Headmasters: Switch at Eton

To run England's Eton is to tutor England's Establishment, which is to say that a man had better respect the customs. Headmaster Robert Birley, who took over in 1949, seemed at times a bit rebellious. To the shock of Pop, the school club with old boys in high places, Birley opened Eton's doors to a few lads from the lower classes. Last year, when Birley was passed over for a knighthood, the London Sunday Telegraph blamed the "Pop lobby." This summer Birley will quit with a year yet to go on the usual 15-year tenure.

Last week Eton named his...

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