Årstad 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 ...

Bergen Municipality Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

Vestland Vestland is a Counties of Norway, county in Norway. The county is located in Western Norway, and its administrative centre is Bergen, where the executive and political leadership is based. The County governor (Norway), County Governor is based in ...

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 Årstad neighborhood in the city of

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

. It is the church for the Årstad

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 Bergensdalen 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 Bjørgvin The Diocese of Bjørgvin () is one of the 11 dioceses that make up the Church of Norway. It includes all of the churches located in the county of Vestland in Western Norway, and those outside of Norway in the Seamen's Church. The cathedral cit ...

. The large, stone church was built in 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 ...

design and 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 ...

style in 1890 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 ...

Christian Christie. The church seats about 560 people.

History

The earliest existing historical records of Årstad church date back to the year 1564, but it was built before that time, possibly in the 13th century. Originally, the stone church was located about north of the present church site and it was part of the

Fana Church Fana Church () is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Bergen Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in Fanahammeren, a village in the borough of Fana in the city of Bergen. It is one of the two churches for the Fana paris ...

parish. The church was called the ''Church of the Holy Cross'' () at that time. In the 1600s, the old church was taken out of regular use due to its age and size and the residents of Årstad were sent to the nearby Birkeland Church. The old stone church burned down and was mostly destroyed in the city fire of 1702. Around the mid-1700s, the people of Årstad were a part of the St. Jørgen's Church. The old church sat unused as a ruin for a long time, and the ruins of the foundation were still visible in 1902. The last remains of the foundation were dug out and removed in 1910. After a long time without a church, a new church was built to replace the old church in 1890. The new church was located about south of the old church site. It was designed by Christian Christie and built on what was the old Haukeland farm, south of

Store Lungegårdsvannet Store Lungegårdsvannet is a bay located in the city and municipality of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The bay separates the city centre, located in the borough of Bergenhus, from the southern boroughs of the city, Årstad, Fana and Ytreby ...

. The mason Nielsen was responsible for the masonry work, while the builders Askeland and Nævdal were responsible for the carpentry work and Peter Andreas Blix was the supervisor of the whole project. The foundation stone was laid on 6 August 1890 and it was completed about 3 months later. The new church was

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 ( ...

d on 26 November 1890.

Gallery

Årstad kirke Bergen at night.jpg, Årstad kirke, Bergen.jpg, 31 Bergen, Aarstad Kirke - no-nb digifoto 20160202 00180 bldsa PK20266.jpg,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aarstad Church Churches in Bergen Cruciform churches in Norway Stone churches in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1890 13th-century establishments in Norway

History

Gallery

See also

References