The foundation
The dating of the foundation of Holy Trinity Church is uncertain due to the complicated interplay of provincial and international interests in Uppsala during the early part of the Middle Ages. The granite church was placed strategically where everybody could easily gather. The proximity to the cathedral has been a decisive factor in the history of the church. It would seem that by 1343 the church had been completed and was consecrated.
The origin
While the cathedral was being built during the 14th century the townspeople east of River Fyris had their own church, St. Peter’s, built. The farmers of the surrounding countryside south and west of the town centre built their parish church at the old council and market place below the hill, where to this day the castle of the Vasa kings is situated. It is now the residence of the governor and contains the offices of the county administration.
The name
As a parish church, Holy Trinity is first mentioned in 1302. To differentiate it from the cathedral it is listed as Templum S. Trinitials or that parish church also known as “Bondkyrko” (the peasants’ church). It was situated at the place where all roads met and to which it was easy to travel.
The surrounding parish was called the parish of Bondkyrko of the district of Ulleråker.
The structure
The oldest part of the building is the straight granite church, a mighty rectangle. The period is characterized by a change from Romanesque to Gothic style.
The brick pillars and vaults were built at the beginning of the 14th century. Fragments of fine decorations from the latter part of the 15th and 16th centuries are still extant. The period of the great Archbishop Jacob Ulvsson, when the University was founded, 1477, contributed interesting paintings in the south and north vaults of the transept. The paintings follow the typology of Biblia Pauperum and show examples of the work of Albertus Pictor of Stockholm.
Decadence and restitution
After a period of vandalization during the middle of the 16th century, the church was restored under the second son of the Reformation king Gustavus Vasa, the liturgically interested King John III. The congregation received its own rector with the rectory in Stabby to the northwest of the town.
The Church and the Academy
During the period of Lutheran Orthodoxy the church became an important centre for the training of priests at the re-established Academy. Ever since close ties with the University have been maintained. Services for the students are held regularly to this day.
Porch and vestry
Surprisingly enough the porch faces northward towards the cathedral and not southwards as is more common. In it are some traces of a Madonna of the rosary. There are also traces of some interesting figure paintings in the vault.
The church has another extension northwards, i.e. the north transept, which houses the organ. There are some interesting paintings from the 15th century on the walls in this part.
The steeple
The tower was built during the 14th century in stone and brick and has a picturesque tilt. The characteristic low cupola with a weathervane was put up after the great fire of 1702.
The professor and the farmer´s wife
The two statues on either side of the altar relief are a unique arrangement. On the left is a statue of Professor Erik Gustaf Geijer by H. Sörensen Ringi and on the right is one of the mother of the Uppland sculptor Carl Eldh, symbolizing at one and the same time the parish woman and the mother of the Swedish student with his rural background.
Since 1904 the altar is covered by the original stone slab with its five crosses of consecration. The slab dates from ca. 1300. Wooden sculptures from a medieval altar cupboard, which has now disappeared; can be seen on the wall just behind the pulpit. They show a bishop, St. Birgitta and the Apostle James.
The Chapel of Mary
Northward towards the Cathedral is the Chapel of Mary. Above the altar you can see the crowning of St. Mary in heaven.
The organ
The organ was built in 1993.