Hovedøya Abbey, Oslo, Norway

Standing: Must see · Heritage site
Rank: Rank 22 of 3,842

Reviewed by Elena Voss · Roavina Travel Editor

About Hovedøya Abbey

Hovedøya Abbey (Hovedøya kloster) was a medieval Cistercian monastery on the island of Hovedøya in the Oslofjord. It was founded on 18 May 1147 by monks from Kirkstead Abbey in England and dedicated to the Virgin Mary and Saint Edmund. In the Middle Ages it was one of the richest institutions in Norway, holding over 400 properties, including a fishery and timber yards. The abbey was burned in 1532 amid the struggle over the throne of Denmark-Norway, and the Reformation four years later ended any hope of restoring it.

Checked 2026-11-05 · Source

What's inside

What remains today are ruins, but they are among the most complete of any medieval Norwegian monastery. The monks took over an existing church dedicated to Saint Edmund as their abbey church and adapted it to Cistercian requirements; the church is Romanesque, while the rest of the monastery, laid out on a modified Cistercian plan to fit a small hill, was presumably Gothic. After the abbey's end the site was used as a quarry for stone for Akershus Fortress. The architect Gerhard Fischer excavated the ruins between 1930 and 1938.

Checked 2026-11-05 · Source

Place details and sources

Wheelchair access: Not available OpenStreetMap · Checked 2026-09-09
Type of place: Attraction OpenStreetMap · Checked 2026-09-09
Heritage designation: cultural heritage preservation in Norway Wikidata · Checked 2026-09-09
Access: Open access OpenStreetMap · Checked 2026-09-09
Wikipedia article: Hovedøya Abbey Wikipedia · Checked 2026-09-09