First modern high school was opened for a short time in Šibenik during Napoleon's rule in Dalmatia in 1806. A secondary school with a continuity up till the present-day was opened as "Realgymnasium" in 1909, while Šibenik and Croatia were a part of Austria-Hungary. School was briefly closed by Italian authorities during the 1918-21 occupation of Šibenik. In 1937 the school moved into a new and modern building in which it operates today. During the Second World War, Italian fascists again occupied Šibenik (1941-3) and forbade the use of Croatian, italianizing the school. Many students and alumni joined the Partisans and fought against the Axis. After the war, the school was restructured and named after People's Heroes of Šibenik (Ljubo Truta, Miro Visic, Vlado Peran, Slobodan Macura). In 1991 it was again remodelled as a general high school and named after Antun Vrančić (1504-1573), renaissance humanist, cardinal, diplomat and author from Šibenik.