–2001), RAF Wing Commander, notable WWII Wellington bomber pilot and commander[21]
- John Percy Bayly, Member of the Legislative Council of Fiji
- Sir Peter Blanchard, KNZM, PC – Justice of the Supreme Court of New Zealand, Member of the British Privy Council
- Roy Calvert, DFC (1913–2002), WWII pilot
- Brian Carbury, DFC (1918–1962), leading flying ace of the Battle of Britain
- Sir Robert Chambers, KNZM, QC - Justice of the Supreme Court of New Zealand[22]
- Andrew Coster, Police Commissioner[23]
- Paul East, CNZM, KC, PC – former Cabinet Minister and High Commissioner to the United Kingdom[24]
- Sir Leon Götz, KCVO, (1892–1970), MP for the National Party[25]
- Sir John Henry, KNZM, KC – Justice of the Court of Appeal of New Zealand, Privy Councillor (see Privy Council of the United Kingdom)
- Colin Kay, CBE – former Mayor of Auckland and New Zealand triple jump champion[26]
- John Lewis – former Headmaster, Eton College and Geelong Grammar School
- Sir Jim McLay, KNZM, QSO – former Deputy Prime Minister, former leader of the National Party,[27] former Permanent Representative to the United Nations (New York) for New Zealand, and former Representative of New Zealand to the Palestinian Authority
- Simon Moore, KC – Justice of the High Court
- Sir Keith Park, GCB, KBE, MC & Bar, DFC, RAF – New Zealand soldier, World War I flying ace and World War II senior Royal Air Force commander, the key military figure in the Battle of Britain
- Geoffrey Sim, QSO, (1911–2002), Member of Parliament representing the National Party[28]
- George Tupou V, (1948–2012), King of Tonga from 2006 to 2012
- Sam Uffindell, Member of Parliament representing the National Party[29]
- T. M. Wilkes, CBE, MC (1888–1958), Controller of Civil Aviation, New Zealand, developer and regulator of civil aviation policy[30]
Science
- Charles Fleming – scientist and environmentalist
- Allan Wilson – evolutionary biologist
Sport
- Pita Alatini – All Blacks rugby player
- Teariki Ben-Nicholas – Rugby player for the Highlanders
- James Bevin – First-class cricketer
- Daniel Braid – 2002–03 All Blacks, 2002– Auckland NPC and Blues Super 14 rugby teams
- Mark Chapman — Black Caps cricketer
- Marcus Child – New Zealand hockey player
- Simon Child – New Zealand hockey player
- Mark Craig – Black Caps cricketer
- Peter Dignan – Olympic bronze medallist: rowing
- Alistair Dryden – Commonwealth Games silver medallist: rowing[31]
- Ryan Fox – Professional Golfer
- Peter Hillary – Son of Sir Edmund Hillary, mountaineer and motivational speaker
- Bill Hunt – Olympic skier
- Josh Ioane – All Blacks and Highlanders rugby player
- Mitchell Karpik – Maori All Blacks and Chiefs rugby player
- Ian Kirkpatrick – All Blacks rugby player and captain
- James Lay – Samoa and Bristol Bears rugby player
- Jonah Lowe – Maori All Blacks and Hurricanes rugby player
- Stefan Marinovic – Wellington Phoenix and New Zealand football goalkeeper
- Hamish Marshall – New Zealand Test/ODI cricketer
- James Marshall – New Zealand Test/ODI cricketer
- Peter Masfen – Olympic rower[31]
- Anthony Mosse – Olympic bronze medallist, Commonwealth Games double gold medallist, silver medallist and bronze medallist
- Francis Manuleleua – rugby league player
- Jared Panchia – New Zealand hockey player
- James Parsons – All Blacks and North Harbour NPC and Blues Super 14 Rugby teams (Captain)
- Marcel Renata – Maori All Blacks and Blues rugby player
- Jamie Smith – New Zealand hockey player and captain
- Kim Smith – Olympic long distance runner[32]
- Tim Southee – Black Caps cricketer
- Rob Waddell – Olympic gold medallist: rowing; crew Member Emirates Team NZ
- Ali Williams – All Blacks and Auckland NPC and Blues Super 14 Rugby teams
- Dan Williamson – Olympic gold medallist in rowing[33]
Headmasters
The following individuals have served as headmaster of King's College.
| Period | Headmaster |
|---|---|
| 1896–1901 | Graham Bruce[34] |
| 1902–1904 | G Bigg-Wither[34] |
| 1904–1905 | L G W Wilkinson[34] |
| 1905–1926 | C T Major[34] |
| 1926–1935 | Canon H K Archdall[34] |
| 1936–1939 | J N Peart[34] |
| 1940–1946 | H B Lusk[35] |
| 1947–1973 | G N T Greenbank[34] |
| 1973–1987 | I P Campbell [34] |
| 1988–2002 | John Taylor[34] |
| 2003–2009 | Roy Kelley |
| 2009–2014 | Bradley Fenner |
| 2014–2016 | Michael Leach |
| 2016–2026 | Simon Lamb |
| 2026–present | Patrick Gale |
Coat of arms
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