Lau Church

Lau Church
Lau kyrka
Lau Church, external view
Lau Church Location on Gotland
57°16′58″N 18°37′13″E / 57.2829°N 18.6202°E / 57.2829; 18.6202Coordinates: 57°16′58″N 18°37′13″E / 57.2829°N 18.6202°E / 57.2829; 18.6202
Country	Sweden
Denomination	Church of Sweden
Administration
Diocese	Visby

Lau Church (Swedish: Lau kyrka) is a medieval Lutheran church on the Swedish island of Gotland, in the Diocese of Visby.

The church of Lau dates from the early 13th century, but was possibly pre-dated by a Romanesque church on the same site. Just south of the church are also the remains of a defensive tower, dating from the 12th century and later converted into a rectory (since destroyed). Far earlier, the area around the present-day church seems to have been a place of importance as pre-Christian grave fields, several centuries older than the church, have been found both north and south of the church.

The oldest part of the church is the unusually large nave, dating from the early 13th century and Romanesque in style. The likewise grand choir dates from around 1300, and possibly more specifically from before 1288 when a short civil war on the island may have disrupted building plans. The church is one of the largest (during the 13th century the largest) country churches on Gotland, situated in a relatively small parish. Scholars speculate as to why such a large church was built at the site. Some believe that the unusual size and grandeur of the church was an effect of the church being situated near the coast, close by a good natural harbour, and the parish may have benefited economically from foreign trade. Another theory is that it may have served as a church for pilgrims. Most probably however, the church may have drawn crowds as one of a few churches outside Visby where the island's Dominican friars used to preach for a crusade against Courland, Livonia and Prussia. It is known through several preserved papal letters that the popular Dominicans were explicitly asked to preach for crusades not only in Visby but also on certain places in the countryside, and scholars have concluded that Lau Church was probably one of these sites.