About

The Royal Hospital School is an independent co-educational boarding and day school for 11-18 year olds, providing a full and broad education enriched by a unique naval heritage. The School was originally founded in 1712 in Greenwich, London, before it moved to its spectacular site in Holbrook set in 200 acres of Suffolk countryside overlooking the River Stour in 1933. The School has continued to develop its spectacular purpose-built site and grow in size and reputation to become one of East Anglia's leading independent schools.

In 1933, the Royal Hospital School in Holbrook commissioned the construction of its Grand Organ, an instrument whose current replacement value exceeds £2,000,000. The chapel housing the organ measures 220 feet in length, 64 feet in width, and 62 feet in height, with the instrument itself remaining incomplete by one planned pedal mixture stop.

The contract for the organ was awarded to the renowned firm of William Hill and Son, and Norman and Beard Ltd, at a cost of £7,098. Job No. 2878 was conceived on a grand scale, with thick ivory keys, four large expression boxes, and a tonal design tailored to accompany the school’s vigorous singing. Notable features include a variety of strings, reeds, mutations, and an imposing pedal division, culminating in a thunderous 32ft Double Ophicleide. These components are concealed behind Britain’s largest organ grille, within an acoustic offering a seven-to-eight-second reverberation. Despite its refinement, the organ has endured challenges, including a fire in 1983 that destroyed the chapel’s Robson organ and necessitated extensive cleaning, as well as flooding in 1998 that damaged the Ophicleide wind chest and required substantial restoration work.

Today, the Grand Organ remains a centrepiece of the school’s musical life and a recognised historic asset, holding a Grade One historic organ certificate from the British Institute of Organ Studies. The Royal Hospital School was granted Accredited Institution status by the Royal College of Organists in 2020, reflecting its commitment to organ tuition. Under the stewardship of its current Director of Music, the instrument continues to be maintained in its original specification and is regularly heard in both educational and recital contexts.