The History of Herlufsholm It all started with a dream of creating a school which was more in line with a humanist education than the general education in Denmark was at the time. Herluf Trolle had studied in Wittenberg where he became acquainted with Professor Philipp Melanchthon who was one of the intellectual leaders in the Protestant reformation. However, the history of the place began long before the school was founded. Back in the 1100s a group of Benedictine monks settled on the banks of the Suså River, surrounded by beautiful nature and within walking distance of the city of Næstved. They built Skovkloster (the Monastery in the Woods) on the spot where we find Klosterbygningen (the Monastery) today. When the reformation came to Denmark in 1536, King Christian III seized all church lands, including Skovkloster, and the existing orders of monks were gradually phased out. The last Benedictine Monks left Skovkloster in 1559. Soon after these events, Herluf Trolle and Birgitte Gøye became aware of the beautiful landscape of South Zealand. The king at the time, Frederik II, offered Herluf Trolle the former monastery in 1560 as part of a land exchange in which the King received Hillerødsholm, which later became Frederiksborg Castle. Herluf Trolle and Birgitte Gøye took over Skovkloster and its lands and named their new home Herlufsholm. Herlufsholm School was founded on May 23, 1565, as a school for children of nobles and other honest people who had the ability and desire for learning and education. .
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