St. Mary's Church ( no, Mariakirken i Oslo) was a medieval church located in

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 ...

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 church ruins are located in

Middelalderparken The Medieval Park ( no, Middelalderparken) is located in the borough of Gamle Oslo in Oslo, Norway. The park was opened in the year 2000 at Sørenga in what was once the southern part of the medieval city of Oslo. The park is located within an ...

near the neighborhood of Sørenga in the borough of

Gamlebyen The Old Town of Oslo ( no, Gamlebyen, ) is a neighbourhood in the inner city of Oslo, Norway, belonging to the borough of Gamle Oslo and is the oldest urban area within the current capital. This part of the capital of Norway was simply called ...

History

St. Mary's Church had been built of stone in stages with final additions made in the 14th century. A major remodeling in the 1200s gave the church a new Gothic choir. Major rebuild in the 1300s added two large towers to the west and a new and large cruciform choir. It was the royal chapel and had an important political role, as its provost from 1314 also was

Chancellor of Norway The Chancellor of Norway (modern Norwegian: ''Norges rikes kansler'', "Chancellor of Norway's Realm") was the most important aide of the King of Norway during the Middle Ages, and during the Denmark-Norway, Union with Denmark. He issued laws and r ...

. The church was set on fire in connection with the Swedish war of independence from the

Kalmar Union The Kalmar Union (Danish language, Danish, Norwegian language, Norwegian, and sv, Kalmarunionen; fi, Kalmarin unioni; la, Unio Calmariensis) was a personal union in Scandinavia, agreed at Kalmar in Sweden, that from 1397 to 1523 joined under ...

in 1523. In the aftermath of the

Protestant Reformation 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 ...

, it was so dilapidated that it could not be repaired and was demolished in 1542. Excavations were first conducted in 1867 by

Nicolay Nicolaysen Nicolay Nicolaysen (14 January 1817 - 22 January 1911) was a Norwegian archaeologist and Norway's first state employed antiquarian. He is perhaps best known for his excavations of the ship burial at Gokstad in 1880. Gerhard Fischer (1890–1977) and later in the 1960s under the leadership of

Håkon Christie Håkon Andreas Christie (30 August 1922 – 14 December 2010) was a Norway, Norwegian architectural historian, antiquarian and author. Together with his wife, Sigrid Marie Christie (18 April 1923 - 16 May 2004) he worked from 1950 on the history ...

(1922–2010). Traces of an older wooden structure were discovered which were dated by Håkon Christie to around the year 1050. Remains of two people, deemed to be King

Haakon V Haakon V Magnusson (10 April 1270 – 8 May 1319) ( non, Hákon Magnússon; no, Håkon Magnusson, label=Modern Norwegian) was king of Norway from 1299 until 1319. Biography Haakon was the younger surviving son of Magnus the Lawmender, Kin ...

and his Queen consort

Euphemia of Rügen Euphemia of Rügen (c. 1280 – May 1312) was Queen of Norway as the spouse of Håkon V of Norway. She is famous in history as a literary figure, and known for commissioning translations of romances. Biography Euphemia was most likely the daughte ...

, were discovered during excavations of the ruins of the church and re-interred in the Royal Mausoleum in

Akershus Castle Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress h ...

. The area where the Norwegian Crown Prince Residence of

Skaugum Skaugum is an estate, manor house and the official residence of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and his wife Crown Princess Mette-Marit. The estate is located in Asker municipality, southwest of Oslo, by the foot of the mountain Skaugumsåsen. The ...

is located today in the municipality of

Asker Asker ( no, Asker), properly called Askerbygda in Norwegian, is a district and former Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Akershus, Norway. From 2020 it is part of the larger administrative municipality Asker, Viken (also known as Greate ...

, originally belonged to the St. Mary's Church.Skaugum Estate page at the official Norwegian Royal website
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References

Oslo Old Town Mary's Ruins in Norway

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

Church ruins in Norway Archaeological sites in Norway {{Oslo-church-stub