The Albanian National Lyceum ( sq, Liceu Kombëtar i Korçës or Liceu Francez) was a high school in the city of
Korçë
Korçë (; sq-definite, Korça) is the eighth most populous city of the Republic of Albania and the seat of Korçë County and Korçë Municipality. The total population is 75,994 (2011 census), in a total area of . It stands on a plateau som ...
,
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
, fully financed by the Albanian government, but that emphasized the French culture and the European values. The school fully functioned in the years 1917–1939. The building is still used to host the
Raqi Qirinxhi High School
Raqi Qirinxhi High School (in Albanian Shkolla e mesme Raqi Qirinxhi) is a three-year public high school in the town of '' Korça'', Albania. It is one of the few schools in Albania where in some of the classes students learn French as first langu ...
.
History
The Lyceum opened its doors on 25 October 1917 as the French Lyceum with the decision of the government of the
Autonomous Region of Korçë. In 1921 it was renamed to National Lyceum. It was a secular school where all the subjects were in the French language with the exception of the Albanian language.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, many students of the school joined the youth ranks of the
Communist Party of Albania. Following this activity, the
fascist regime
Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy an ...
closed the school. As a result of this decision, which many students found unjust, 150 of them joined the ranks of the
Albanian liberation movement after a meeting in
Voskopoje. Overall, 384 students of the school joined the liberation movement, out of which 54 died while fighting the
fascist and
Nazi
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
enemies. Three of them have been declared
People's Heroes of Albania by the Albanian government for extraordinary acts of bravery. After 1944, the re-opened school was
named after former alumnus and teacher Raqi Qirinxhi,
People's Teacher of Albania.
The dictator
Enver Hoxha was a student here. Under his rule he sent
Sabiha Kasimati, a leading scientist who was another fellow student, to be shot in 1951 after she stood against him.
Notable alumni
*
Pandi Geço
*
Enver Hoxha[
* Sabiha Kasimati]
See also
*Raqi Qirinxhi High School
Raqi Qirinxhi High School (in Albanian Shkolla e mesme Raqi Qirinxhi) is a three-year public high school in the town of '' Korça'', Albania. It is one of the few schools in Albania where in some of the classes students learn French as first langu ...
References
Sources
*
{{coord, 40.6252, 20.7801, display=inline,title
Secondary schools in Albania
Educational institutions established in 1917
Buildings and structures in Korçë
1917 establishments in Albania
Schools in Korçë