| Kvinesdal Church | |
| Fullname: | Kvinesdal kirke |
| Coordinates: | 58.3172°N 6.9611°W |
| Location: | Kvinesdal Municipality, Agder |
| Country: | Norway |
| Churchmanship: | Evangelical Lutheran |
| Denomination: | Church of Norway |
| Diocese: | Agder og Telemark |
| Parish: | Kvinesdal |
| Status: | Parish church |
| Functional Status: | Active |
| Founded Date: | 11th century |
| Consecrated Date: | 1837 |
| Architect: | Hans Linstow |
| Architectural Type: | Octagonal |
| Materials: | Wood |
| Capacity: | 430 |
Kvinesdal Church (Norwegian: Kvinesdal kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Kvinesdal Municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the village of Liknes. It is the church for the Kvinesdal parish which is part of the Lister og Mandal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Agder og Telemark. The white, wooden church was built in a octagonal design in 1837 using plans drawn up by the architect Hans Linstow. The church seats about 430 people.[1] [2]
The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1292, but there is some evidence that the church was likely built in the late 11th century. The medieval stave church probably stood until 1623 when it was torn down and replaced with a timber-framed building on the same site.
In 1814, this church served as an election church (Norwegian: valgkirke).[3] Together with more than 300 other parish churches across Norway, it was a polling station for elections to the 1814 Norwegian Constituent Assembly which wrote the Constitution of Norway. This was Norway's first national elections. Each church parish was a constituency that elected people called "electors" who later met together in each county to elect the representatives for the assembly that was to meet in Eidsvoll later that year.[4]
In 1837, the church was torn down and replaced again. This time, it was designed by the noted Norwegian church architect Hans Linstow. The new building was built in classicist style and an octagonal floorplan with a tower in the west and a straight ended chancel in the east. On the outside it is paneled and painted white. At this time, most of the old interior and furniture was replaced except for a crucifix from the 16th century that is still in the church.[5]