Gråbrødre Cemetery
written by eggzakly
on June 26th, 2009
, 3 comments
(2 votes)
Approaching Roskilde Station from the square, Hestetorvet, you will walk along the cemetery walls and catch a brief glimpse of the cemetery’s chapel through medieval gates. Growing up in Roskilde, I must have passed by this cemetery thousands of times without ever having gone in. What finally drew me in was when, while taking a shortcut through Gråbrødrestræde on my way to the station, I caught a glimpse of a huge, beautiful tree through the open Gråbrødrestræde gate. I went in to stare a while, and returned later with a camera.
In 1237 Franciscan monks (or “greybrothers”, which is what “gråbrødre” means) arrived in Roskilde, and by 1279 they had built a convent with an adjoining church and cemetery. While the convent was disbanded during the Danish Reformation in 1536, the cemetery continued to function. Trees were planted in 1823 making the cemetery more park-like, and in 1855 the current chapel, drawn by architects Henning Wolf and Ferdinand Meldahl, was built.
The gate facing Hestetorvet is usually locked, instead use the entrance in Gråbrødrestræde.
“Website”:http://www.graabrodre-kirkegaard.dk/ (in Danish)
“Source”:http://www.roskildehistorie.dk/steder/sogne/Graabroedre/kirkegaard.htm (in Danish)
Please login or register to use this feature.