Ribe Cathedral is located in the city of Ribe in Jutland, Denmark. The oldest surviving village in Denmark, Ribe is situated on a wind blown, flat landscape. Originally Ribe was accessible by sea, the North Sea branching off into the Ribe River. Sedimentation by the Wadden Sea during the late Middle Ages, closed this option. Ribe was a bustling trade town with an open trading market set up on the north bank of the Ribe River. The markets attracted the Danes, Swedes, Norwegians, Germans, Frisian and the English, all with goods to trade. The markets were sanctioned by either King Angantyr, a king of the Danes who reigned in 710 and known in contemporary literature, or King Harald Hildetard, the legendary king of the Swedes, the Danes and the Norwegians from around 705.
The first church in Ribe was founded in 860 by the missionary monk known as Ansgar. In 814 Harald Klak, a co-King of Denmark, was exiled by the other co-King, Horik I. Harald Klak fled to Germany and approached the Emporer to assist him in getting back Denmark. The Emporer offered him the Dukedom of Frisian instead if he would become a Christian. Klak, his wife and children plus four hundred of his followers were baptised. Klak returned to Denmark in 826 and brought with him the monk Ansgar. The son of a noble Frankish Family, after the death of his mother, Ansgar had been brought up in Corbie Abbey. He was later educated in Picardy at the Benedictine Monastery. He eventually became the Archbishop of Hamburg and was ordained as a saint. After Klak fled from Denmark again Ansgar was able to win the favour of King Horik I. With Horik I's permission a small wooden church was erected by Ansgar. St Rimbert, a friend and contemporary of Ansgar also on a mission to bring Christianity to Scandinavia, succeeded Ansgar. The church bells soon had the people of Ribe complaining that they may frighten away the land sprites, landvaetter, who were believed to help places flourish. Horik II closed the church for some time. By 888 the mission to christianise Scandinavia was abandoned and the church was burned down to remove all evidence of a foreign church.
Under the supervision of the Archbishop of Hamburg and with the permission of the Roman Curia, St Leofdag was ordained as the first Bishop of Ribe. That same year St Leofdag was martyred by his housecarl, a sort of body guard, who skewered him with a spear as he was fording the Ribe River. The first stone for the cathedral was laid 1110 by Bishop Thur, and the building was completed in 1134. The cathedral was built from Tufa stone, a type of limestone formed in ambient waters by carbonate minerals precipitating. The stone was imported from Germany and was constructed in the Romanesque Style. It was built with a flat timbered roof, supported by half-rounded arches. The basilica style building was built similar to churches in Northern Germany of the time. In 1145 Bishop Elias founded a school and chapter in the Ribe Cathedral. Bishop Elias was also responsible for completing and consecrating the Cathedral.
A fire ravaged Ribe and damaged the Cathedral. The cathedral was repaired and extended using red brick. The enlarged church had a nave flanked by double aisles on both sides. Parts of the old flat ceiling were vaulted in the gothic style. In the late 12th century a beautiful doorway was carved for the cathedral. Called the 'cats head portal' in honour of two lion statues on each side of the door, a carved relief of Jesus being taken down from the cross decorates the nave across the door. In 1283, just before morning Mass on Christmas Day the north west tower of the cathedral collapsed killing several people. Replacing the tower, the Commoners Tower was erected. It was taller at 62 metres high and was crowned by a copper, Rhemish Hemut, with a spire. The higher parts of the tower were used to store archival material from the town and serve as a watchtower. In 1402 part of the cathedral burnt and the repairs were again completed with red brick.
During the Danish-Sweden Wars, cannons were mounted up the tower to defend the city from attack. In 1644 the cannons fired at Swedish ships. The cathedral was closed in 1536 when Denmark officially became Lutheran. The monks were sent from the Cathedral and the it was left neglected and open to vandalism. Leading Lutheran theologian, Hans Tausen, became the Lutheran Superintendent/Bishop of Ribe in 1542, a role in which he remained until 1561. A statue of Hans Tausen is at the base of the Tower. By 1560 all of the Catholic artwork, statues and paraphernalia had been removed and the paintings were plastered over.
The town centre of Ribe was destroyed by fire in 1580 but the Cathedral remained. In 1594 part of the Commoners Tower collapsed and it was rebuilt ten metres taller with a flat roof. Around this time the famed Odense sculptor, Jens Asmussen carved a new pulpit for the cathedral. A violent storm hit Ribe in 1634. This storm resulted in what became known as 'The Great Drowning', an event during which 8000 people drowned in one night. The flood reached the pulpit of the cathedral. That year the cathedral got a new organ. The organ was made by a Fiensberg organ maker called Johan Heidi who had been an apprentice to the Royal organ maker, Nicholas Maas. The Commoners Tower had a clock installed in 1696.
Hans Adolf Brorson became the Bishop of Ribe in 1741. He was responsible for creating the first hymn book for the Danish Lutheran Church. Restorations where carried out in 1843 and then between 1883 and 1904 the entire cathedral was renovated. Artist Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen created a bronze door in commemoration of the restoration. In 1973 a new organ was built and then enlarged again in 1994.
Carl Henning Pedersen, the artist described as the 'Danish Chagall' and a member of the avant garden movement known as COBRA, was commissioned to decorate the Apse of the Cathedral in 1983. His proposed designs were met with controversy initially, but after much debating the modern design was accepted and went forward.
Among those interned at Ribe Cathedral are Hans Adolph Brorson and Hans Tausen. Eric II of Denmark the King of Denmark between 1134 and 1137, was killed by a subject. He was buried at Ribe Cathedral. Christopher I of Denmark the King between 1252 and 1259, was staying with the Bishop of Ribe when he died taking Holy Communion. Some believe that his communion wine was poisoned. He was buried in front of the high altar in Ribe Cathedral. Albert Skeel who was the Admiral of the Realm from 1616 to 1623 was buried in Ribe Cathedral following his death in 1639.
Being such an old building with such a turbulent history Ribe Cathedrak is said to have a cursed item. On the third pillar in the centre of the cathedral there is a small brass candleholder said to have been placed there by a knight. There is suppose to be a curse on the candleholder directed at anyone that tries to move it from its position. During renovations in the church in 1845 no one would move the candleholder until one young man decided to do it. He climbed a scaffold to resume his work and the structure collapsed and the man fell to his death.
I love Denmark and visiting Ribe was a memorable and fascinating experience. The beautiful cathedral was a pleasure to explore.
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