Kragerø 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 ...

Kragerø Municipality Kragerø () is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional districts of Grenland and the smaller Vestmar. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kragerø. Villages in Kragerø include Hell ...

Telemark Telemark () is a Counties of Norway, county and a current electoral district in Norway. Telemark borders the counties of Vestfold, Buskerud, Vestland, Rogaland and Agder. In 2020, Telemark merged with the county of Vestfold to form the county o ...

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 town of Kragerø. It is the church for the Kragerø

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 Bamble 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 yellow, brick 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 ...

design in 1870 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 ...

Georg Andreas Bull Georg Andreas Bull (26 March 1829 – 1 February 1917) was a Norwegian architect and chief building inspector in Oslo, Christiania (now Oslo) for forty years. He was among the major architects in the country, and performed surveying studies and ...

. The church seats about 700 people.

History

Kragerø was originally part of the

Sannidal Church Sannidal Church () is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Kragerø Municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the village of Sannidal. It is the church for the Sannidal parish which is part of the Bamble prosti (deanery) i ...

parish, but the road there was not good. In 1651, the people of Kragerø requested to build their own church in the village (which at that time was a small place with about 300 inhabitants). The new church was built using private, collected funds that were donated by the local people. The new building 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 1 November 1652, and it was called "Christ Church" (). It was a

cruciform A cruciform is a physical manifestation resembling a common cross or Christian cross. These include architectural shapes, biology, art, and design. Cruciform architectural plan Christian churches are commonly described as having a cruciform ...

church that was somewhat similar to the nearby

. In 1666, Kragerø was granted

kjøpstad A (historically ''kjøbstad'', ''kjöbstad'', or ''kaupstad'', from ) is an old Scandinavian term for a "market town" in Denmark–Norway for several hundred years. Kjøpstads were places of trade and exporting materials (e.g. timber, flour, iron ...

(town) status which led to a growth in population over the next century or so. In 1785, a new bell tower was built on the church. By the 1860s, the town of Kragerø had grown to a population was nearing 5,000 people, so the church was no longer large enough for the parish. The new church was built a little to the east of the old church yard after some other buildings were torn down. The new church was designed by

. On 23 September 1870, it was consecrated by Bishop

Jacob von der Lippe Jacob von der Lippe (27 September 1797 – 2 October 1878) was a Norwegian politician and priest who served as Bishop of the Diocese of Christianssand from 1841 to 1875. He was also a member of the Parliament of Norway for a total of eig ...

. The new building is a

built out of yellow-colored brick. The church is located on an embankment and is clearly visible from the sea, particularly noticeable are the large bell tower and the two small towers by the

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

. The choir is surrounded by

vestries A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government of a parish in England, Wales and some English colonies. At their height, the vestries were the only form of local government in many places and spent nearly one-fi ...

. At the dedication, the church had room for approximately 800 people. This was too small, and it is said that the architect reluctantly agreed to design second floor seating galleries for the church, so that the capacity was increased by 300 to 1,100 seats in 1878. For the church's 125th anniversary in 1995, the galleries were removed, except the organ gallery in the back of the church. Throughout the church's history, there have been quite a few problems with the brick, which has not withstood the climate very well. It has been necessary to replace parts of the facade over the years.

Media gallery

130720086502 metodistk og kragerø kirke.jpg Krageroe church.jpg Kragerø kirke - an10071202160001.jpg Kragerø kirke - an10071202160002.jpg Kragerø - Kirken og Fjorden, 5. mai 1902, Anders Beer Wilse, NF.W 01018.jpg Kragerø stasjon 2.jpeg Kragerø kirkes kor.jpg No-nb digibok 2014091028002 0085 1.jpg, Painting of the old church (1652-1870)

References

{{use dmy dates, date=December 2022 Kragerø Churches in Telemark Long churches in Norway Brick churches in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1870 1652 establishments in Norway

History

Media gallery

See also

References