Uppsala domkyrka

About the church

Uppsala domkyrka is a church building on Domberget in central Uppsala. It is the cathedral of the Diocese of Uppsala and the parish church of Uppsala domkyrkoförsamling (Uppsala Cathedral Parish) within the Church of Sweden. The church is the seat of the Bishop of Uppsala and the Archbishop of Uppsala.

After the episcopal see was moved to Uppsala in the mid-13th century, construction of the cathedral began in 1272 or 1273. It is built of brick and limestone and was designed as a three-aisled Gothic basilica, inspired by French models. When the church was consecrated in 1435, the chancel was completed and fitted with an ambulatory, while the nave had gained a transept and side chapels. Two further side aisles were added later.

The two tall towers in the west, which give the church and the city their characteristic silhouette, were not completed until the 16th century, while the spires were added in 1619 and received their present form in the 1880s. The towers are 118.7 metres high, which corresponds to the length of the church, and the church is the largest Gothic church building in Scandinavia. Above the south portal is the Window of the Son, which at 119 square metres is the largest church window in Sweden.

The text has been translated from the article Uppsala domkyrka on Swedish Wikipedia and may be used under CC BY-SA 4.0.