The Gymnasium Building in Kragujevac has an important historical context tied to the development of education in Serbia. It was established as part of the transition from the ‘Great School’ in Belgrade, founded in 1830 on the initiative of Vuk Stefanović Karadžić and Dimitrije Isailović. The school moved to Kragujevac in 1833, at the order of Prince Miloš (Serbian Knez Miloš), and in 1835, it became known as the ‘Gymnasium’, marking the first school to carry this title in the Principality of Serbia.

By 1838, it transformed into the Lyceum. After the government moved to Belgrade in 1841, the Lyceum followed suit, but Kragujevac retained the ‘Gymnasium’, which was moved to the Yevremov Konak. In 1842, the Gymnasium was temporarily abolished but was re-established in 1845 in the Šareni Konak. It remained there until 1851, before relocating to a building near the Old Church.

Finally, the Gymnasium found its permanent home in the current building, which was officially opened on October 8, 1887.

Since the state did not have enough funds for this project, the citizens of Kragujevac decided to allocate part of the taxes to start the construction of the building. While it is not known who designed the building, it is clear that the project and approval came from the Ministry of Education. The construction work was carried out by the construction company of Marko O. Marković. As a result, it became the most monumental school building in Serbia, built under the direct influence of Central European architecture.

From 1898 to 1904, the Gymnasium bore the name ‘Miloš Veliki.’