Kalmar Cathedral Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Kalmar Cathedral
Kalmar domkyrka
Kalmar Cathedral
56°39′52″N 16°21′55″E / 56.66444°N 16.36528°E / 56.66444; 16.36528
Location	Kalmar
Country	Sweden
Denomination	Church of Sweden
History
Status	Active
Consecrated	1682
Architecture
Functional status	Cathedral & Parish church
Architect(s)	Nicodemus Tessin the Elder
Style	Baroque
Completed	1703
Administration
Diocese	Växjö

Kalmar Cathedral (Swedish: Kalmar domkyrka) is a beautiful and historic church located in the city of Kalmar, in southeast Sweden. It's found in the main square, called Stortorget. This impressive building was designed for the Church of Sweden and its construction started way back in 1660.

History of Kalmar Cathedral
Restoring the Cathedral
Gallery
Images for kids
See also

History of Kalmar Cathedral

The city of Kalmar was moved to Kvarnholmen island in the mid-1600s. By 1658, most of the move from the old town was finished. The new city was built like a fortress and followed "Renaissance ideals." This means it was planned in a very organized and grand way.

Because of this plan, the church and the town hall were built right across from each other in the main square (Stortorget Kalmar). The church's walls are made of limestone from Gotland. Its arches, doorways, and window frames are made of brick. The roof was covered with copper plates. The cathedral was built without a large dome and had tall windows.

The famous architect Nicodemus Tessin the Elder (1615–1681) designed the cathedral. It's a great example of the Baroque style of architecture, which became popular in Sweden at that time. The design of Kalmar Cathedral had to be smart. It needed to work well for church services, follow old traditions, and also fit the needs of a city that was like a fortress.

Building started in 1660, but it was stopped many times. One big reason was the Scanian War (1675–1679). After the war ended, work on the cathedral started again. Kalmar Cathedral was finally finished in 1703.

Restoring the Cathedral

Over hundreds of years, Kalmar Cathedral has been repaired and updated many times.

In 1783, a big project began to fix up the church inside and out.
In 1800, a large fire hit the city. The damage to the church was fixed by 1802.
From 1831 to 1834, more repairs were done. Architect Jacob Wilhelm Gerss (1784-1844) suggested these changes. The outside walls and roof were part of this work.
In 1882–1883, the inside of the church was rebuilt. This was based on plans by architect Helgo Zetterwall (1831-1907).
From 1910 to 1914, another restoration happened. City architect Josef Fredrik Olson (1870-1947) created the plans for this.
The repairs from 1928 to 1932 also followed Fredrik Olson's ideas.
Between 1981 and 1982, the outside of the church was extensively restored.
From 2005 to 2011, more outside restoration took place. This work included fixing the church roof, repairing stone, and staining the facade. Inside, from 2006 to 2011, the choir area was raised and made bigger, and new flooring was put in.