- TURY.CLUB
- Tourist Objects
- Denmark
- Odense
- St. Knud's Cathedral
The Cathedral of St. Knud, not only one of the main attractions of Odense, but the historical heritage of all of Denmark. Until 1100, a small wooden church of St. Alban, which belonged to a Benedictine monastery, stood on this site. According to legend, the Danish king Knud IV, his brother and 17 other knights were killed right in front of the altar of this church during prayer. In 1101, the king was canonized, and a cathedral was built on the site of a wooden church, the remains of the foundation of which can still be seen in the underground chapel. The old church was built in the Romanesque style with semicircular arches supporting a flat ceiling. In 1247, the temple burned down and was soon rebuilt, but now made of brick. The new cathedral was built in the Gothic style with lancet arches and high arches, the tower of the cathedral is crowned with five bells, the oldest of which dates from the late 17th century, the youngest - the end of the 19th century. In 1513, the Danish King Hans was buried in St. Knud's Cathedral, later the remains of his wife Christina of Saxony, son, King Christian II and his wife Isabella of Austria were transferred here from the royal chapel of the Franciscan monastery. During the restoration in 1870, a staircase leading to the altar was added. A unique 16th-century golden altar was handed over from a Franciscan monastery, representing a carved triptych with three hundred figures of saints and Danish kings. Then an underground chapel was discovered and opened.
Today the temple of St. Knud is a three-nave cathedral with two rows of columns, the size of fifty by twenty-two meters. Particular attention of visitors is attracted by the crypt, where the relics of St. Knud are buried, nearby are ancient books open to visitors, fragments of clothes and weapons of the king. The cathedral houses a large organ and a department of the 18th century.
