Ribe Cathedral
Encyclopedia
Ribe
Ribe , the oldest extant Danish town, is in southwest Jutland and has a population of 8,192 . Until 1 January 2007, it was the seat of both the surrounding municipality, and county...
on the western coast of southern Jutland
Jutland
Jutland , historically also called Cimbria, is the name of the peninsula that juts out in Northern Europe toward the rest of Scandinavia, forming the mainland part of Denmark. It has the North Sea to its west, Kattegat and Skagerrak to its north, the Baltic Sea to its east, and the Danish–German...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
History
Ribe is Denmark's oldest surviving city. Ribe began as an open trading market on the north bank of the Ribe River where it runs into the ocean. Danes, Norwegians, Swedes, Germans, Frisians, English and other who occasionally brought exchange goods from all parts of northwestern Europe. The landscape is flat, wind-blown and sandy without any particular fine harbor. Up until the late Middle Ages boats could sail up to Ribe on the river. Ribe Market was sanctioned by either King AngantyrOngendus
Ongendus was a king of the Danes, reigning c. 710.About 710, Saint Willibrord visited the Danes whilst Ongendus was ruling and returned with 30 boys to instruct in missionary work. No further details are given about Ongendus, other than that he was "more savage than any beast and harder than...
(Ongendus) or King Harald Hildetand as early as 705. In Viking times Ribe was a bustling international trade center which made it an ideal starting point for Christian missionaries from Hamburg to begin the process of the Christianization of Scandinavia
Christianization of Scandinavia
The Christianization of Scandinavia took place between the 8th and the 12th century. The realms of Scandinavia proper, Denmark, Norway and Sweden, established their own Archdioceses, responsible directly to the Pope, in 1104, 1154 and 1164, respectively...
.
Harald Klak
Harald Klak
Harald 'Klak' Halfdansson was a king in Jutland around 812–814 and again from 819–827.-Family:...
a co-king of Denmark was forced from Denmark by his co-king, Horik I
Horik I
Horik I reigned as sole King of Denmark from 827 to his violent death in 854. His reign was marked by Danish raids on the Franco-German empire of Louis the Pious, son and successor of Charlemagne....
and fled to Germany to get help from Emperor Louis. The emperor put off Harald's request and offered him the Dukedom of Frisia as a consolation prize, if he would become Christian. Harald agreed and was baptized with his wife and family and "four hundred Danes" in his company. Harald returned to Denmark in 826 to try to reclaim his lands. Harald took a priest along to continue the work of making the Danes Christian. The monk's name was Ansgar
Ansgar
Saint Ansgar, Anskar or Oscar, was an Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen. The see of Hamburg was designated a "Mission to bring Christianity to the North", and Ansgar became known as the "Apostle of the North".-Life:After his mother’s early death Ansgar was brought up in Corbie Abbey, and made rapid...
. Harald's quarrelsome nature soon asserted itself and he fled back to Frisia. Ansgar was forced to leave Denmark.
The first church in Ribe was built in 860 by the missionary monk Ansgar
Ansgar
Saint Ansgar, Anskar or Oscar, was an Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen. The see of Hamburg was designated a "Mission to bring Christianity to the North", and Ansgar became known as the "Apostle of the North".-Life:After his mother’s early death Ansgar was brought up in Corbie Abbey, and made rapid...
who went on to become Archbishop of Hamburg. It was a timber church built with the permission of King Horik I
Horik I
Horik I reigned as sole King of Denmark from 827 to his violent death in 854. His reign was marked by Danish raids on the Franco-German empire of Louis the Pious, son and successor of Charlemagne....
on the south side of the river across from the market. Ansgar won the confidence of the king, who had in 845 burned Hamburg, Ansgar's own city. Young King Horik II closed the church in Hedeby in reaction to the increased success of Ansgar and his companions. But Ansgar won Horik the Younger's friendship, and the church was reopened. The Danes in Hedeby
Hedeby
Hedeby |heath]]land, and býr = yard, thus "heath yard"), mentioned by Alfred the Great as aet Haethe , in German Haddeby and Haithabu, a modern spelling of the runic Heiðabý was an important trading settlement in the Danish-northern German borderland during the Viking Age...
and Ribe complained about the church bells which they feared might scare away the land sprites (Danish:landvaettener).
St Rimbert
Rimbert
Saint Rimbert was archbishop of Bremen-Hamburg from 865 until his death.A monk in Turholt , he shared a missionary trip to Scandinavia with his friend Ansgar, whom he later succeeded as archbishop in Hamburg-Bremen in 865...
, who succeeded Ansgar died in 888. Following his death the mission to the Danes collapsed, the missionaries moved on, and the church was burned to eradicate any memory of the "foreign" religion.
Ribe was established as a diocese for St Leofdag, the first Bishop of Ribe, in 948 under the supervision of the Archbishop of Hamburg who was authorized by the Roman Curia to proselytize the Danes. Leofdag was murdered that same year when a Dane skewered him with a spear as he forded the river at Ribe. Although never canonized, Leofdag was revered as a local saint until the Reformation
Reformation in Denmark
The Reformation in Denmark–Norway and Holstein was the transition from Roman Catholicism to Lutheranism in the realms ruled by the Copenhagen-based House of Oldenburg in the first half of the sixteenth century...
. His remains would eventually end up in Ribe Cathedral.
The first stone cathedral was begun by Bishop Thur in 1110 and completed in 1134. Tufa stone was imported from Germany to build a permanent structure, since stone in the area was not available. The cathedral was built in the Romanesque style with half-rounded arches supporting a flat timber ceiling, a typical basilica style building patterned after churches in northern Germany.
King Erik II of Denmark (Danish:Erik Emune) was murdered at the Urnehoved Assembly (Danish:Ting) in July 1137 by Chief Sorte Plov in revenge for the execution of a relative. The king was buried inside the cathedral. King Erik's short three year reign was a pause in the ongoing competition for which family would rule all of Denmark. King Erik earned the nickname "Bloody Erik" for his execution of his own brother Harald and ten (or eleven) of Harald's twelve sons. But historians call him the kinder "Erik Who ought to be Remembered" (Danish:Emune). The royal burial enhanced the cathedral's reputation.
The Ribe Cathedral school and chapter were founded by Bishop Elias in 1145. He also saw the cathedral's completion and consecration.
A terrible fire in 1176 burned the town and the new cathedral. Because it was not completely destroyed, Ribe Cathedral is Denmark's best preserved Romanesque building. The remnants of the old were blended with new construction in a new building material for the time, large red bricks. The church was enlarged so that the nave was flanked by double aisles on each side. In parts of the church, the old flat ceilings were raised and Gothic vaulting installed.
Late in the 12th century a magnificent main door way was carved for the cathedral. The relief above the door shows Jesus being taken down from the cross. About 50 years earlier a triangular relief showing the Day of Judgement was placed above the main door. The door is called the cat's head portal because of the two lions at the base of the two columns flanking the doorway.
The triangular relief is considered one of the largest remaining romanesque granite reliefs.
About the same time as work on restoring the cathedral was underway, the citizens of Ribe built a second wall around the town. Ribe was without question Denmark's most important trade center of the time, and the wealth that flowed to the city and the cathedral made such construction possible
In 1259 King Christoffer I of Denmark was buried at Ribe Cathedral. King Christoffer was the son of Valdemar II and was elected King of Denmark after the death of his brother King Abel in 1282. He spent much of his energy maintaining control of the kingdom from his nephew in Schleswig
Schleswig
Schleswig or South Jutland is a region covering the area about 60 km north and 70 km south of the border between Germany and Denmark; the territory has been divided between the two countries since 1920, with Northern Schleswig in Denmark and Southern Schleswig in Germany...
. He had feud with the great churchman of his day, Jacob Erlendsøn, Archbishop of Lund. The argument came down to whether the king had rights over the church and church officials. when the archbishop refused to acknowledge Christoffer's son, Erik V. The archbishop was imprisoned and when he was released, Erlendsen fled the country. King Christoffer died suddenly on 29 May 1259 after drinking poisoned communion wine which rumor said he received from Abbot Arnfast of Ryd Abbey
Ryd Abbey
Ryd Abbey or Rüde Abbey was a Cistercian monastery in Munkbrarup that formerly occupied the present site of Glücksburg Castle in Glücksburg on the Flensburg Fjord in the Schleswig-Flensburg district of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.- History :...
. He was buried in Ribe Cathedral.
Just before morning mass on Christmas Day was slated to begin 1283 the northwest tower collapsed into the church and into the streets around the cathedral. Several people were killed. In its place the much larger "Commoner's Tower" was built with the idea that it would rise much higher than the other older tower. The lower parts of the tower were occupied by the church and the upper floors were used by the city for storage of records and as a watch tower. In the Danish-Swedish Wars eight cannons were hauled to the top to defend the city from attack. They actually fired at Swedish ships in 1644.
The Commoner's Tower was complete at 62 meters, capped by a copper "Rhenish helmet" including the narrow spire on the top in 1333.
Part of the cathedral burned in 1402 and brick was used to restore and expand the auxiliary buildings surrounding the cathedral.
After King Eric of Pomerania
Eric of Pomerania
Eric of Pomerania KG was King Eric III of Norway Norwegian Eirik, King Eric VII of Denmark , and as Eric King of Sweden...
was deposed in 1439, his nephew, Prince Christoffer of Bavaria, was selected to become the regent of Denmark. Once things settled down, he was elected king by the Privy Council and proclaimed King of Denmark at the Viborg Assembly 9 April 1440. He went on to be elected King of Norway and then King of Sweden. His coronation as King of Denmark took place January 1, 1443 at Ribe Cathedral.
in 1536 Denmark officially became a Lutheran nation. The cathedral was closed and the monks who had cared for and lived near the cathedral were turned out. The cathedral was subject to vandalism and neglect.
1542 Hans Tausen
Hans Tausen
Hans Tausen , the protagonist of the Danish Reformation, was born at Birkende on Funen in 1494 and died in Ribe in 1561.- Life :...
, the Danish Luther, becomes the Lutheran Superintendent
Superintendent (ecclesiastical)
Superintendent is the head of an administrative division of a Protestant church, largely historical but still in use in Germany.- Superintendents in Sweden :...
/Bishop of Ribe until his death in 1561. His contributions to the Reformation in Denmark are commemorated by a statue of him at the base of the Maria Tower.
1560 The last of the Catholic statues, artwork, altars, and decorations are removed and the medieval paintings were plastered over.
3 Sep 1580 The town center burned to the ground, but the cathedral was spared serious damage. Most of the houses remaining in Ribe town's center date from this period.
The Commoner's Tower partially collapsed in 1594. It was rebuilt but 10 meters lower than previously, but there was no money to add any kind of spire. It remained flat-topped. The church received a new pulpit carved by the famous Odense
Odense
The city of Odense is the third largest city in Denmark.Odense City has a population of 167,615 and is the main city of the island of Funen...
sculptor, Jens Asmussen.
1634 A violent storm surge on the night of 11–12 October flows into Ribe and the surrounding farm land. So many people and animals died in the storm that it was nicknamed the "Great Drowning". 8000 people were reported drowned during that single night. The surge flooded the cathedral as high as the pulpit. Later that year the cathedral was gifted a new organ to replace th old one.
1696 A new large clock was installed in the Commoners Tower.
In 1741 one of Ribe's best remembered bishops took office, Hans Adolf Brorson. His name is familiar to many Danes as the creator of the first hymnbook for the Danish Lutheran Church. His collection of hymns included eighty-five of his own. Many of them are included in the current hymnbook of the Danish National Church (Danish:Folkekirken).
1843 The deteriorating church was restored. The floor was lowered by a half meter.
1883-1904 The cathedral was completely restored. Each section was put back into its original style as far as was possible.
To commemorate the restoration of 1904 a wonderful bronze door for the main entrance was created by artist Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen
Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen
Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen was a Danish sculptor. Her preferred themes were domestic animals and people, with an intense, naturalistic portrayal of movements and sentiments. She also depicted themes from Nordic mythology...
was presented to the cathedral beneath the carved reliefs from the late 12th century.
1983-1987 The apse was redecorated by COBRA
COBRA (avant-garde movement)
COBRA was a European avant-garde movement active from 1948 to 1951. The name was coined in 1948 by Christian Dotremont from the initials of the members' home cities: Copenhagen , Brussels , Amsterdam .-History:...
artist Carl Henning Pedersen. The modern designs are in stark contrast to the historic nature of the building and are still a source of controversy, time will tell whether Pedersen's artistic work will stand the test of time.
Contents
The towers contain six bells. The oldest surviving bell was cast in 1456 by Hinrik Dobbran, a Melchior Lucas bell, the largest in the tower, from 1599, the smallest bell from 1770 cast by JN Bieber, a Jacobus Fr. Beseler from 1847, one from 1858 cast by PP Meilstrup the Elder, and one from 1869 by PP Meilstrup the Younger.The organ facade is from the Johan Heide organ of 1635. Heide was a Flensburg organ maker from 1615-1641. He was an apprentice of the royal organ maker, Nicolaus, Maas. The organ has been expanded and updated many times. A new organ was built in 1973 by Frobenius
Frobenius Orgelbyggeri
-History:Frobenius Orgelbyggeri was founded in Copenhagen by Theodor Frobenius in 1909. The firm moved to Lyngby in 1925. Theodor's sons Walther and Erik joined the company in 1944, at the same time that they began to build organs in the classical tradition, with mechanical actions and slider...
and enlarged by the same company in 1994. It has 50 voices.
The main altar piece was painted by Ebbe Jehn Petersen.
The ship which hangs at the crossing is a model of the ship "Maria" by B. Cl. Jensen of Ribe.
In the restoration of the late 19th century the walls were complete cleared of the plaster layers. Unfortunately this destroyed many rich medieval fresco paintings that enlivened the walls of the cathedral before the Reformation. A painting of the Virgin and infant Jesus have been preserved in the nave and a pillar has paintings of Apostle Andrew and Bartholomew. St George and the Dragon are have been preserved in the north transept.
Several epitaphs from the past have been preserved in the cathedral. The oldest is was raised by King Valdemar for his son in 1231. In the south transept is the chapel of Admiral Albert Skeel partially in sandstone and fine wood carvings.
The epitaph for Hans Tausen hangs in the church where is buried. His grave stone was moved next to the entrance of the Commoner's Tower.
Other important gravestones have been preserved including the one for King Christoffer I from 1259. Iver Munk, the last Catholic bishop of Ribe can literally be seen as his grave stone is a portrait.
Hans Adolph Brorson
Hans Adolph Brorson
Hans Adolph Brorson was a Danish Pietist bishop and hymn writer.Brorson belonged to a clerical family, both of this brothers were energetic and successful Pietist vicars. He began publishing hymns in 1732 while a pastor in southern Jutland...
is buried in the cathedral as well.
Rued Langgaard
From 1939 to his death in 1952, the composer Rued LanggaardRued Langgaard
Rued Langgaard was a late-Romantic Danish composer and organist. His then-unconventional music was at odds with that of his Danish contemporaries and was recognized only 16 years after his death.- Life :Born in Copenhagen, Rued Langgaard was the only son of composer and Royal Chamber...
served as an organist in the cathedral, having been unable to secure a post in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
due to the rejection of his work by the musical establishment.