St. Aloysius College, Galle & the Irish Connection
St. Aloysius College, Galle & the Irish Connection Introduction It is generally known that the College was established in 1895 by Jesuits from the Belgian Province of the Society of Jesus, & that later it was managed by Jesuits from the Neapolitan Province until the handing over of the College to the State in 1971. The newly appointed Bishop of Galle, Rev. Joseph Van Reeth S. J. from Belgium who established the School , on his ad limina visit to Rome, toured UK & Ireland as well in order to identify suitable persons to augment the teaching resources at the School & as a result of this endeavour, among others, Rev. Fr. Dennis Murphy S.J., Rev. Fr. C. Piler S.J. and Rev. Fr. John Delaney S.J. from Ireland arrived in Ceylon. This article is an attempt to focus on their contribution as well as the friction that arose at the initial stages between them & the Belgian Jesuits, from an Irish perspective, as recorded in the Irish Jesuit Archives & 2 books published in