Tampere Old Church

{{Short description|Church in Tampere, Finland}}

{{Infobox religious building

|building_name=Tampere Old Church
Tampereen Vanha Kirkko
Tammerfors gamla kyrka

|image=Vanha kirkko ja Kellotapuli - panoramio.jpg

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|location=Tampere, Finland

|geo={{coord|61|29|55|N|023|45|40|E|region:FI-LS_type:landmark|display=inline}}

|religious_affiliation=Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland

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|status=Church (building)

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|year_completed= 1824
1825 (opened)

|construction_cost=

|architect= Charles Bassi

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|materials=Wood

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The Tampere Old Church ({{langx|fi|Tampereen Vanha Kirkko}}; {{langx|sv|Tammerfors gamla kyrka}}) is a wooden cross church opened in 1825 in Tampere, Finland near the Central Square. The old church is mainly used by the Swedish-speaking Lutheran congregation in Tampere. The church was designed by Italian-born Carlo Bassi and completed in 1824.[https://tampereenseurakunnat.fi/kirkko_tampereella/kirkot_ja_muut_tilat/kirkot/vanha_kirkko?place_id__31378=18 Vanha kirkko - Tampereen seurakuntayhtymä] (in Finnish)[http://www.rky.fi/read/asp/r_kohde_det.aspx?KOHDE_ID=5020 Tampereen Hämeenkatu, Hämeensilta ja Keskustori - Museovirasto] (in Finnish) The belfry, designed by C. L. Engel, was completed in 1828.[https://www.finna.fi/Record/siiri.urn:nbn:fi-vapriikkihttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.profium.com%252Farchive%252FArchivedObject-9FAF71B4-11AA-9CEE-D150-89FA1C3FB1F3 Tampereen Vanhan kirkon kellotapuli - Museokeskus Vapriikki] (in Finnish) The Old Church is the oldest surviving building in the city center of Tampere, and the adjoining belfry is the second oldest.{{cite book| author= Jari Niemelä | title= Tamperelaisen Tiedon Portaat. Tampereen asiat aasta yyhyn | year= 2008 | pages= 228–229 | location= Tampere | publisher= The Tampere Society | isbn= 978-952-5558-05-0 | language= fi}}

The church has been renovated several times, most recently in 2000. The most significant restoration took place between 1953 and 1954, when the church was restored to almost its original appearance according to a restoration plan drawn up by Professor Nils Erik Wickberg. The church is used by the Swedish Congregation of Tampere.{{Cite web|last=Fellman|first=Ida|date=2014-11-05|title=Tammerforssvenskarna utgör en liten men livskraftig minoritet|url=https://svenska.yle.fi/artikel/2014/11/05/tammerforssvenskarna-utgor-en-liten-men-livskraftig-minoritet|access-date=2021-09-04|website=Svenska Yle|language=sv}}