Burgschule (Königsberg)

The Burgschule or Oberrealschule auf der Burg was a secondary school (Oberrealschule) located originally in central Königsberg, Germany, and later in the suburban Amalienau quarter. It was the fourth oldest school in the city, behind Altstadt Gymnasium, Kneiphof Gymnasium, and Löbenicht Realgymnasium.

In 1658 a parochial school was founded in Burgfreiheit near Königsberg Castle to serve the city's reformed community, which included Germans, English, Scots, Poles, Lithuanians, and Huguenots. Its first and initially only teacher was Dr. Paul Andreas Jurski, who would later become a reformed pastor in Memel (Klaipėda). On 18 August 1664 Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg, had the parochial school reorganized into a reformed Latin school. Frederick William donated 100 Hufen (roughly 750 hectares) near Labiau (Polessk) in support of the school. In 1691 his successor, Frederick, endowed the school and reformed community with an additional 20 Hufen near Spannegeln. Service was sometimes held in Polish in a private room within the school. A reformed church, the Burgkirche, was constructed near the Burgschule in the 1690s. The Huguenots later moved to their own church, the French Reformed Church, in the 1730s.

In 1720, the first Lutheran teacher was employed at the Burgschule, with more and more students and teachers following. Guided by Wilhelm Crichton (1732-1805), the school grew from 46 students in 1775 to 120 students in 1804. Ca. 1800, three quarters of its students were Lutheran rather than reformed. On 6 May 1813 it changed from a Latin school to a Bürgerschule, a type of vocational school, and was renamed the Höhere Burgschule. Until 1821, some curriculum was in English, Scottish, and Polish.

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