Viborg Priory

Viborg Priory was an important Dominican religious center in Denmark during the Middle Ages.

History

Viborg Priory was established perhaps as early as 1227 by Bishop Gunnar of Viborg. It is first mention in the church yearbook in 1246 when donations are listed for the priory coming in the form of collections and gifts.

The priory church consisted of a choir, sacristy, and central nave completed towards the end of the 1200's in red brick in the gothic style with pointed arches. It was locatd to the north of the priory so as to be closest to the town center. Women were restricted fomr the church except during church holidays. The rest of the abbey had wings on the east and west sides which were identical.

The priory's four 'wings' were built in a rectangle around a central courtyard. One of the wings was a dormitory which had individual cells for the friars and places for nocives and lay brothers. The Dominican's custom was to sleep fully clothed, including footgear, so that they would be ready to travel at a moment's notice. The chapter room was used for meetings and for receiving important guests. The refectory was used as a communal dining hall connected to the bakery, brewery, and storage areas. The friars had a modest library and study hall. One of the wings was for guests and a a hosptial for the ill and aged. In time the priory became a land and business owner through the gifts of local residents. The priory owned a brick making business and farms, where the labor was provided by servants, lay brotheres, or compulsory work owed by local farms to the priory.

The Domincans in 1220 became a mendicant order which relied on the gifts of local people for their day to day sustinence. Their work was teaching and a rigorous daily schedule of prayers, meditation, and study. The order was introduced into Denmark by Brother Solomon from Århus an already in 1228, Denmark became an independent 'province' of the order called 'Dacia'.

A wall encircled the entire priory, and the entrances were so narrow that they prevented anyone from riding or driving into the open courtyard of the priory.

One unusual aspect of the life of the church was that preaching was done in Danish from 1254.

Few of the the priors names are knows as written records are scarce. Prior Adam is mentioned in 1353. Prior Niels Jepsen is named in the transfer of a farm to Bishop Erik Kaas in 1516. The last prior was Niels Vinoldsen is named in the dissolution of the priory in 1529.

The Reformation brought an end to Viborg Priory and the Domincans in Denmark. Both Franciscans and Dominicans felt the effects of the religious reforms which swept through Denmark in the early 1500's. Many Danes felt that the tithes, fees, and work due religious houses to be a burden on a generally poor country. Dominicans and Franciscans added to that burden by requesting on an on-going basis, food, fuel, drink, and labor to be donated by the local population. King Frederik I and Christian III , who were reform minded received letters of complaint about the mendicant orders and in 1527 began granting local requests to close monasteries. In some cases force was used to shut down houses in 27 town in Denmark, including Viborg. In a letter dated 23 February 1529 the king ordered that the priory was dissolved, the church was to become a parish church, and citizen Jens Hvas was to take possession of the priory buildings as personal property.

A fire damaged the priory buildings in 1552 and it appears they were pulled down and the materials used in other houses and businesses in Viborg. The church continued to serve a the parish church for the southern part of Viborg. A narrow tower was added to the front of the priory church in 1696-1701 with funds raised by Christen Erichsøn, the local parish priest. The town fire of 1726 weakened the remaining structure so badly that church officials determined to tear the church down and combine the 'priory parish' with that of the cathedral parish until the 'Southern Parish' (Danish: Søndre Sognkirke) church could be rebuilt. Construction began immediately on the footprint of the original medieval church in the same style of red bricks. Work was substantially completed in 1728. The tower had a high narrow spire on top.

King Frederick IV donated a 1520 altar piece from Christianborg Palace chapel in Copenhagen. It the the pride of the modern church with dozens of pictures depicting scend form the New Testament. It was constructed in Antwerp in 1520 by Mogens Christian Thrane.

The church was restored in 1876, and the tower spire replaced with a brick top which reflects the usual Danish parish tower architecture. In 1912-1917 the church underwent an even more extensive restoration which is the church that may be still seen today.

In the tower hang three bells: the two oldest from 1729 cast by Caspar Kønig. The most recent bell was cast by De Smithske and added to the tower in 1929.

References

Martin, Marie. "Sortebrødrekloster- nu Søndre Sogns Kirke".

Nyholm, Hans. "Kirkeklokker i Danmark"

"Sortebrødre Kirke". Danish Wikipedia Article