Gimsøy Abbey

Gimsøy Abbey was a Benedictine nunnery located on the island of Gimsøy in Skien, Telemark, Norway, between the 12th-century and 1540. It is counted as the first nunnery in Norway.

History

It was founded by Dag Eilivsson, probably in the second quarter of the 12th century, and his daughter Baugeid was the first abbess. It is regarded as the first nunnery in Norway, and it would have had to been founded prior to 1150, as the second first nunneries, estimated to have been younger, were founded about 1150. The abbey was well positioned on the navigable river on the way to Skien, and was comfortably endowed with estates.

By about 1500, however, the premises had been mortgaged, although the nuns continued to live there, and were permitted to stay in residence after the dissolution of the nunnery during the Reformation in 1537, and until 1540, when they were forced to leave. The buildings burnt to the ground in 1546, and the site was cleared, leaving no visible traces.

Sources

• Norges klostre i middelalderen: Gimsøy kloster (Norwegian)
• Bergan, Halvor: Drøm og virkelighet bak klosterets murer, Gimsøy nonnekloster 1110-1540, Norgesforlaget 2002, ISBN 82-91986-50-9