Queen Margrethe II’s grandson Christian and granddaughter Isabella will not be studying at Herlufsholm School, the Danish royal family has confirmed. The decision was announced by Crown Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederick just weeks after allegations emerged of a violent culture of abuse and bullying at the school.
Reports also allege that students have accused the school and staff of covering up their stories of abuse.
Allegations of bullying were even included in a documentary on the Danish state-owned TV2.
Herlufsholm, founded in 1565 for the Danish nobility and located about 80 km outside Copenhagen, costs £6,141 for day students and £18,185 for boarders.
In a statement, the Crown Prince couple said: “As we have stated before, we are deeply shocked by the recent reports about Herlufsholm.
“We have also made it clear that as parents of a child at the school, we expect the school to do what it needs to do to rectify the unacceptable conditions.”
They added: “The question about the choice of school of our son Christian and our daughter Isabella has been very important to us, and the unfortunate case has brought many and strong opinions into play in the public.
“That is completely understandable when it comes to the well-being of children and young people.
“At the same time, it was important to stick to our basic idea that important decisions should be made on an informed basis. We have that foundation now.
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However, his cousin Prince Nikolai graduated from Herlufsholm in 2018.
Herlufsholm has responded to allegations of bullying.
The school’s headmaster, Mikkel Kjellberg, said many of the accusations in the television program are “very old cases used from another time – where the culture in Herlufsholm was different”.
He said the bullying and violence “were not part of the culture in Herlufsholm”.
Kjellberg added: “Bullying, violence or sexual abuse is not acceptable at Herlufsholm School.”