Hirsholmens kirke - Hirsholmen, Denmark - This Old Church on Waymarking.com

I 1641 – efter at Hirsholmene havde været beboet i knap halvanden hundrede år – blev kirken bygget. I dag står kirken tilbage som øens ældste bygning. Det var øernes daværende ejer Otto Skeel, som i 1634 fik kong Christian IV’s tilladelse til at bygge kirken. Det var sådan på det tidspunkt, at holmboerne måtte drage til Elling på fastlandet for at gå i kirke.

Sejladsen til Elling var ikke ufarlig. Så alene derfor ønskede man en kirke og en præst på øen. Men det største problem var, at da det dengang ikke var helt ualmindeligt at spædbørn døde kort efter fødslen, oplevede forældre den sorg, at barnet ikke nåede at blive døbt. Historier fortæller endvidere, at der kunne gå flere uger, før præsten fra Elling kunne nå frem og begrave afdøde holmboere. Derfor blev der oprettet et såkaldt sognekald, en præsts embede, og Skeel ansøgte kongen om lov til at bygge en kirke.

Kirken i bindingsværk med stolper af egetræ, gjorde ikke meget væsen af sig. Udefra ligner den bare et hus. Senere blev kirken grundmuret og våbenhuset bygget til, men kirkerummet menes ikke at have været ændret siden Skeels tid. Imidlertid er kirkerummet forholdsvis stor. Man mener, at der var brug for den rigelige plads, fordi granithuggeriet på øen i flere hundrede år tiltrak mange arbejdere – og dermed mange kirkegængere.

Hirsholmene Kirke fik hverken tårn eller spir, men en smuk gammel sengotisk fløjaltertavle fra Flade Kirke – i guld, rødt og blåt. På altertavlen, der egentlig er katolsk, er alle tolv apostle fint udskåret. Og Judas er med, om end han er skåret ud i lidt dårligere træ end de andre. Her er også døbefont af træ og smukt dekoreret dåbsfad.

Fra loftet hænger meget detaljerede skibe, blandt andet en model af en af øernes første postbåde.

Man havde åbenbart meget stor vilje til at trække folk i kirke, også dem der ikke rigtig havde lyst. Bagest i lokalet, som rummer både skib og kor, er en bænk forhøjet. Her kunne lodserne sidde under gudstjenesterne og både lytte til præsten og ud gennem det sædvanligt store vindue holde øje med, om skibe på søen havde brug for deres hjælp.

I våbenhuset hænger en lille metalanordning, der kunne slås fast om et menneskes hals, så den, der ikke ville i kirke, kunne tvinges og holdes fast. I perioder var der tvungen kirkegang.

Våbenhuset er åbent på dage hvor færgen Seadog sejler og herfra kan man kigge gennem gitteret ind i kirken. Præsten fra Frederikshavn kommer til kirken og afholder gudstjeneste ca. 6 gange hver sommer.

English: In 1641 - after Hirsholmene had been inhabited for almost one and a half hundred years - the church was built. Today, the church remains the island's oldest building. It was the islands' then owner Otto Skeel, who in 1634 received permission from King Christian IV to build the church. It was like that at the time that the islanders had to go to Elling on the mainland to go to church.

The voyage to Elling was not without danger. So that alone was why they wanted a church and a priest on the island. But the biggest problem was that since it was not uncommon for infants to die shortly after birth, parents experienced the grief that the child did not have time to be baptized. Stories also tell that it could take several weeks before the priest from Elling could arrive and bury deceased islanders. Therefore, a so-called parish call, a priest's office, was established, and Skeel applied to the king for permission to build a church.

The half-timbered church with oak pillars did not make much of a difference. From the outside, it just looks like a house. Later, the church was founded and the porch was built, but the church room is not believed to have been changed since Skeel's time. However, the church space is relatively large. It is believed that the ample space was needed because the granite quarry on the island for hundreds of years attracted many workers - and thus many churchgoers.

Hirsholmene Church got neither a tower nor a spire, but a beautiful old late Gothic velvet altarpiece from Flat Church - in gold, red and blue. On the altarpiece, which is actually Catholic, all twelve apostles are finely carved. And Judas is with, though he is carved in a little worse wood than the others. Here is also a baptismal font made of wood and a beautifully decorated baptismal font.

From the ceiling hang very detailed ships, including a model of one of the islands' first mail boats.

At the back of the room, which houses both the nave and chancel, a bench is raised. Here the pilots could sit during the services and both listen to the priest and out through the usual large window keep an eye on whether ships on the lake needed their help.

In the porch hangs a small metal device that could be fastened around a person's neck so that anyone who did not want to go to church could be forced and held. At times, there was forced church attendance.

The porch is open on days when the ferry Seadog sails and from here you can look through the lattice into the church. The priest from Frederikshavn comes to the church and holds a service approx. 6 times every summer.

Source Skov og naturstyrelsen

Date the Church was built, dedicated or cornerstone laid: 01/01/1641 Age of Church building determined by?: Other reliable source If denomination of Church is not part of the name, please provide it here: Lutheranism Primary website for Church or Historic Church Building: [Web Link] If Church is open to the public, please indicate hours: Not listed If Church holds a weekly worship service and "all are welcome", please give the day of the week: Not listed Indicate the time that the primary worship service is held. List only one: Not Listed Street address of Church: Not listed Secondary Website for Church or Historic Church Building: Not listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   10/23/2022 Panta-TLB visited it