Christiansø Church, Christiansø, Denmark

Christiansø church was first consecrated in 1685 when the island's fortifications were completed. Serving the garrison, it was initially located in a small floor room in the fortification tower where it was used until 1821. It was then moved some two hundred metres to the east to its present location on an irregular quadrangular plot surrounded by fieldstone walls.

The small rectangular granite building was rebuilt and enlarged in 1852, a porch being added on the western side. Comprehensive restoration work was undertaken in 1928 under architect Christian Olrik. The main entrance was widened and a gallery was added inside. The four straight-sided windows on either side of the nave were slightly reduced in size and given a rounded finish. The ceiling consists of a plastered, wooden barrel vault.

In the south-west corner of the churchyard there is a free-standing bell tower with two bells. Typical of the Bornholm style, it consists of a fieldstone base and a half-timbered belfry.

References:

Wikipedia

Religious sites in Denmark

User Reviews

Show Your Love project (2 months ago)
Blessed to see church here... I'm from India, associate pastor in my father's missionary church... I wasn't just going through Google map and Searching all the small islands, at first I could not even see this island but as I zoom in its such a beautiful place to see and know that there is a church here... Love to see this church and people here in person... blessings and love from the church and family here in India

Arafat Rayhan Ovi (3 months ago)
Pubg erangel map Pochinki church??

Alexander Wohlfarth (4 months ago)
God bless this Church ????✝️❤️???✝️✝️❤️❤️❤️????

بنت مزاجيه (8 months ago)
PUBG map

Jens Jensen (2 years ago)
Nice and nice church

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Martin M. Miles

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The Abbey of Saint-Etienne, also known as Abbaye aux Hommes ('Men"s Abbey'), is a former monastery dedicated to Saint Stephen (Saint Étienne). It is considered, along with the neighbouring Abbaye aux Dames ('Ladies" Abbey'), to be one of the most notable Romanesque buildings in Normandy. Like all the major abbeys in Normandy, it was Benedictine.

Lanfranc, before being an Archbishop of Canterbury, was abbot of Saint-Etienne. Built in Caen stone during the 11th century, the two semi-completed churches stood for many decades in competition. An important feature added to both churches in about 1120 was the ribbed vault, used for the first time in France. The two abbey churches are considered forerunners of the Gothic architecture. The original Romanesque apse was replaced in 1166 by an early Gothic chevet, complete with rosette windows and flying buttresses. Nine towers and spires were added in the 13th century. The interior vaulting shows a similar progression, beginning with early sexpartite vaulting (using circular ribs) in the nave and progressing to quadipartite vaults (using pointed ribs) in the sanctuary.

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As a consequence of the Wars of Religion, the high lantern tower in the middle of the church collapsed and was never rebuilt. The Benedictine abbey was suppressed during the French Revolution and the abbey church became a parish church. From 1804 to 1961, the abbey buildings accommodated a prestigious high school, the Lycée Malherbe. During the Normandy Landings in 1944, inhabitants of Caen found refuge in the church; on the rooftop there was a red cross, made with blood on a sheet, to show that it was a hospital (to avoid bombings).

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