Church of Our Lady (Aarhus)

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For Church of Our Lady in Copenhagen see Church of Our Lady (Copenhagen)

Church of Our Lady.

The Church of Our Lady (Vor Frue Kirke) is one of the largest churches of Århus, Denmark. It is situated in the centre of the town not far from Århus Domkirke.

The church was originally known as Skt. Nikolaj Church but was expanded with a convent in 1240, of which the present Church of Our Lady was the southern wing. After the Reformation in Denmark the name was changed to the Church of Our Lady and King Christian III decreed that the church should function as a hospital for the sick and poor. The church was subsequently granted congregational privileges which officially made it a centre for clerical activities in its area.

Between 1250 and 1500 the church was heavily expanded with among other things the large tower. In the 1950s the crypt-church was rediscovered beneath the church during a renovation of the church buildings. The church has since been renovated in 2000.

1 Crypt church
2 Convent
3 External links
4 Sources

[edit] Crypt church

The crypt church under the Church of Our Lady

The crypt church is the oldest conserved stone church in Scandinavia. Built in 1060 after the old wooden church had been burned in an assault on the town, the church is situated under the main building of the Church of Our Lady. After the discovery in the 1950s it was restored and reopened on November 10th 1957 and is still used for mass once a week.

During the restoration by the Danish National Museum, two graves were found - one a child and one an adult - and 23 coins from the 1300s. Five of these coins were from Lübeck and the rest from Hamburg.

The crypt church was initially built as an attempt to weaken the archbishop of Bremen who had considerable influence on Danish clerical matters as the head of the Danish church. Svend Estridsen (1047-1074) divided Denmark into 8 bishoprics, and in 1060 Christian became the first bishop of Aarhus. The crypt church was built the same year.

In approximately 1080 a new and larger church was built named after St. Nikolai, just like numerous other Danish churches of the time. In 1180 it was mentioned as Aarhus' first cathedral, but was torn down when the Dominicans came to the town.

There is no information regarding the following centuries of the history of the crypt church. At some point the rooms were walled off and used as a storage room until the church itself was forgotten.

[edit] Convent

The exact year for the erection of the convent is not known. Various sources points to the years of 1227 and 1239 and it is generally assumed the convent was finished in approximately 1240. Today the convent is a self governing institution led by an elected board.

The convent was separated from the Church of Our Lady during the Reformation. It was at this time that King Christian III (1534-1559) decided that the church should function as a hospital. In 1888 part of the convent was made into a church for the habitants of the convent, which today are mainly comprised of the elderly.