Ravnedalen is a park in the municipality of

Kristiansand Kristiansand is a seaside resort city and municipality in Agder county, Norway. The city is the fifth-largest and the municipality the sixth-largest in Norway, with a population of around 112,000 as of January 2020, following the incorporation ...

Agder Agder is a county (''fylke'') and traditional region in the southern part of Norway. The county was established on 1 January 2020, when the old Vest-Agder and Aust-Agder counties were merged. Since the early 1900s, the term Sørlandet ("south ...

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 part is located in the borough of

Grim Grim may refer to: People * Grim (surname) * Myron Grim Natwick (1890–1990), American artist, animator and film director best known for drawing Betty Boop Mythical or fictional characters * Grim, Old Norse ''Grímr'', from the Norse saga '' Gr ...

, north of the centre of the city of

, just to the northeast of the

Baneheia Baneheia is a recreational area in the municipality of Kristiansand in Agder county, Norway. The park is mostly known at the national level from the Baneheia case as the scene of a notorious murder of two girls ages 8 and 10 that took place in 20 ...

recreation area. The park was constructed from 1874–1878 by military soldiers under the command of Colonel, later Major General, Joseph Frantz Oscar Wergeland.

History

Ravnedalen was the former

billet A billet is a living-quarters to which a soldier is assigned to sleep. Historically, a billet was a private dwelling that was required to accept the soldier. Soldiers are generally billeted in barracks or garrisons when not on combat duty, alth ...

ing area called ''Grimsmoen'', which had room for about 1,200 soldiers. In the 1860s, the military camp was moved to '' Gimlemoen''. There were plans for using the old camp area as a rifle range, but Colonel Wergeland protested and insisted that the area would be perfect for a pleasure garden. In 1872 ''Byselskabet'', where Wergeland was a chairman, applied for fundings, and the park was constructed during 1874–1878, by soldiers with spades instead of weapons.

Construction

The park was constructed as a romantic garden, in a valley with dramatic cliffs and waterfalls. A dam fointaine was built with natural pressure support from the nearby lake Baanetjønn. The garden has open areas for public arrangements like concerts, gatherings and festivals. The former gardener house is today used as a café. There used to be

ape Apes (collectively Hominoidea ) are a clade of Old World simians native to sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia (though they were more widespread in Africa, most of Asia, and as well as Europe in prehistory), which together with its siste ...

s and

peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera ''Pavo (genus), Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female pea ...

s, while today ducks and swans dominate the lakes. Some of Norway's largest

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfami ...

trees, planted around 1875, are found in the park. Exotic plants were imported and planted, like

rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; from Ancient Greek ''rhódon'' "rose" and ''déndron'' "tree") is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are nati ...

magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendro ...

mimosa ''Mimosa'' is a genus of about 590 species of herbs and shrubs, in the mimosoid clade of the legume family Fabaceae. The generic name is derived from the Greek word (''mimos''), an "actor" or "mime", and the feminine suffix -''osa'', "resembl ...

yew Yew is a common name given to various species of trees. It is most prominently given to any of various coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Taxus'': * European yew or common yew (''Taxus baccata'') * Pacific yew or western yew (''Taxus br ...

and

cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs of northern temperate regions that belong to the family Cupressaceae. The word ''cypress'' is derived from Old French ''cipres'', which was imported from Latin ''cypressus'', the ...

Culture

In the 1880s and 1890s the area was used for public feasts. Today, Ravnedalen is one of Kristiansand's cultural sites, where concerts and other arrangements are held regularly. The location has a capacity of 5,000 spectators in front of the outdoor stage.

Gustav Lærum Gustav Lærum (2 June 1870, in Fet – 21 May 1938) was a Norwegian satirical illustrator, caricaturist and sculptor. He provided illustrations for the satirical magazines '' Korsaren'', ''Tyrihans'', and '' Vikingen'', and also the newspape ...

's 1917 bronze statue of Wergeland is located in Ravnedalen. The granite rock faces that form the backdrop of the park is a popular venue for rock climbers. Ravnedalen has about 70 established climbing routes. The selection of routes spans several grades and comprise bolted, partially bolted and traditionally protected climbs.

References

{{reflist

External links

Homepage in Norwegian, including concert eventswww.visitkrs.no Ravnedalen Valley Nature Park
Parks in Norway Tourist attractions in Kristiansand Geography of Kristiansand Tourism in Kristiansand