Vitskøl Abbey

Vitskøl Abbey (Danish: Vitskøl Kloster; Latin: Vitae Schola, meaning "school of life") is a former Cistercian monastery near Ranum in Himmerland in Region Nordjylland, Denmark, active from mid 12th-century until 1563, and one of the oldest existing monastic complexes in northern Europe[citation needed].

The buildings at Vitskøl were in the usual Cistercian layout, but the cruciform church, with three aisles, a transept and an apse, was intended to be unusually large, in accordance with the founder's wishes.

With royal protection and the gifts of the local nobility, the abbey became the major landowner in the area, as well as a centre of cultural life and economy.

The abbey also owned the island of Livø and had the right to hold a market on Trend Strand; trade and communication was further encouraged by the canal that joined the present Bjørnsholm Å to Vilsted Sø.

When during the Reformation Denmark became officially Lutheran in October 1536, Vitskøl Abbey became crown property, but remained in operation for a while, although it was forbidden to accept any new monks.