Øster Velling church/ Øster Velling kirke, Middelsom herred, Viborg amt.

Øster Velling church, ab. 10 km west of Randers.

Øster Velling parish, Middelsom herred, Viborg amt. 

The church without a tower in Øster Velling has a choir and nave and a new porch on the nort side. The older sections: the choir and nave origin from the Romanesque period, built in granite ashlars upon a bevelled plinth, but the church was in 1875 rebuilt because of dilapidation, but with use of old material -  and inaugurated 2 january 1876. The porch seems also to have been renewed in 1875, it was rebuilt again in 1940. The three Romanesque windows of the north side are undoubtedly of Romanesque origin, but extended in the lighting. The north door with old kragsten is still in use, but partly renewed.

The inside of the church got its new look in 1875; it has a beamed ceiling, while the choir was remade again in 1940-41, when a new brickfloor was laid. The altar section is from this last restoration with a table of yellow bricks and above this a crucifix group, made by J.Th. Skovgaard. The former altar decoration, a crucifix from 1875, hangs upon the wall. Three Gothic Saint-figures in wood, found at the loft of the porch, was sent to the National Museum in 1940. A Romanesque granite font with male heads and foliage. The strange square-sided pulpit with winding columns and double fields with sawn balusters is in Renaissance from ab. 1600. In front of this an old parish clerk stool with carved year 1588. The bell without inscription in a hole in the gable, is from early Middle Ages. In the west wall of the nave is inserted a gravestone for Søren Pedersen Velling (+ 1624). In the north wall of the choir a stone for parish priest H.M.Berg. (+ 1787) .

At the rebuild of the church was found a piece of a runestone, now in the National Museum, the only left of the inscription is " -- Thorg-- ".


 
















Øster Velling birk: (judicial)  the king had already in Valdemars Jordebog considerable estate in "Wæling". Later it became a special vasalry, which by queen Margrethe I was leased to Stig Andersen (this must be Stig Andersen Hvide). Around 1500 Erik Ottesen Rosenkrantz was the vasal, after him his son-in-law Predbjørn Podebusk. 5 September 1569 Ø.Velling birk was deeded to Erik Podebusk, it consisted of 13 farms in Øster Velling, Velling Mølle, Torup and Madegård. If Erik Podebusk died without heirs, his wife must keep the vasalry for life, whereafter it again had to go to the Crown. Since the married couple had no children, the king took over the birk. Ab. 1680 the Thing was held at Helstrup mark (field) by the road to Randers. 

 
Listed prehistorics: 7 hills and two petroglyph-stones which were found in the demolished Mandbjerghøj close to Velling Vandmølle (water mill), one stone has several small circles of which some are rewritten with ovals.
Demolished or destroyed: 20 hills, Mandbjerghøj contained a grave from early Bronze Age with sword and belt with gold plate. 


Names in the Middle Ages: Øster Velling (1231 Wæling, 1355 Østerwælyngh).




Source: Trap Danmark, Viborg amt, 1962.

photo: borrowed from Google earth 2013, gb.