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Västra Torsås kyrka

Address
Lönashultsvägen 44, 342 53, Lönashult
Municipality
Alvesta Kommun
Denomination
Church of Sweden
Associated diocese
Diocese of Växjö

Västra Torsås kyrka stands at Lönashult in the Kronoberg region, serving as the parish church of Västra Torsås within the Diocese of Växjö. Consecrated in 1872, it replaced two earlier churches and offers visitors a striking example of nineteenth-century Swedish ecclesiastical building.



The congregation's first known church was a small medieval timber building in the village of Torsås. In 1727 it was replaced by a ship-shaped wooden church with an octagonal central section. As the nineteenth century brought a wave of church construction across Sweden, the parish decided a larger building was needed, but a dispute arose over where it should stand. The matter was settled by royal decree in 1858, which fixed the site at Lönashult, and building work began in 1870, with the new church completed in 1872.

The church is built with a rectangular nave and a semicircular chancel to the east. Its west tower is topped by a steep hooded roof carrying a clock, a lantern, and a spire crowned with a cross. Inside, the church is divided into three aisles, with a vaulted ceiling over the centre and flat ceilings to the sides. The overall style is described as a historicising mixed style, and similar architectural features can be found at the newer church of Vederslöv.

Among the furnishings is a font with a canopy made from the old sounding board of the pulpit from the previous church, an inventive reuse of earlier material. The altarpiece dates from the 1400s and was modernised in 1734 by Sven Segervall of Växjö; its original subject, the coronation of the Virgin Mary, was later altered to depict the Crucifixion. A richly carved early eighteenth-century Baroque pulpit is now positioned behind the altar screen in a small devotional space that was formerly used as a sacristy. A second pulpit, in neoclassical style with gilded symbols and a cross-topped sounding board, also survives, along with pews dating from the time the church was built.

The organ has a layered history. An instrument built in 1767–68 by Jonas Wistenius of Linköping, with a Baroque case, was moved from the earlier church to the new one. This was replaced in 1923 by a larger organ from the German firm Walcker, and in 1965 the current mechanical organ was built by the Jacoby workshop, retaining the original Baroque façade.

Opening hours

Opening hours have not been confirmed for the current date. This does not mean the church is closed.

Check access with the parish before travelling. Services and seasonal changes can affect visits.

Skatelövs pastorat

Västra Torsås kyrka

Västra Torsås kyrka stands at Lönashult in the Kronoberg region, serving as the parish church of Västra Torsås within the Diocese of Växjö. Consecrated in 1872, it replaced two earlier churches and offers visitors a striking example of nineteenth-century Swedish ecclesiastical building.

Lönashultsvägen 44, 342 53, Lönashult

Explore this church: Västra Torsås kyrka

Church information: Svenska kyrkan, Platser · CC BY 4.0. Each church page includes its credits and visiting notes.

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Sources & credits

Provider catalogue data: Svenska kyrkan, Platser, CC BY 4.0. Separately credited descriptions retain their stated source and licence terms. Catalogue and visiting data reformatted from the provider. The English guide combines and abridges separately credited sources below.

Provider record updated: 4 Aug 2023. This is not an independent verification date.

Source record: d8e62f0d-7646-4521-b476-fb8fe9c0f41f

Guide sources

This English guide combines, abridges and translates the sources below with AI assistance, with editorial contributions by Churches in Sweden. It has not been independently verified. The adapted guide text is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Photographs and map data have their own terms.

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Church data retrieved 24 Sep 2026. Visiting details have not been independently verified.

Sources, licences & reuse

Independent guide

Churches in Sweden is an independent guide. It is not an official Svenska kyrkan website and does not imply sponsorship or endorsement.

Church information

Source: Svenska kyrkan — Platser, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. English adaptations by Churches in Sweden are identified on each profile. Our adaptations solely from Platser are offered under CC BY 4.0. Guides combining Wikipedia with other compatible sources are identified individually and offered under CC BY-SA 4.0; this covers that guide text, not the whole website. Separately credited third-party material retains its stated terms. Independently written descriptions are identified on their profiles. Imported material has not been independently verified. Original names and visiting details are retained; presentation is reformatted. Each profile identifies its source record and any additional supplied credits.

You may reuse the licensed church material under CC BY 4.0, including commercially, with the required attribution, licence link and indication of changes. No additional site restriction overrides those rights. The licence does not automatically cover separately credited images or map data.

Provider disclaimer

Svenska kyrkan supplies Platser data without guaranteeing that it is correct, current, complete across its organisation, or always available. The material is provided as-is and as-available, subject to the licence’s disclaimer of warranties and limitation of liability.

Svenska kyrkan kan ej garantera att den data som finns i Platser:
– är korrekt.
– är aktuell.
– är komplett för hela Svenska kyrkans organisation.
– alltid är tillgänglig.

Preserved provider agreement · Full licence

Automatic diocese associations use the organisation codes from Svenska kyrkan UnitAPI. An association does not establish ownership or denomination. External editorial sources are credited separately.

Map and photographs

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Photographs are credited individually with their own licence or permission. The API data licence does not automatically cover photographs. No images are imported automatically.