In 1674, a secret meeting took place under the three large oak trees that stood in this place in Augustenborg Forest.

Three close friends of the town’s founder Duke Ernst Günther met to form a secret alliance to overthrow the most powerful man of the kingdom, Chancellor Peder Griffenfeld, who had offended the Duke by refusing to marry his daughter Princess Louise Charlotte.

The three friends were the Governor of Norway, Ulrik Frederik Gyldenløve, Chancellor Frederick Ahlefeldt and Court Secretary Conrad Biermann.

In 1676, Peder Griffenfeld was sentenced to death for treason, but the sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. The fall of Griffenfeld was later linked to his rejection of the duke’s daughter, and as a result the story of the Three Oath-Oaks came bout.

Unfortunately, the last of the three large oak trees fell during the storm in 1994, but they can still be seen on a banknote from 1920 (see picture). Other sights in the Forest include the Bathing Huts, which can be reached by following the Second Avenue to the west and then the path alongside the fjord. Or you can go searching for the big Hulk on the edge of the Forest near the Sculpture Park.