THE founder of a prominent York language school has died at the age of 81.

Finn Hjort was born in Copenhagen in 1924. During the Second World War he was a member of the Danish Resistance, when he navigated a boat between Denmark and Sweden saving many refugees from the Nazi regime.

It was a difficult period of his life that informed his outlook on world politics, and cemented his view that language and communication between countries was vitally important.

At the end of the war he spent some time in the Danish army, which included postings to Paris and Nuremburg.

Later Mr Hjort came to the UK to study Russian at Cambridge, and his links with the university continued throughout his life. He ran the York Cambridge Society until a few days before his final illness.

The high point of his work with the York Cambridge Society was the visit of the Duke of Edinburgh to its annual dinner in 2003.

After graduation, Mr Hjort was briefly a teacher near Leeds. It was at a lecture in Leeds that he met Elizabeth Hiley and they were married in 1960.

The couple founded Melton College in Holgate Road in 1962, and welcomed their first student in April 1963. The student arrived on the same day their elder son, Michael, was born.

Michael is best known in York for his restaurants, Meltons in Scarcroft Road and Meltons Too in Walmgate, which both take the name of the college where he was born and grew up.

Finn and Elizabeth moved to Crayke in 1986, and the college is now run by their younger son, Andrew, although Elizabeth is still actively involved.

Andrew said his father travelled extensively, to places such as Tahiti and Croatia, and continued to be active throughout his life.

He said: "Finn was an internationalist, a speaker of seven languages and a great traveller. His last illness caused him to cancel a trip to the Rotary Convention in Chicago.

"He was a very loving father and grandfather and extremely fond of his family. He was immensely proud of what we had achieved here at the college and later of what my brother achieved at the restaurants."

The college continues to welcome students from all over the world, including the children of those who studied there in the 1970s - a fitting tribute to a man who placed great value on language and communication as a force for good.

Mr Hjort's funeral will take place at Crayke Church on Monday, at 2.15pm.

Updated: 10:35 Friday, June 17, 2005