HELP! Parents of Eton boys from Central Europe (PL, CZ, SK, HU, SLO)

[HockeyDad]

Dear Parents of Eton boys from Central Europe,

Hope you've all been keeping well during these crazy times. Looking for advice from parents of kids from Central Europe (Poland, Czech Rep, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia) boarding at Eton College How was the integration process? Who are their friends? Cold shoulders? Stiff upper lips? Harassment for beliefs a la EU style? Treated as equals, or second class citizens?

Fully appreciate that some of these could be sensitive topics, so happy to take it to private of course. In fact I would be v grateful.

We're globally educated expats living in Luxembourg, so quiet used to and comfortable in a multi-culti environment. We're not naive however, and fully aware that sophisticated bullying of youngsters is a silent killer, and its absence can never be taken for granted; even in the best of times at the best of places.

Forever grateful for your help and advice in advance.

Best wishes,
HockeyDad

Eton, like so many boarding schools in the UK, have a broad spectrum of nationalities attending the schools. The children couldn’t care less where everyone comes from as it’s completely normal to have a classroom full of children from every corner of the world.
They are also children and rarely carry outdated racist notions that may be seen in much older generations.
Worry not!
Your biggest hurdle is securing a place in the first place.

I highly doubt they would experience anything bad. One of the political leaders in Poland sent their son there.

In its long history, Eton has seen boys of all descriptions and from various parts of the world coming to study at the school at one time or another - including the central European countries that you mentioned. In fact, I can also add that of Prince Nicholas of Romania and Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia who had studied at Eton.

Not quite a prince himself, but Yermolai Solzhenitsyn, son of the great Russian novelist, philosopher, historian, political prisoner and Nobel Laureate, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn also studied at Eton.

I know at present there are some boys including a King’s Scholar, from these European countries who are there at Eton. All of these boys are happily settled at the school and like a poster said above, the boys themselves don’t give a monkey’s where you come from and what your background may be. They are more concerned about what you can bring along and offer to the school yourself. Talking from experience, my DS from an ordinary background, had no problems getting along with his peers at Eton; often got invites from high-flying families from the business, political, sporting (and others) communities to their homes castles. Some of them had even come to my humble home for sleepovers!

And one more thing, I really wouldn’t worry anything about bullying at Eton. Because it is non-existent there! , mercenary extraordinaire, Simon Mann, who had attended Eton 50 years ago. At the 6’55-sec mark of the clip he talked about bullying; or rather the absence of it. So it appears that bullying had disappeared at Eton more than half-a-century ago!