This book, first published in 1987, attempts to take fresh stock of a man who made a great impact on nineteenth-century English Secondary Education. A quasi psycho-biographical approach is adopted from the beginning so that Thring, the man, is examined from the perspective of his paradoxes, personality and the pervasive influences on him. Special attention is given to a comparison between Dr Arnold and Mr Thring, from which examination Thring emerges as a more professional schoolmaster. This title will be of interest to students of history and education.