Count Claus goes to Gordonstoun’s Scottish boarding school

The school was founded in 1934 and nowadays has about 600 pupils, of which 500 in the boarding school. One third of the students come from abroad. Discipline and discipline were the ingredients that founder and educational innovator Kurt Hahn (1886-1974), a Jewish refugee from the Nazi regime, introduced to the school. The mountains, the sea, fresh air and adventures were part of the education.

Gordonstoun in Scotland has, among others, Prince Philip and his sons Charles, Andrew and Edward and his grandchildren Peter and Zara Phillips as former pupils. Gordonstoun is also known for its international character and the broad educational philosophy of founder Kurt Hahn, as well as for his strict regime in the last century. Corporal punishment, strict discipline, and cold showers were key to Hahn’s approach to keeping children in line.

Even in the 1970s there was no central heating. Windows were open at night: in winter, the children could wake up with snow on their blankets, The Guardian wrote several years ago. But that was not all. Even worse was that Gordonstoun was also known for extreme bullying. Younger children were at the mercy of older children and violence, theft and extortion were common.

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