The church is situated in the centre of the city, in the borough of Storhaug between Breiavatnet in the south, the square with Vågen in the north west, the cathedral square in the north, and Kongsgård in the southwest.

[1][2] Bishop Reinald, who may have come from Winchester in England, is said to have started construction of the cathedral around 1100.

The city of Stavanger was ravaged by fire in 1272, and the cathedral suffered heavy damage.

It was rebuilt under Bishop Arne (1276–1303) at which time the Romanesque cathedral was enlarged in the Gothic style.

A major restoration led by architect Gerhard Fischer in 1939–1964 partly reversed those changes.

[10] The Stavanger Cathedral basilica has three aisles with diaphragm arches and an elevated central nave of Romanesque design.

The capitals on the pillars contains many figures depicting scenes of Ragnarok (Norwegian: End of Days).

[11] Around the year 1660, the parapet of the gallery was decorated with motifs copied from the Cor Iesu Amanti Sacrum series,[13] otherwise known as Emblems from the Heart.