History
Primary School "Knyaz Alexander I" in Plovdiv is the successor of the oldest school in the country.
The architect Pietro (or Paolo) Montani, who was the chief architect of Eastern Rumelia from 1879 to 1885 and
the author of a number of iconic buildings in Plovdiv, including the building constructed for the
Provincial Assembly of Eastern Rumelia - now the Regional Historical Museum, the first building of the State Hospital,
the house of Lucien Chevalas, among others.
Established in 1850 by Nayden Gerov, the school briefly becomes an enlightenment center in Bulgaria.
On October 20, 1885, immediately after the Unification, the newly built building, in which it is housed to this day,
was ceremonially opened. The opening was attended by Alexander of Battenberg, Stefan Stambolov, Nayden Gerov,
as well as many other state and public figures.
In his speech, the director Dimitar Agura appealed to the Prince to take the school under his patronage and
to give it his name.
Among some of the most emblematic teachers in the educational institution before and after the Liberation are:
Nayden Gerov, Yoakim Gruev, Petko Karavelov, Petko Rachev Slaveykov, Dimitar Agura, Exarch Stefan, Zlatyu Boyadzhiev,
Angel Bukoreshtliev, Maestro Georgi Atanasov, Svetoslav Obratenov, Murkovichka, and others.
From the classrooms of this school emerge some of the most prominent names in Bulgarian history, such as: Ivan Vazov,
Petko Slaveykov, Peyo Yavorov, Dimcho Debelyanov, Georgi Bakalov; and renowned scholars attain academic titles:
Chakalov, Valkanov, and others; the names of future public figures, politicians, and statesmen stand out:
Konstantin Stoilov, Ivan Evstatiev Geshov, Andrey Lyapchev, and others.
One of the brightest figures in our history, Vasil Levski, is a graduate of this school.