Olavskirken

Olavskirken på Avaldsnes ble reist av Håkon Håkonsson rundt 1250 da Norgesveldet var på sitt største. Den var da kongens personlige kirke og en del av et større kongsgårdanlegg. I 2017 ble ruinene av hovedbygningen i kongsgårdanlegget gravd fram. Bygningen endte i et stort porttårn, og fra porttårnet gikk det en overbygd gang fram til kirkekoret.

PILEGRIMSKIRKE
Håkon Håkonsson vigslet kirken til Olav den Hellige. Den ble derfor et viktig stoppested for pilegrimer som skulle til Olavs grav i Nidaros. Omkring Avaldsnes er det fremdeles kulturminner, sagn og stedsnavn som vitner om pilegrimstrafikken.

KOLLEGIATKIRKE
Håkon V Magnusson gjorde Olavskirken til ett av de fire kongelige kollegiatkirkene i Norge. De andre kollegiatkirkene lå i Oslo, Bergen og Tønsberg. I dag er Olavskirken den eneste av disse kollegiatkirkene som fremdeles står.

En kollegiatkirke var en slags kongelige «domkirke» eller et universitet der kongen kunne utdanne sine egne kongetro prester og rådgivere. Ved de andre kirkene var det biskopene som hadde denne retten.

FORFALL
Etter reformasjonen i 1536 forfalt kirkebygningen.

I 1745 skriver amtmann De Fine blant annet dette om Olavskirken på Avaldsnes:

«I blant dem er Augvoldsnes Kirke den mærkværdigste, som Kong Hagen Hagenson lod bygge, og er een blant de første Lands Bye Kirker i Norge. (Sturl, 795).
Den har været af een meeget Skiøn, Stor og Kostbar Muuret bygning, alt vinkelmessige Hveegsteene udi alle Hiørner, samt vindues-huller og Dørrer, hvor kanterne inden og uden ere av Hveegsteene indmuurede i Zirligste orden, paa gammel Goetisk brugelig Bygnings maade, med adskillige udhugne indholinger, og et høyt Taarn med vindel Trapper udi af skiønne tilhugne Hveegsteene…»

På midten av 1800-tallet startet restaureringsarbeidene. I 1929 var kirken restaurert slik vi ser den i dag.

KIRKEN UNDER SISTE VERDENSKRIG
Under krigen la presten Lars Skadberg ned arbeidet, og kirken ble stengt. Tyskerne ville rive kirketårnet fordi engelske flygere brukte den som landemerke når de skulle bombe i Karmsundet.  Riksantikvaren og bygdefolket fikk forhindre dette ved at de bygget et plankeskjelett som dekket hele kirken.  Fra hele Karmøy kom det konfirmanter som lot et seg konfirmere «på svart» (dvs. ulovlig) i Olavskirken.

Oppgave:

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St. Olav’s Church

The chancel door opens outwards – a clear sign that there was once a passageway outside it. The covered passageway led to the royal hall. (Photo Marit S. Vea)

St Olav’s church (St Olaf’s church) at Avaldsnes was built by King Håkon Håkonsson around 1250 as part of the royal manor complex at a time when Norway’s power was at its greatest.  In 2017, the ruins of a fortified royal hall was excavated south of the church. The hall ended in a gate tower. From the tower a covered passageway in two floors led up to the chancel.

A CHURCH FOR PILEGRIMS
Håkon Håkonsson consecrated the church to St. Olav, and the church became an important stopping place for pilgrims going to Nidaros. There are still place names and tales from North Karmøy which remind us of this pilgrim route.

In earlier times St Olav’s Church had both an Olav’s altar and an altar that was dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and perhaps there was also a St Michael’s altar.

On the north side of the church we can see a bricked up door. This was the pilgrims’ entrance, as they always had to enter any church with their backs to the north. If you take the same way as the pilgrims you can see curved marks and runes from both olden and more modern times on the grey church walls.

THE COLLEGIATE CHURCH
Early in the 1300’s Håkon Magnusson made St Olav’s Church one of only four royal collegiate churches in Norway, the others being at Tønsberg, Bergen and Oslo. Now St. Olav’s Church at Avaldsnes is the only one of the four left.

The royal collegiate churches were the ‘universities’ of their time, a place where the King could have his own trusted priests and advisers, all the other churches being under the control of bishops appointed by Rome. The royal collegiate churches were under the direct control of the King and were an important instrument in his power structure. All this tells us that the Royal Manor at Avaldsnes had a very important position in the 1200’s and 1300’s.

DECEY
After the Reformation in 1536, the church fell into disrepair. In the midst of the 19th Century the restoration work started and in 1929 the restoration was completed and the church was restored as you see it today.

ST OLAV’S CHURCH DURING THE 2. WORLD WAR
During the 2. World War the Germans wanted to tear down the church tower because British pilots used it as a landmark when they should bomb the strait Karmsund. But the National Heritage authorities together with the locals managed to prevent it because they built a wooden skeleton over the church. The intention was that the church should look like a hill from the air.

From all over Karmøy young candidates for confirmation came to Avaldsnes to be confirmed illegal in the St Olav’s church.

Task:

To log this virtual cache, you MUST attach a photo of you/parts of you in front of the church steps. (See my picture in the description.)

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Kilde: Olavskirken - Avaldsnes info

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