Sem Church, Tønsberg, Norway - SpottingHistory.com

Sem Church was built in the 1100s as a parish church for the royal Sem Manor (Sem hovedgård). It has been restored and altered several times, 1690, 1770, 1924, 1955 and 1959. Near the church is a small burial chapel Det wedelske gravkapell for the noble family of Jarlsberg Manor. The pulpit dates from 1592 and altar from the 17th century.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Karin Elise Syvertsen (8 months ago)
Strong teleloop?

Hege Pettersen (13 months ago)
Cozy little church

Ole-Christian Vagle (3 years ago)

Ragnar Tollefsen (3 years ago)
This must be that of the medieval churches in Vestfold with the most history. The church belonged to Sem castle farm in the beginning and was a long church for the Wedel family. Today's church was built in the early 1100s. The Wedel family had its own burial chapel that can be seen through two carved crosses in an iron door. The coat of arms of the Welsh family stands over the door. Stop and see this historic medieval church.

Allan Larsson (3 years ago)

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright Göran Höglund (Kartläsarn)

Historic Site of the week

Varberg Fortress

Varberg Fortress was built in 1287-1300 by count Jacob Nielsen as protection against his Danish king, who had declared him an outlaw after the murder of King Eric V of Denmark. Jacob had close connections with king Eric II of Norway and as a result got substantial Norwegian assistance with the construction. The fortress, as well as half the county, became Norwegian in 1305.

King Eric's grand daughter, Ingeborg Håkansdotter, inherited the area from her father, King Haakon V of Norway. She and her husband, Eric, Duke of Södermanland, established a semi-independent state out of their Norwegian, Swedish and Danish counties until the death of Erik. They spent considerable time at the fortress. Their son, King Magnus IV of Sweden (Magnus VII of Norway), spent much time at the fortress as well.

The fortress was augmented during the late 16th and early 17th century on order by King Christian IV of Denmark. However, after the Treaty of Brömsebro in 1645 the fortress became Swedish. It was used as a military installation until 1830 and as a prison from the end of the 17th Century until 1931.

It is currently used as a museum and bed and breakfast as well as private accommodation. The moat of the fortress is said to be inhabited by a small lake monster. In August 2006, a couple of witnesses claimed to have seen the monster emerge from the dark water and devour a duck. The creature is described as brown, hairless and with a 40 cm long tail.

Do you know an ancient castle or magnificent church near you?

Why not share it with other people interested in history? You can add your own historic sites and attractions to SpottingHistory.com.

It's absolutely free, easy, and doesn't even need registration!

Upload data

Sem Church

Address

Details

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Historic Landmarks of Sicily

Rhodes, The Island of Knights

Great Spa Towns of Europe

Historic Site of the week

Varberg Fortress

Looks like you are a history fan!