Sannidal - Sannidal Church

Sannidal Church

Sannidal Church is a log-built church shaped in the form of a cross, dating back to 1771. It lies next to the old main road going south from Oslo to Kristiansand. Outside the church there is a big churchyard with two tall monuments to commemorate the men lost at war. The one to the south of the church is a reminder of the Napoleonic Wars 1807–1814 when Norway was under Denmark and fighting on Napoleon's side against the British fleet. The monument outside the church entrance was erected after the last war. Every 8 May on Norwegian Armistice Day and on 17 May, Constitution Day, wreaths are laid in honour of the men who gave their lives for King and country.

The present church came into use during the autumn of 1772. At that time Sannidal was under Krageroe. Sannidal did not have its own vicar neither did it have its own parish clerk. The building of the church can be credited to Jacob Matssøn Lund, appointed vicar of Kragerø and Sannidal in 1766; he was an able man who in addition to studying theology also had learned medicine and anatomy. He was the first to vaccinate against smallpox and also instrumental in organising the general education in the village in 1777.