Virtual Nidaros

Eleven videos reconstruct medieval Trondheim

The Cathedral of Nidaros in Trondheim, former Kaupangen, is the northernmost outpost of the European pilgrim roads leading to Santiago, Rome or Jerusalem. In itself it is a sacred place. To this place was brought the body of Óláfr Haraldsson in 1030 after he fell in the famous battle of Stiklestad. The king was first buried south of the city. Miracles at his grave hastily secured a canonisation in August 1031. Around 1035 a wooden chapel was built there, which was replaced with a stone church 1070 – 90; according to tradition St. Olav was enshrined here. In 1152 Nidaros became the seat of the Archdiocese of Nidaros. After the reformation, the shrine was brought to Copenhagen and melted down and the bones of the king were buried at an unmarked place.

Today the pilgrimage route to Nidaros Cathedral, the site of Saint Olav’s tomb, has been re-instated, known as Saint Olav’s Way. The main route, which is approximately 640 km long, starts in Oslo in the ruins of the Old City (Gamlebyen) and heads North, along the lake Mjøsa, up the valley of Gudbrandsdal, over Dovrefjell and down the valley Oppdal to finally ending at Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim. There is a Pilgrim’s Office in Oslo, which gives advice to pilgrims, and a Pilgrim Centre in Trondheim, under the aegis of the Cathedral, which awards certificates to successful pilgrims upon the completion of their journey.

Recently a group of students in Trondheim have produced a number of very interesting videos showing the history of some of the main buildings in the city – The cathedral of Nidaros, the church of Our Lady, the old castle of stone etc. All in all 11 very interesting videos may be watched at YouTube before embarking on your tour from Nidaros to Santiago.

See the videos

Read about the project (in Norwegian)

Visit Nidaros