Morten Børup (1446–1526) was a

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

, cathedral

cantor A cantor or chanter is a person who leads people in singing or sometimes in prayer. In formal Jewish worship, a cantor is a person who sings solo verses or passages to which the choir or congregation responds. In Judaism, a cantor sings and lead ...

and Latin poet.

Early life and education

Born in

Skanderborg Skanderborg is a town in Skanderborg municipality, Denmark. It is situated on the north and north eastern brinks of Skanderborg Lake and there are several smaller ponds and bodies of water within the city itself, like Lillesø, Sortesø, Døj S� ...

, he first worked as a farm labourer, suffering considerable abuse. When he was 27 he fled to

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and approximately northwest ...

, where he managed to enter the

cathedral school Cathedral schools began in the Early Middle Ages as centers of advanced education, some of them ultimately evolving into medieval universities. Throughout the Middle Ages and beyond, they were complemented by the monastic schools. Some of these ...

. Supported by his teachers and by Archdean Morten Krabbe, he attended the newly founded

Copenhagen University The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public research university in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia after Uppsala Unive ...

where he graduated in theology. Børup continuing his studies at the

University of Cologne The University of Cologne (german: Universität zu Köln) is a university in Cologne, Germany. It was established in the year 1388 and is one of the most prestigious and research intensive universities in Germany. It was the sixth university to ...

after that in 1487, receiving a doctorate.

Career

On returning to Denmark, he became principal of the

Aarhus cathedral school Aarhus Katedralskole is a cathedral school, an institution of secondary education, a Danish Gymnasium and a listed building in Aarhus, Denmark. The school is situated in the neighborhood Midtbyen, in the Latin Quarter, bounded by the streets Mej ...

around 1490, where he gained an excellent reputation. He remained school principal until 1520. Among his students, were the Lutheran reformers

Jørgen Sadolin Jørgen Jensen Sadolin (c. 1490 – 29 December 1559 in Odense) was a Danish reformer, the son of Jens Christensen, a curate and subsequently a canon of Viborg Cathedral, and consequently, in all probability, born out of wedlock, as his Catholic op ...

and

Hans Tausen Hans Tausen (Tavsen) (1494 – 11 November 1561) was the leading Lutheran theologian of the Danish Reformation in Denmark. He served as Bishop of Ribe and published the first translation of the Pentateuch into Danish in 1535. Background Ha ...

. Børup wrote a number of Latin plays for the benefit of his students and they are among the first publicly performed plays in Denmark (1501). He is also said to have composed a choral dance (''dåredansen''), which was performed over 50 years after his death for the christening of

Christian IV Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...

. In later life, he became the

Aarhus Cathedral Aarhus Cathedral ( da, Århus Domkirke) is a cathedral in Aarhus, Denmark. It is the longest and tallest church in the country, at in length and in height. The construction of Aarhus Cathedral began in the 12th century and it is the main edific ...

, managing all the church music and probably composing hymns and poetry in Latin. One of his best known works is ''Carmen vernale'' (Spring Song) written for his school's annual May festival. The work was adopted by many other schools in both Denmark and Sweden and later inspired various composers, including

Carl Nielsen Carl August Nielsen (; 9 June 1865 – 3 October 1931) was a Danish composer, conductor and violinist, widely recognized as his country's most prominent composer. Brought up by poor yet musically talented parents on the island of Funen, he ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Borup, Morten 1446 births 1526 deaths Danish male writers Danish educators People from Skanderborg Municipality People from Aarhus