TRONDHJEM TO NIDARAS

Greymouth Evening Star, 2 December 1929, Page 3

TRONDHJEM TO NIDARAS

ANCIENT VIKING CAPITALThe former Norwegian capital has lately beep, brought into prominepge by an enactment pf the legislature this yegr-—by which it reyertajto its ancient namp: “Nidaros”—the enactment to cpme into fprcp pext year. It will be recalled that the presept capital (Qslo) underwent a similar re-baptism spmp years ago. It would be inaccurate f<> say tMt these tgkp place- without friction and by th© unanimous consent of the people. Angry demonstrations have accompanied the change and threatppijig appeals to the Government, to have the enactment rescinded, but without success. Trppdhjem, or, as it was then called, “Nidaros,” is the apcient capital of the Vikings —the dauntless sea rovers who wpre at one time the flregd of northern Europe. Trondhjem, the present name of the town, denotes the hpme of the throne, as it was, and is still, in the cathedral of the town that the coronation ceremony takes place when a king is to be crowned. The purpose of the proposed change-of name is tp get rid as far as possible, of any trapes that remind the people of the time when their country was in subjection to the Danes. Trpndhjem lies about days’ distance by sea from the English coast. The chief port of departure from England, for passenger steamers, is from Newcastle. The passage over the North Sea to Bergen direct takes hardly more than 24 hours. Passengers ’ 1 proceeding further north to Trondhjem, or to the' North Cape, disembark at Bergen, and take one of the fine steamers of the Nprdenfjeldske Steamship Company, whose headquarters pre at TrondhjemTrondhjem is the third town pf Norway in point of commercial importance, coming after Bergen, which fpllows Christiania (Oslo), the present capital. The town contains about 60,000 inhabitants. It is situated on the fjord of the same name, and surrounded by high hills, which can hardly be called mountains. In the town itself there is not a great deal beyond the cathedral for the visitors to see. The first view of the town, however, from the deck of the approaching steamer is ’ sufficiently striking. Though in many ways up-to-date, and possessed of several fine modern buildings, it is hardly likely ever tp become modern, and, so far as one can i see, has no particular desire tp become so. It dates back to the year 997. Th© town is laid out op generous lines, resulting in a certain impression of spaciousness, absent from Bergen, though less now since the great fire of a few years agp.

Besides the cathedral, which is the crowning glory of the town, there is the Royal Palace (“Stiftsgaar4en”), the residence of the King and Queen, when they visit Trondhjem, which is rarely more than once a year and then the King only. The royal residence is reputed to be the largest in Scandinavia. This is its almost sole claim to distinction, as it possesses no striking architectural feature. When the King is not in residence it is open to the public. It contains much old furniture, tapestries, and pictures of great interest to those whose thoughts live in the past, which would leave a somewhat small percentage of the population interested in such things.

An Object of interest to the toqrist is the Lerfossen Waterfalls outside the town, These consist of an upper and lower falls. Motor-cars run to and from the falls at regular intervals. During the winter months they are frozen, hanging over the cliffs ip gigantic ice-crystals. In summer, when the river which feeds the falls is swob len by the melting snows from the mountain, the volume of water pouring over the cliffs is not a negligible quantity.

Nor is the depth of the falls inconsiderable, ami the dull, continuous thuntferous sound can be heard a long way off. A cafe overlooks, almost overhangs, the fajls, and here an agreeable hour may be spent before returning tp the town. The Norwegians, by the way, are expert in the art of making coffee. Ip proportion to its population Norway is one of the best customers of coffee-producing countries. MEMORIAL CATHEDRAL. TJi© cathedral in Trondhjem was erected as a memorial to the mqrtyr king Olaf Haraldsson, who carried into effect the christening of the Norwegian people. The cathedral at first consisted of a little chapel, which in 1030 was built beside a medicinal spring that had its rise beside St. Olaf’s burial place. This spring still exists inside the wall of the high chancel- of. th 4 cathedral.

Jn the year 1070 St. Olaf’s nephew, King OJaf Kyrrie, established a bishop’s see in Trandhjem, and bupt a cathedral church, wherein he deposited the shine which previously had been lodged ip other churches in the town, setting it over a high altar of the cathedral. The Pope’s legate, an lifiman, visited Norway in 1152, founded the qrehiepiscopal see in Tropdhjem, and advanced the cathedral to tlie rank of metropolitan church ip the Norwegian province of Catholic Christianity.

The province consisted of ejevn bishopries. The cathedral, as it then was, became steadily enlarged and rebuilt, and became the largest and ipost SPlepdid of all the churches i”.in Norway. it was famed far and wide op account of St. Olaf’s saintliness, and was visited by pilgrims from the whole of northern Europe. The church aqd afchiopiseppai gee owned great possessions, derived incomes from landed estates, and received tribute and gifts. The archbishop was the first man in the kingdom beside the king. The history Of the building of the cathedral, as it now stands, : extends from the year to 1328. In 1183 it was reformed and enlarged by Archbishop Eyesttin. In 1230 Archbishop Siguard began to 1 enlarge and rebuild the unfinished Roman wing in high Gothic style. The west front was erected in 1248, and was decorated with gilded sculp? tyres of the apostles and other saints,, ip several rows. Of these only the lowest are partly remaining as one of th® best witnesses of the high state of ecclesiastical sculptural art in the country in the Middle Ages. - The cathedral was approaching completion when it was destroyed by :fire In 1328. In the Norwegian retrograde timp the archbishops were unable to maintain the great building in repair; In 1424 the wing stood Without a rpof; and after the church was again burnt in 1432 (?14fil> and 1561, only the cross wins and chancel were kept in rapMr f WW® the Wing remained a ruin up tp th® present time; ; : On Norway regaining ifc aatipMl in-

dependence in the 19tli century the rebuilding of the Trondhjem Cathedral in its original form became a matter, of national cocern. The rich find of fragments from the ruined parts rendered possible the- solution; of the archaelogicai part of the task with pious care. The west wing has become almost completely re-roofed, and the WP?k °f restoration in all parts ofthe cathedral is being hurried on, with a view tci its being entirely completed by the year 1980. It will then undoubtedly be one of the finest ecclesiastical structures in Europe.