The Carmelite Priory, Copenhagen, was a small

Carmelite The Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel (; abbreviated OCarm), known as the Carmelites or sometimes by synecdoche known simply as Carmel, is a mendicant order in the Catholic Church for both men and women. Histo ...

college in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

, in existence between 1497 and 1529, with connections to the

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

History

In 1497 the Carmelite priory in

Helsingør Helsingør ( , ; ), classically known in English as Elsinore ( ), is a coastal city in northeastern Denmark. Helsingør Municipality had a population of 63,953 on 1 January 2025, making it the 23rd most populated municipality in Denmark. Helsin ...

purchased a property near the

as a "college" where the brothers could live and lecture. Nothing more is mentioned about it until 1517 when

Christian II A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words ''Christ'' and ''Ch ...

gave the income of St. George's Leper Hospital to the Carmelites for the maintenance of a doctor or bachelor of theology to teach at the university. The next year the property was converted to a residence and lecture hall for the priests and brethren. In 1519 the Carmelites received an income property next to St. Peder's Church. Dr. Christiern Andersen, who was the prior provincial, became the professor of theology at the University of Copenhagen. The Carmelite foundation is referred to as a "monastery college" in 1519. The Carmelites invited

Cistercians The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

into the college to lecture from time to time. A superintendent, Poul Helgesen, was appointed to oversee the priory, an appointment that was to have profound consequences. Though not himself a

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

, Helgesen was keenly observant of the effects Lutheran teaching had on ordinary Danes. In 1522 he preached at

Copenhagen Castle Copenhagen Castle () was a castle on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It was built in the late 14th century and was located at the site of the current Christiansborg Palace. History In 1167, Bishop Absalon (c. 112 ...

chapel in the presence of

. He took as his text the beheading of

John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

and took the occasion to warn the king of the similarities between his conduct and Herod's. Just eight days later the income from St. George's Hospital was revoked by the king, and Helgesen fled for his life. Without the income, the Carmelites were obliged to give up the college functions and became a small and very poor priory. In 1529

Frederick I Frederick I or Friedrich I may refer to: * Frederick of Utrecht or Frederick I (815/16–834/38), Bishop of Utrecht. * Frederick I, Duke of Upper Lorraine (942–978) * Frederick I, Duke of Swabia (1050–1105) * Frederick I ...

abolished the priory entirely by giving its income to Knud Gyldenstierne. In 1530 Frederick made over the former Carmelite priory property to the same Gyldenstierne because the friars had abandoned it and withdrawn to their house at Helsingør. No trace of the priory building remains.

Sources

* Nielsen, Dr. Oluf, 1877: ''Kjøbenhavn i Middelalderen''. Copenhagen: G. E. C. Gads Forlag; text available online a
Kjøbenhavn i Middelalderen
(kap. XVI: Klostre og Hospitaler)

Copenhagen, Carmelite Priory Religious buildings and structures in Copenhagen {{Denmark-church-stub