About

Long-church in the Diocese of Hamar

Hamar Cathedral is a long-church from 1866, erected as a result of Hamar being granted town status in 1849 and becoming an independent diocese two years later. It was built by the local contractor Herman Frang, was designed by the German architect Heinrich Ernst Schirmer. The whitewashed brick cathedral is shaped like a long-church, and is built in simple German Romanesque style. With the exception of the entrance portal, its exterior is sparingly ornamented. The church has a 500-people capacity, and is the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Hamar, which mainly comprises Innlandet county.

Ordination of two women as bishops

Rosmari Køhn served as bishop in Hamar from 1993 to 2006, and was Norway's first woman to take on this role. She was ordained in Hamar Cathedral on 20 May 1993. Also bishop Solveig Fiske was ordained here, on 17 December 2006. Another great moment in history was when Kirsten Flagstad held her last official concert in the cathedral – and her native town, Hamar – on 21 October 1958. Her childhood home is only a few metres from the main entrance of the cathedral.