Westville Boys’ High School

WESTVILLE BOYS’ HIGH SCHOOL

Country: South Africa
Campus/location : Westville, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal

Official blazon

Origin/meaning

The arms are not officially granted and are used by the Westville Girls’ High School and the Westville Boys’ High School.

The shield is quartered by the red cross of St. George. In the first quarter is the griffin taken from the coat of arms of Martin West, the first Lieutenant-Governor of Natal, after whom Westville is named. In legend, griffins are portrayed with a lion's body, an eagle's head, long ears, and an eagle's claws, to indicate that the student should combine intelligence with strength.

The second and third quarters contain the Book of Knowledge and the Lamp of learning respectively.

Represented in the fourth quarter is the historic monument, the Outspan Tree, which is in Jan Hofmeyr Road, where the ox-wagons made their first stop after leaving Durban.

The motto Incepto Ne Desistam is taken directly from Virgil. These words, found in Aeneid, Book 1, are used by Juno, queen of heaven who hated the Trojans led by Aeneas. When she saw the fleet of Aeneas on its way to Italy, after the sack of Troy by the Greeks, she planned to scatter it by means of strong winds. In her determination to accomplish her task she cried out "Incepto Ne Desistam" – "May I not shrink from my purpose!"