Kvenvær 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 ...

Hitra Municipality Hitra is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Trøndelag Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The municipality covers the Hitra (island), island of Hitra and hundreds of smaller islands, islets, and Skerry, skerries as well as an ar ...

Trøndelag Trøndelag (; or is a county and coextensive with the Trøndelag region (also known as ''Midt-Norge'' or ''Midt-Noreg,'' "Mid-Norway") in the central part of Norway. It was created in 1687, then named Trondhjem County (); in 1804 the county was ...

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

Kvenvær Kvenvær is a fishing village in Hitra Municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. The village is located on the northwestern coast of the island of Hitra. It is just south of the Bispøyan islands. Kvenvær Church is located in the village. ...

on the northwestern coast of the island of Hitra. It is one of the churches for the ''Kvenvær og Sandstad''

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

Orkdal prosti This list of churches in Nidaros is a list of the Church of Norway churches in the Diocese of Nidaros in Norway. It includes all of the parishes in Trøndelag county. The diocese is based at the Nidaros Cathedral in the city of Trondheim (city), T ...

(

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 Nidaros Nidaros is a diocese in the Lutheran Church of Norway. It covers Trøndelag county in Central Norway and its cathedral city is Trondheim, which houses the well-known Nidaros Cathedral. Since 10 September 2017, the Bishop of Nidaros is Herborg ...

. 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 1909 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 ...

Nils Ryjord. The church seats about 500 people.

History

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1589, but the church was not new that year. The first church was likely a wooden

stave church A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building once common in north-western Europe. The name derives from the building's structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts ...

that was built during the mid-1400s. It was originally located on the northwestern shore of the small island of Hakkebuøya about to the southwest of the village of

on the main island of Hitra. The island on which the church was located was surrounded by dozens of other small islands which were collectively referred to as the Kvenvær islands, hence the name of the church. According to parish priest Rosing's report to the diocesan leaders, the church was almost completely restored in 1703, when most of the wood including the roof, north wall, and floor were all rotting due to the exposed sea air. In 1732, the people of the parish petitioned for permission to build a

graveyard A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite, graveyard, or a green space called a memorial park or memorial garden, is a place where the remains of many death, dead people are burial, buried or otherwise entombed. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek ...

at the church so that they wouldn't need to travel to Dolm Church to bury their dead. Permission for the graveyard was granted. The people of the parish were very happy, but soon after, problems were discovered with the site. The rocky land had a thin layer of soil on it, so coffins could not be buried as deep as they should have been, so farm animals such as pigs would dig around and leave exposed coffins; consequently, the graveyard had to be fence in. During burials, locals had to bring sand and dirt to cover the coffins with and sometimes, they just piled rocks all over the coffin when soil wasn't available. The church established a couple of smaller auxiliary cemeteries on the nearby islands of Rørøya and Gangstøa. On 20 July 1756, the church was struck by lightning and it quickly burned down. After the fire, there was some deliberations, but it was decided to build a new

on the same site. The new church was completed and

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 14 July 1763 by the parish priest Ludvig Frederich Broch, who was said to have been disappointed because the bishop did not show up on this occasion. The building's

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 ...

originally measured and it had a

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 ...

that was . The church originally had seats for about 80 people. It did not have a tower or 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 ...

. In 1876, the nave was extended by about and a second floor seating gallery was added to add more seating to the church, bringing the church to a capacity of about 170 people. Around 1900, the parish began looking into the idea of moving the church site to the main island of

Hitra Hitra may refer to: Places * Hitra Municipality, a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway * Hitra (island), an island within Hitra Municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway * Hitra Church, a church in Hitra Municipality in Trøndelag county, Nor ...

so it would be more accessible to the population and because they wanted a more suitable site for the parish cemetery. The decision to move the church was approved by

royal decree A decree is a legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state, judge, royal figure, or other relevant authorities, according to certain procedures. These procedures are usually defined by the constitution, Legislative laws, or customary l ...

on 14 March 1908 and the church was to be built on the Steine farm in the village of

. The new church was

on 9 December 1909 and it replaced the Old Kvenvær Church which had been located on the island of Hakkebuøya about to the southwest of the village of

on the main island of Hitra. The old church site had been there from the mid-15th century until it was closed in 1909. In 1934, the old church was deconstructed and moved to the village of Forsnes where it was rebuilt and renamed Forsnes Chapel.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kvenvaer Church Hitra Churches in Trøndelag Long churches in Norway Wooden churches in Norway 20th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1909 15th-century establishments in Norway

History

See also

References