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When it was selected as Object 39 in 2016 for the 15 41 exhibition, the Leavers Hoodie was still a recent innovation and the one of the first branded hoodies to include the school's armorial bearings embroidered in full colour.
Often informally referred to as the school crest or coat of arms, the armorial bearings are now one of the ‘must have’ options when designing new kit and they appear annually, as here, on the Leavers Hoodie.
As well as connecting those who wear it, the arms on the Leavers Hoodie also link an elaborate parchment that hangs in the Clive Richards Room with our royal founder and a classical headmaster.
Devised in 1975 by the Windsor Herald of Arms, the commission for the design was generously funded by an Old Breconian, Wing-Commander Roy Griffiths (School House 1920-1925).
The Grant of Arms, a formal description the heraldic device chosen to represent Christ College, accompanies the original design.
Written on parchment and sealed on behalf of the Herald of Arms, the impressively elaborate Grant (1975) hangs in the Clive Richards Room together with the original artwork supplied by the Herald of Arms (1975). Together, they highlight elements of the school's history.
The ‘h’ on the shield denotes the owner of the crown, our Founder King Henry VIII. The larger cross is a black cross taken from the arms of Bishop Barlow of St Davids, who persuaded King Henry VIII to found the College of Christ of Brecknock in 1541.
The tower is a reference to Queen Eleanor of Castile (1241-1290), whose own arms contained a castle. She was the earliest known benefactor of the Friary of Saint Nicholas, the Dominican Friary on which site the College stands.
A lion comes from the top of the tower, and is derived from the arms of Queen Eleanor and Bishop Barlow. The lion is crowned referring to the fact that the sovereign is Visitor of the College.
Around the shoulders of the lion is a red mantle trimmed with ermine, taken from the arms of Brecon. The fish the lion holds in its paws is a pike (or ‘luce’) and this forms part of the arms of Bishop Lucy, who did much in the seventeenth century to restore the Chapel after the depredations during the Commonwealth period.
The arms are completed by mantling (drapery) tied to the helmet above the shield. Mantling donates royalty in heraldry. The shading represents green and gold, the colours of the school since 1896, as well as the light blue and dark blue worn as the school’s everyday colours.
The escroll (ribbon) bears the school's motto, Possunt Quia Posse Videntur, taken from Virgil's Aeneid (Book V, 231) and introduced in 1881 by Revd Daniel Lewis Lloyd (Headmaster 1879-1890). Usually translated as 'They can because they think they can', it is currently abbreviated to Believe to Achieve in school communications.
Adapted from ‘The Story of Christ College’ (Knight, 1979).
Introduced to Christ College by the Revd Daniel Lewis Lloyd (Headmaster 1879-1890), ‘possunt quia posse videntur’ is usually translated as variations on “They achieve because they believe they can” or “They are able because they are seen to be able”.
More than a century later, ‘Believe to Achieve’ is a contemporary version of the original Latin text. Used on many Christ College communications - from headed notepaper to the school website and on social media hashtags, the inspirational phrase embodies the determination, talent and skill at the heart of our pupils' accomplishments.
At first glance, the words seem to celebrate self-belief and individual ambition but the original meaning of the Latin motto tells a more collective story.
Taken from Book V of Virgil’s ‘Aeneid’, the line appears during a description of an intensely fought rowing race between two competing crews. As one of the teams begins to flag, the roar of the crowd encourages the exhausted rowers to believe they are capable of more, spurring them on to achieve what had seemed out of reach.
In Virgil’s epic poem, the spectators become part of the victory itself; the race is transformed from a test of isolated endurance into a shared achievement. The rowers are not driven solely by personal conviction; the whole crew is lifted to victory by the energy and encouragement of the crowd surrounding them.
The story of the motto, and therefore of ‘Believe to Achieve’, reframes success not as an individual pursuit but as something strengthened by community. Though talent, preparation and determination will always matter, Virgil’s line is a reminder that encouragement, teamwork and collective belief is just as powerful.
