St. Germain High School was established in January 1944 by the then Archbishop of Bangalore, Rt. Rev. Thomas Pothacamury D.D. The school began in the former Clergy and Archbishop's House, which had housed St. Joseph's Boys High School before they moved to their present location in Richmond Town. The school was named after a much loved French priest Rev. Fr. St Germain who had been a sports teacher at St. Joseph's High School. Fr. St. Germain died in 1939 and as a tribute to him, the new school was named after him.
The school is managed by the Archdiocesan Board Of Education, under the Chairmanship of the Archbishop of Bangalore. The school is recognized by the Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations (ICSE) Delhi.
Over the years the school has grown to 1750 students presently from Std I to Std X. This is an unaided private institution.
The school has always had a reputation of being great at sports. The school counts many famous sports persons among its alumni, including Jude Felix (former Captain of Indian Hockey team), Roger Binny (former cricket allrounder) and Syed Mujtaba Hussain Kirmani (former wicketkeeper of India).
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The school was founded in January 1944 by the then Archbishop of Bangalore, Rt. Rev. Thomas Pothacamury D.D., in memory of Rev. Fr. Saint Germain, a well beloved French Priest, who till his retirement worked as a teacher and procurator at the local St. Joseph's School and College. These were housed in the present school building (main) till they were moved to their current location Museum Road in Richmond Town.
The School is situated on top of the St. John's Hill with Coles Park on one side and St. Francis Xavier's Cathedral on the other. The main entrance to the school used to be on St. John's Church Road and provided direct entry to the playground. This gate was closed and the main entrance re-located in 1976 to Promenade Road so that the playground provided unfettered access for play and recreation.
In the tradition of fine European schools, St. Germain High School had a Latin Motto, Ad Augusta, Per Angusta; however, during the tenure of Rev. Fr, Mervyn Coelho, the English translation was employed, Triumph Through Trials'''' .
Hark! Now we sing
Of St Germain the school that we love
For it is here that we learn to uphold the right
Seeking light, seeking help from above
Strive might and main
Let the odds be what they will
We shall conquer all, trials great or small
Onwards lads! We must climb the Hill!
Lo! On the heights
Rays of glory illumine the skies,
'Tis the land where Truth and where virtue dwell
Where the sunshine of honour abides.
March! Falter not,
Though the way be weary and long.
All the toil and strife face we bravely now
Firm in faith, bold of heart and strong.
The School is managed by the Archdiocesan Board of Education. It is the only Anglo-Indian School maintained by the Board and is affiliated to the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination, New Delhi. Till 1961 the students were prepared for the Bangalore European Secondary School Examination (Std XI) and the Cambridge Overseas Examination. From 1962 to 1969, the State Government used to conduct the Anglo-Indian secondary School Certificate (A.I.S.S.C.) Examination (Std XI). With the change over to the present 10+2+3 Course of States, the I.C.S.E. (Std X) is conducted at the end of Std X. From 1977 to 1990 the School also presented students to the local std X (S.S.L.C.) Examination.
The academic year of the School was from January-December. In 1978 it was changed to June-April to fall in line with rest of the country.
The School has on record a high degree of achievement academically (always over 90% passes in the Public Exam with 100% passes in many years with the first rank occasionally). The achievement of our students in cocurricular activities over the years is commendable. These include sports and games, N.C.C. and Scouts, Debating and the School Band. To mention a few achievements the School has, as old boys, national and international stalwarts like Roger Binny, Jude Felix, Vice Rear-Admiral Peter D'Bras, V.S.M., Sanjay Khan and Feroz Khan.
The school has represented Karnataka in the Nehru Hockey Tournament held at New Delhi and has bagged the B.T. Ramaiah Shield in Cricket - a symbol of supremacy for the Schools in the State. Our N.C.C. Officer Fazal Bari Khan has been honoured at the State and National levels.
The school's Scoutmaster, Mr. S.J.P. Keerty and Cub Master Mr. I. Raj have also many awards to their credit for producing President's Scouts on many occasions.
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The House system is a feature common to Public Schools in India especially Christian run schools (based on an equivalent system in England).
The four houses are named after eminent principals and priests who were closely connected to St.Germains Boys High School.
Aranjo- colour green (Rev.Msgr.Pat Aranjo- 1945–1954 and Rev.Msgr.Stan Aranjo- 1954–1968 ).
Froger - colour blue.
Thomas - colour red . (St. Germain High School was established in January 1944 by the then Archbishop of Bangalore, Rt. Rev. Thomas Pothacamury D.D )
Vissac -colour yellow (In the year 1883, J.M. Vissac was the Rector of the Jesuits of Bangalore who situated St. Joseph's Boys High School on St. John's Hill at the current location of St. Germain's High School, adjoining the St. Francis Xavier's Cathedral).
The houses compete with one another in dramatics, culturals, sports such as athletics (track and field) competitions, cricket, basketball, hockey, football and literary events.
The school is situated on the crest of St. John's Hill in perhaps the most open and healthy part of the garden city of Bangalore. It is flanked on the right of the Cathedral Church of St. Francis Xavier and on the left by Coles park.
The classrooms are housed in a spacious three storied building provided with broad corridors on both sides. The new building, through very different in architecture is equally extensive. The school has a sprawling garden and playground.