Franciscan Friary, Copenhagen

The Franciscan Friary in Copenhagen, also known by its Danish name Gråbrødrene (Greyfriars), was a significant religious institution in medieval Denmark. Founded in 1238 by Countess Ingerd of Revenstein, a prominent noblewoman, it quickly became the most important Franciscan house in the country.

Establishment and Early Years

Countess Ingerd, a member of the influential Hvide family, established the friary on a farm located outside the town of Copenhagen at the time of its founding. She had encountered the Franciscans, a relatively new religious order, while living in Germany with her husband and proceeded to found several Franciscan houses in Denmark. The friary in Copenhagen was managed by a Guardian and several brothers, each with specific duties related to the hospital, guest house, and other communal needs.

Over time, the friary accumulated various properties throughout Copenhagen, generating income through rents. Although officially forbidden to accept money, the friars, nicknamed "beggar monks" for their practice of soliciting food gifts, found ways to ease their financial constraints. They also received payments for praying for the souls of the deceased.

The Friary at its Height

At its zenith, the Franciscan Friary comprised a church, a refectory, and a large hall that frequently hosted important state gatherings and meetings for the provincial governing Franciscan monasteries in Denmark. Within its walls were also a guesthouse, a hospital for the sick and poor, living quarters for lay brothers, an extensive garden, a brewery, and an apple orchard. The friary also maintained a house in Dragør.

The church was particularly renowned for its extensive collection of relics, including those of prominent saints such as Saint Olav, Saint Erik, Saint Canute, Saint Eskil, Abbot Vilhelm, Saint Bridget, and Saint Willehad.

Dissolution and Later History

By the 1520s, the spread of Lutheran doctrines in Copenhagen led to growing dissent against religious houses and their financial demands. The "beggar monks" became an early target for anti-Catholic sentiment. In 1530, the mayor and town council prohibited monks and friars from begging in the streets. Faced with this restriction and the general populace's unwillingness to permit their presence, the guardian and vice-guardian conveyed the friary and its possessions away from the Franciscan order on April 25, 1530.

The brothers departed shortly thereafter. Eight brothers who had learned a craft removed their habits, married, and settled in Copenhagen with the aid of the magistrate and citizens. Subsequently, crown administrators decided the church, conventual buildings, and burial ground would be transferred to the University of Copenhagen to generate income. New streets were laid out through the former garden and orchard, and rents from former friary properties were allocated to support the hospital.

A royal decree on August 6, 1532, altered this arrangement, dedicating the monastery, church, and income-producing houses to fund the hospital for the benefit of the poor and sick. The church tower remained a visible landmark until at least 1596. The friary's extensive cellars were converted into the town jail, and the church itself was eventually transformed into a prison. In 1621, Christian IV added an orphanage and recommissioned the church as a place of worship, known as the "Prison Church."

The majority of the friary buildings were lost in the fires of 1728 and 1807, while others were demolished to make way for private residences and businesses. Although parts of the thick outer walls and conventual structures were incorporated into new buildings near Grayfriars Market Square in Copenhagen, little tangible evidence remains today of the centuries of Franciscan occupation.