Re: It was a public school?
It is a bit confusing, I agree. Basically there are state schools, funded by taxes, and private schools, where parents pay fees directly to the school. Many of these latter schools also provide accommodation, and are called 'boarding' schools, some don't, and are called 'day' schools, and some have a mix of day and boarding students. I am not sure where the phrase 'public school' came from, or what its precise definition is, but colloqially it is used to refer to the more expensive and old-fashioned, primarily boarding, private schools, often exclusively for boys. They were, and possibly still are, characterised by strict discipline, rampant homosexuality amongst both pupils and staff, and extreme levels of violence and intimidation, by staff against pupils, and by older pupils against younger ones.