''For the current cathedral in Hamar, see
Hamar cathedral
Hamar Cathedral ( no, Hamar domkirke) is the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Hamar within the Church of Norway. The cathedral is located in the town of Hamar which is in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is one of the churches f ...
''.
Hamar Cathedral (''Domkirkeruinene på Hamar'') are the ruins of the medieval era Hamar Cathedral in
Hamar, Norway
Hamar is a town in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. Hamar is the administrative centre of Hamar Municipality. It is located in the traditional region of Hedmarken. The town is located on the shores of Mjøsa, Norway's largest la ...
Hamar Cathedral was the see of the
Ancient Diocese of Hamar
The former Norwegian Catholic diocese of Hamar existed from 1152 to 1542, when the Protestant Reformation turned it into a bishopric of the Lutheran state church. The cathedral see was at Hamar, and the diocese included the (modern) counties of H ...
. The diocese at Hamar had included much of the (modern) counties of
Hedmark
Hedmark () was a county in Norway before 1 January 2020, bordering Trøndelag to the north, Oppland to the west, Akershus to the south, and Sweden to the east. The county administration is in Hamar.
Hedmark and Oppland counties were merged i ...
,
Oppland
Oppland is a former county in Norway which existed from 1781 until its dissolution on 1 January 2020. The old Oppland county bordered the counties of Trøndelag, Møre og Romsdal, Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Akershus, Oslo and Hedmark. The co ...
, and
Buskerud
Buskerud () is a former county and a current electoral district in Norway, bordering Akershus, Oslo, Oppland, Sogn og Fjordane, Hordaland, Telemark and Vestfold. The region extends from the Oslofjord and Drammensfjorden in the southeast to Hardan ...
. The ruins form part of
Anno Museum, formerly
Hedmark museum
Anno Museum (formerly ''Hedmarks fylkesmuseum'') in Hamar, Norway is a regional museum for the municipalities of Stange, Hamar (which now includes Vang), Løten, and Ringsaker in central eastern Norway. It includes the medieval Cathedral Rui ...
, and were selected as the
millennium site
A millennium site ( no, tusenårssted) is a site selected by a Norwegian municipality or county municipality to mark the transition to the 2000s. In Norway it was decided that the counties and municipalities would choose one millennium site for ...
for Hedmark county.
History
The cathedral's construction was begun by Bishop Arnaldur (1124–52), who was appointed first
Bishop of Hamar
The Diocese of Hamar ( no, Hamar Bispedømme) is a diocese within the Church of Norway. The Diocese of Hamar includes all of the churches in Innlandet county plus the churches in Lunner in Viken county. Administratively, the diocese is divided ...
in 1150 on his return from
Gardar, Greenland. The cathedral was completed about the time of Bishop Paul (1232–52). It was originally built in the
Romanesque architectural style and later converted to
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
. Bishop
Thorfinn of Hamar Thorfinn of Hamar (died 1285) was the Bishop of the Ancient Diocese of Hamar in medieval Norway.
Biography
Thorfinn was born in Trøndelag, possibly in Trondheim, Norway, and may have been a Cistercian monk before becoming Bishop of Hamar ...
(1278–82) was exiled and died at Ter Doest in
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...
. Thorfinn and many other bishops of the area disagreed with King
Eric II of Norway regarding a number of issues, including episcopal elections. Bishop Jörund (1285–86) was transferred to Trondheim.
In the aftermath of the
Reformation in Norway
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
, the structure was renamed
Hamarhus
Hamarhus at Hamar in Hedmark, Norway was originally the fortified palace of the Bishop of the Ancient Diocese of Hamar.
It is now the site of Storhamarlåven, an exhibit of Anno Museum. History
The palace was east for Hamar Cathedral, and was l ...
and became the residence of the local sheriff. Although still used, the cathedral fell into disrepair, which culminated with its besiegement by the Swedish army and attempted demolition in 1567 during the
Northern Seven Years' War
The Northern Seven Years' War (also known as the ''Nordic Seven Years' War'', the ''First Northern War'' or the ''Seven Years War in Scandinavia'') was fought between the Kingdom of Sweden and a coalition of Denmark–Norway, Lübeck, and Polan ...
.
Swedish forces had launched attacks into Eastern Norway, capturing
Hamar
Hamar is a List of cities in Norway, town in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet Counties of Norway, county, Norway. Hamar is the administrative centre of Hamar Municipality. It is located in the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Hedmarken. ...
and continued towards
Oslo
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
. The Swedes later retreated, torching Hamar on their way, destroying Hamar Cathedral and Hamarhus.
Dating from 1987, construction started on the building of a protective structure to conserve the remains of the cathedral. Completed in 1998, the distinctive arches of the cathedral ruins are today protected by one of the most ambitious construction projects of its kind ever undertaken by the Norwegian government.
''Museum History''
(Hedmarksmuseet)
Gallery
Image:Buer-domkirken.jpg, Arches in the cathedral ruins
Image:Buer-domkirken2.jpg, Arches in the cathedral ruins
Image:Bue-i-domkirken3.jpg, Arches in the cathedral ruins
Image:Arches-domkirken3.jpg, Arches in the cathedral ruins
See also
*Hamarhus
Hamarhus at Hamar in Hedmark, Norway was originally the fortified palace of the Bishop of the Ancient Diocese of Hamar.
It is now the site of Storhamarlåven, an exhibit of Anno Museum. History
The palace was east for Hamar Cathedral, and was l ...
References
Other sources
*Gunnarsjaa, Arne (2006) ''Norges Arkitekturhistorie'' (Abstrakt forlag)
External links
Domkirkeodden website
Anno Museum website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cathedral Ruins In Hamar
13th-century churches in Norway
Cathedrals in Norway
Former Roman Catholic cathedrals in Norway
Ancient Cathedrals in Norway
Ruins in Norway
Church ruins in Norway
Buildings and structures in Hamar
History of Hamar
Gothic architecture in Norway
Romanesque architecture in Norway
Archaeological sites in Norway
Tourist attractions in Hedmark
Millennium sites