page_title: Hugo Treffner Gymnasium
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Hugo Treffner Gymnasium / History
caption_attribution_description: Eesti: Koolihooned Tartus Jaani 3/5, Munga 12, Rüütli 20, 18-19.saj. This is a photo of cultural heritage monument of Estonia number 6917.
context_page_description: Hugo Treffner Gymnasium is a secondary school in Tartu, Estonia with special emphasis on science education. Founded by Hugo Treffner, it was the only large secondary school in 19th century Estonia with dominantly Estonian students and no age restrictions. During the Estonian national awakening, the school greatly contributed to the numbers of Estonian intellectuals.
context_section_description: Hugo Treffner Gymnasium was founded by Hugo Treffner  on 7 December 1883. The Treffner Name originated from Austria, connected to the royal family in the 1600s. During the thirty years war the family fled to Estonia. By the end of 1884, there were a total of 65 students  studying various subjects in German. The school was special for offering secondary education to peasants. At the end of the year, a prep class was opened to teach languages and Treffner became a 4-class progymnasium. In 1886 and 1887, another 2 prep courses were opened on the primary level. In 1889, the official language changed to Russian.
  Originally the classes took place in rented rooms. In 1886, Hugo Treffner bought a house for the school, which was expanded in 1887, 1888 and 1906. The building would be the school's residence until 1919. The house was situated at the present site of the Hugo Treffner statue in Tartu. The original building was destroyed in 1941 by German troops invading Tartu.
  The schools development was at a low from 1892 to 1897, caused by crop failure and peasants leaving the school. After that period, attendance rose sharply once again. The students of the early 20th century were involved in several nationalistic underground groups, which later evolved into the literary group "Young Estonia" (Noor-Eesti).
  The school was recognized as a private gymnasium in 1907. The first director and founder of the school Hugo Treffner died on 29 February 1912. Before his death, the director position fell to a board composed of Mihkel Aavik, Nikolai Beldjugin, Konstantin Treffner and Vladimir Uspenski; in addition Cornelius Treffner, brother of Hugo Treffner, held a right to vote on matters proposed. The school was named Vladimir Uspenski Private Gymnasium after Hugo Treffner died. Uspenski, however, signed the school over to the alumni group "Upkeep of the Gymnasium Founded by Hugo Treffner Group". The group named Uspenski director, but when he left the faculty, Nikolai Sahharov became the director of the school, officially named "Gymnasium Founded by Hugo Treffner".
  In 1917, Konstantin Treffner, H. Treffner's first cousin once removed, became the director of the school. During the German occupation of Estonia in 1918, the school switched to teaching in Estonian. The same year, Hugo Treffner Gymnasium and Tartu Alexander Gymnasium were merged and in February 1919, the school got a new home, where it is situated to this day. During the merge, the school gained the inventory and library of Alexander Gymnasium. In the Estonian War of Independence, 230 students of Hugo Treffner Gymnasium were drafted, seven were killed in battle.
  In 1921, the school had 1,019 students; however that number was halved in the next 10 years, mainly due to the government's policy to promote trade schools over secondary education. The school began accepting students based on quality, not quantity. This led to Hugo Treffner Gymnasium becoming one of Estonia's most prestigious schools. Since 1923, the school officially had 2 branches: H. Treffner Primary School and H. Treffner Gymnasium.
  In 1933, the school celebrated its 50th birthday, which was attended by notable Estonian public figures, such as Jaan Tõnisson, Jüri Jaakson, Konstantin Päts, and others. Mr. Päts, the Estonian head of state, specifically praised the school and stated in his speech, "We could doubt if we, in our nation’s life, would have made it this far, if it weren’t for Treffner Gymnasium."
  With the education reform of 1934, the school was divided into a primary school (forms 1–4), middle school (forms 5–9) and gymnasium (forms 10–12). In 1937, the middle school was further divided into a progymnasium following a 4-year primary school education (forms 5–9) and a secondary science school following a 6-year primary school education (forms 7–9). The gymnasium would still accept students from either.
  During the first Estonian Republic, the school had nine official clubs: a drama club, a humanities club, an abstinence group, a classical arts club, a chess club, music, sport, a religious-ethical group and a na
caption: The restored southwest wing of the school
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