Hægeland 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 ...

Vennesla Municipality Vennesla is a municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sørlandet. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Vennesla. Other villages in Vennesla include Grovane, Hægeland, Homs ...

Agder Agder is a counties of Norway, county () and districts of Norway, traditional region in the southern part of Norway and is coextensive with the Southern Norway region. The county was established on 1 January 2020, when the old Vest-Agder and Au ...

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 in the village of

Hægeland Hægeland or Hægelandskrossen is a village in Vennesla municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located along the northeastern shore of the lake Hægelandsvatnet, a short distance south of the Kilefjorden. The Norwegian National Roa ...

. It is the church for the Hægeland

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 Otredal 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 Agder og Telemark The Diocese of Agder og Telemark () is a diocese of the Church of Norway, covering all of Agder county and Telemark county in Norway. The cathedral city is Kristiansand, Norway's fifth largest city. Kristiansand Cathedral serves as the seat of t ...

. The white, wooden church was built in a

octagonal In geometry, an octagon () is an eight-sided polygon or 8-gon. A '' regular octagon'' has Schläfli symbol and can also be constructed as a quasiregular truncated square, t, which alternates two types of edges. A truncated octagon, t is a hex ...

design in 1830 using plans drawn up 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 ...

Anders Thorsen Syrtveit. The church seats about 250 people.

History

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1565, but there is some indirect evidence that the medieval church existed as far back as during the late-1300s. The old church underwent some extensive renovations in 1677 and again in 1713–1716. It was said to be 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 ...

about long and wide. A stone wall was built around the cemetery in 1790. The old church was in poor condition and in 1824, discussions began about replacing the old church. In 1826, it was decided that they would build an

octagon In geometry, an octagon () is an eight-sided polygon or 8-gon. A '' regular octagon'' has Schläfli symbol and can also be constructed as a quasiregular truncated square, t, which alternates two types of edges. A truncated octagon, t is a ...

al church. In 1828, the nearby

Hornnes Church Hornnes Church () is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Evje og Hornnes Municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the village of Hornnes. It is one of the churches for the Evje og Hornnes parish which is part of the Otredal ...

was completed and it was used as a model for planning for a new church in Hægeland. The same builder/architect, Anders Thorsen Syrtveit was hired to complete the new church. The old church was torn down in May 1829 and a new church was built in 1830 on the same site, reusing some of the old timbers in the new building. The

sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christianity, Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is us ...

was the last part of the building to be completed and they could not

consecrate 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 ( ...

the church until it was all finished. The bishop refused to travel to Hægeland in the late autumn for the consecration of the new building, so the church was consecrated by the pastor on 12 December 1830.

Media gallery

Haegeland kirke2 crop.jpg, View of the church front Vennesla, Hægeland 02.JPG, View of the church in the village Vennesla, Hægeland kirke fra syd 01.JPG, Side view of the church

References

{{use dmy dates, date=January 2021 Vennesla Churches in Agder Wooden churches in Norway Octagonal churches in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1830 14th-century establishments in Norway

History

Media gallery

See also

References