Journalisten och författaren Jan Guillous roman ”Ondskan” publicerades 1981 och bygger på Guillous egna erfarenheter på internatskolan Solbacka under åren 1959 – 60. I boken skildras det system av förnedring och våld mellan eleverna som var en del av skolans kamratfostran.
Solbacka läroverk grundades 1901 och ligger utanför Stjärnhov i Gnesta. Förebilden var de engelska internatskolorna och skolan vände sig främst till elever från svensk överklass. Som mest gick 393 elever på Solbacka, hösten 1964.
Kort efter ett riksdagsbeslut 1970 stängdes Solbacka läroverk då det inte fick status som så kallat riksinternat. År 1966 skrev Guillou om skolans institutionaliserade våld i en uppmärksammad artikel i FIB aktuellt. Troligen bidrog Guillous avslöjande till Riksdagens beslut längre fram.
På senare år har Solbacka bland annat fungerat som sport- och konferensanläggning och asylboende. Våren 2021 köptes det upp av fastighetsföretaget Sisyfosgruppen som planerar att renovera husen och bygga ett aktivitetscenter.
Mars – april 2021
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The boarding school
“Once in March, I remember the dark purple and red sky and the stars, I was crucified in the school yard. The student council had four irons struck into the frozen ground of the school yard and tied me up between the four points. After that, some of my classmates were forced to pour buckets of alternating cold and hot water over me.”
The journalist and writer Jan Guillou’s novel ”Evil” was published in 1981 and is based on Guillou’s own experiences at the boarding school Solbacka over the years 1959 – 60. The novel reflects the system of humiliation and violence between students that was part of the school’s teaching.
Solbacka was founded in 1901 and is located outside Stjärnhov in Gnesta, Sweden. It was modelled after the classic English boarding schools and Solbacka mainly addressed students from Swedish upper-class. Solbacka had its highest number of pupils in the fall of 1964, 393.
Solbacka shut down shortly after a parliament decision in 1970 where it did not receive the status of national boarding school. In 1966, Guillou reported on the school’s institutionalized violence in a well-recognized article in the magazine FIB aktuellt. It is likely that Guillou’s expose contributed to the parliament’s decision later on.
In recent years, Solbacka has functioned as a sports and conference facility and as housing for asylum seekers. In the spring of 2021, it was bought by the real estate company Sisyfosgruppen, which plans to renovate the houses and build an activity center.
March – april 2021
Tomma rum 