Åsen Church

Åsen Church
Åsen kirke
View of the church
63°36′23″N 11°02′18″E / 63.60625626°N 11.03825703°E / 63.60625626; 11.03825703
Location	Levanger, Trøndelag
Country	Norway
Denomination	Church of Norway
Churchmanship	Evangelical Lutheran
History
Status	Parish church
Founded	13th century
Consecrated	31 Aug 1904
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	Ole Røising
Architectural type	Long church
Style	Swiss chalet style
Completed	1904 (120 years ago) (1904)
Specifications
Capacity	400
Materials	Wood
Administration
Diocese	Nidaros bispedømme
Deanery	Stiklestad prosti
Parish	Åsen
Norwegian Cultural Heritage Site
Type	Church
Status	Not protected
ID	85994

Åsen Church (Norwegian: Åsen kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Levanger municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located in the village of Åsen. It is the church for the Åsen parish which is part of the Stiklestad prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nidaros. The white, wooden church was built in a long church plan and in a Swiss chalet style in 1904 using plans drawn up by the architect Ole Røising. The church seats about 400 people.^[1][2]

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1432, but the church was not new at that time. The first church in Åsen was a stave church that was located at Vang, about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) northeast of the present church site. This church was likely built during the 13th century. During the first half of the 17th century, the old stave church was torn down and replaced with a new timber-framed church on the same site. The new church had a rectangular nave with a narrower, rectangular chancel with a lower roof line. There was a tower on the west end of the roof of the nave. A small sacristy was built on the south side of the choir in 1646.^[3][4]

The Åsen area had two church sites in the Middle Ages: Vang and Lo. There were gradually discussions about combining the two church sites in a more central place in the village. It was agreed to close down the Lo Church and move the Vang church to the village of Åsen where it would be renamed Aasen kirke. A building application was submitted in 1855. The drawings were not accepted, but the ministry provided drawings prepared by Christian H. Grosch. In 1856 a royal decree granted permission to build a new church on the present church site. The new church was consecrated on 5 December 1858, but the church was not completely finished until 1860.^[3][4][5]

The church was a log long church. The church had a tower on the west end, a choir on the east end, with a nave in the middle. Inside, there was a sacristy on the north and south sides of the choir. On the altar stood a painted cross. Around the year 1900, there were discussions of renovating the church. The plans were to take down the second floor seating galleries on the sides, rearranging the choir, and painting the whole interior. They started the renovation on 1 December 1902. On Christmas night, just a few weeks later, lightning struck the church tower and the church burned down, leaving nothing behind.^[5][6]

A new church was quickly designed by builder Ole Andreas Røising, and the lead builder was Gunerius Rabben from Ørland. The church was consecrated on 31 August 1904. It is a wooden long church with about 400 seats. The church has a west tower flanked by a staircase. A sacristy was built on the north side of the choir.^[5][7]

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  Side view (2016)
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  Front view (2016)
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  Front view (c. 1920s)
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  Interior view
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  Interior, altar, and pulpit
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  Church and surrounding area

• List of churches in Nidaros