Onsøy kirke, Fredrikstda kommune, Østfold

Onsøy is a peninsula and a former municipality in

Østfold Østfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in southeastern Norway. It borders Akershus and southwestern Sweden (Västra Götaland County and Värmland), while Buskerud and Vestfold are on the other side o ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. The administrative centre was Gressvik.

History

The parish of ''Onsø'' was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 (see

formannskapsdistrikt () is the name for Norwegian local self-government districts that were legally enacted on 1 January 1838. This system of municipalities was created in a bill approved by the Parliament of Norway and signed into law by King Carl Johan on 14 January ...

). A part of Onsøy with 170 inhabitants was moved to the neighboring municipality

Fredrikstad Fredrikstad (; previously ''Frederiksstad''; literally "Fredrik's Town") is a city and municipality in Viken county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Fredrikstad. The city of Fredrikstad was founded in 15 ...

on 1 January 1968. On 1 January 1994 the rest of Onsøy was incorporated into Fredrikstad. Prior to the merger Onsøy had a population of 12.923.

Etymology

The

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...

form of the name was ''Óðinsøy''. The first element is the genitive case of the name of the god

Odin Odin (; from non, Óðinn, ) is a widely revered Æsir, god in Germanic paganism. Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about him, associates him with wisdom, healing, death, royalty, the gallows, knowledge, war, battle, v ...

, the last element is ''øy'' meaning 'island'. The former island was later turned into a peninsula because of

post-glacial rebound Post-glacial rebound (also called isostatic rebound or crustal rebound) is the rise of land masses after the removal of the huge weight of ice sheets during the last glacial period, which had caused isostatic depression. Post-glacial rebound ...

Onsøy Church

Onsøy Church (''Onsøy kirke'') was built in 1877. The architect was

Henrik Thrap-Meyer Henrik Thrap-Meyer (31 July 1833 – 29 December 1910) was a Norwegian architect. He is most associated with a wide range of significant buildings, including churches and schools. Thrap-Meyer was born in Bergen, Norway. He was the son of Jo ...

. The church is of Gothic Revival style and constructed of brick with has 375 seats. Onsøy Church is located in Fredrikstad parish.

Jens Bjelke Jens Ågessøn Bjelke (2 February 1580 – 7 November 1659) was a Norwegian nobleman who was Chancellor of Norway from 1614 to 1648, when he was succeeded by Hannibal Sehested. He was the son of Åge Bjelke and Margrethe Thott. At the time o ...

was buried in the churchyard.

Elingaard Manor

Elingaard Manor (''Elingaard herregård'') is a

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

located on Onsøy. The current main building was erected in the Renaissance style and was completed early in 1749. The building was constructed on two floors and consists of a main wing and two side wings. Outside is a garden laid out by English model. The manor house was developed by Chancellor Jens Ågessøn Bjelke (1580–1659). Jens Bjelke, one of the wealthiest men in Norway, was the grandson of

Jens Tillufssøn Bjelke Jens Tillufssøn Bjelke (died in Copenhagen, 14 October 1559) was a Danish-Norwegian nobleman and a feudal lord of Jemtland, Norway, was originally from Danish Skåne (now Swedish). Jens Tillufssøn Bjelke was one of several notable Danes who ...

and the father of

Jørgen Bjelke Jørgen Bjelke (2 June 1621 – 17 June 1696) was a Norwegian officer and nobleman. He was born at Elingaard Manor on Onsøy near Fredrikstad, in Østfold County, Norway and died in Kalundborg, Denmark. Early and personal life He was the son of ...

. His elder son Admiral

Henrik Bjelke Henrik Bjelke (13 January 1615 – 16 March 1683) was a Norwegian military officer who served as Admiral of the Realm of Denmark-Norway from 1662 to 1679. He was in command of the Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy from 1657 to 1679. Early life and ...

(1615–83) inherited Elingaard Manor. Elingaard manor is currently operated as a museum.''Elingaard herregård'' (Norway.com)
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References

Other sources

*Borges, Grethe (2007) Elingaard : et gammelt herresete (Fredrikstad] : Fredrikstad museum) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Onsoey Populated places established in 1838 Populated places disestablished in 1994 Former municipalities of Norway Fredrikstad Manor houses in Norway 1838 establishments in Norway