Langangen 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 ...

Porsgrunn Municipality is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Grenland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Porsgrunn. Some other notable settlements in Porsgrunn include the town of Brev ...

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 village of

Langangen Langangen is a village in Porsgrunn Municipality in Telemark county, Norway. The village is located in the far eastern part of the municipality, just before the border with neighboring Larvik Municipality, about to the southeast of the town of ...

. It is one of the churches for the Eidanger

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

Skien prosti Several Church of Norway churches are in the Diocese of Agder og Telemark in Norway. This list includes all of the parishes in Agder and Telemark counties. The diocese is based at the Kristiansand Cathedral in the city of Kristiansand in Kristians ...

(

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

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 1891 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 ...

Haldor Larsen Børve Haldor is a given name. It may refer to: *Haldor Andreas Haldorsen (1883–1965), Norwegian politician for the Liberal Party *Haldor Børve (1857–1933), Norwegian architect *Haldor Bjerkeseth (1883–1974), Norwegian politician for the Christian ...

. The church seats about 150 people.

History

Historically, Langangen was quite isolated and the road to

Eidanger Church Eidanger Church () is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Porsgrunn Municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the village of Eidanger. It is one of the churches for the Eidanger parish which is part of the Skien prosti (de ...

was long. There was a desire among the local population for their own church. In the late-1800s, the family of the late shipowner

Christen Knudsen Christen Knudsen (25 January 1813 - 7 April 1888) was a Norwegian ship-owner.Frednesall� ...

provided funds for the construction of an

annex chapel A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to travel distance. Often a ...

in exchange for the municipality agreeing to be responsible for its ongoing maintenance. The municipality agreed and land from the Nedre Kokkersvold farm was given free of charge for the use of the new chapel. The site is located on a hill in the countryside with a great view over the fjord. The new ''Langangen Chapel'' was designed by

Haldor Børve Haldor Larsen Børve (19 August 1857 – 11 August 1933) was an architect from Ullensvang Municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. Børve started an architectural practice in Porsgrunn (town), Porsgrunn in 1889 and designed numerous buildin ...

. It was one of his first churches that he designed (he went on to design a number of other churches in Telemark and elsewhere). The chapel was built in 1890-1891. Langangen Chapel was designed as a

neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

wooden

with around 150 seats. The structure is classical with a

bell tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell to ...

at the entrance with a

church porch A church porch is a room-like structure at a church's main entrance. A porch protects from the weather to some extent. Some porches have an outer door, others a simple gate, and in some cases the outer opening is not closed in any way. The porch ...

at the foot of the tower and surrounded by a stairwell, a rectangular

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

, and a smaller, rectangular

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 ...

with a

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 ...

next to it. 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 23 March 1891. During the 1960s, the church structure was compromised by old house borer beetles which were eating away the wooden structure, to the degree that they considered tearing down the church and rebuilding. Instead, they opted to repair the building which was completed by 1968. Later, the chapel was upgraded to the status of

and it was re-titled as ''Langangen Church''.

Media gallery

Langangen kirke (19. juni 2021).jpg Langangen kirke.jpg

References

{{use dmy dates, date=December 2022 Buildings and structures in Porsgrunn Churches in Telemark Long churches in Norway Wooden churches in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1891 1891 establishments in Norway

History

Media gallery

See also

References