Brattvær Church () is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

of the

Church of Norway The Church of Norway (, , , ) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. Christianity became the state religion of Norway around 1020, and was established a ...

Smøla Municipality Smøla is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Møre og Romsdal Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Nordmøre Districts of Norway, region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hopen, Mø ...

Møre og Romsdal Møre og Romsdal (; ) is a Counties of Norway, county in the northernmost part of Western Norway, Western Norway. It borders the counties of Trøndelag, Innlandet, and Vestland. The county administration is located in the Molde (town), town of M ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. It is located just south of the larger village of Råket on the western coast of the island of Smøla. It is the church for the Brattvær

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

which is part of the Ytre Nordmøre prosti (

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residence of ...

) in the Diocese of Møre. The white, wooden church was built in a

long church Church building in Norway began when Christianity in Norway, Christianity was established there around the year 1000. The first buildings may have been post churches erected in the 10th or 11th century, but the evidence is inconclusive. For inst ...

style in 1917 by the

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Jakob Parelius Holmgren. The church seats about 420 people.

History

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to 1589, but the church was not new that year. It may have been built in the 1400s. The church originally stood on the highest hill on the small island of Brattværet, one of the larger islands about northwest of the main island of Smøla. In 1661, the church was described as a stave church without a tower or spire. The church did not have a very good churchyard in which coffins could be buried due to the rocky land. In the early 1700s, the church blew down in a large storm. Soon after, in 1709, a chapel was erected on the site. This chapel building was standing until 1888. In the 1880s, it was decided to replace the old Brattvær Church, but to build it on the main island of Smøla. The new church was built in 1885 at Skarpeneset on the west coast of Smøla. The church was designed by Henrik Nissen and Holm Munthe. After lightning strikes on 20 November 1913, the church burned down to the ground and all the historic furniture inside was lost. Work on planning a new church on the same site started immediately. The new wooden

building was designed by Jakob Holmgren and the lead builder was O. Hamnes. The church was

consecrated Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

on 26 September 1917. In 1954, electricity was installed in the building for the first time. In the late-1970s bathrooms were installed in the building. A renovation of the building was completed in 2007 after damage from a lightning strike. The church received new white exterior paint, a new electrical system, and a newly rebuilt roof.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brattvaer Church Smøla Churches in Møre og Romsdal Long churches in Norway Wooden churches in Norway 20th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1917 15th-century establishments in Norway

History

See also

References