Grip () is an archipelago and deserted fishing village in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located about northwest of the town of Kristiansund in the Norwegian Sea. The Grip Lighthouse, one of the tallest lighthouses in Norway, is located on one of the islands of Grip. The historic Grip Stave Church is located on the island of Gripholmen. From 1897 until 1964, the islands were part of Grip Municipality, but the islands were merged into Kristiansund Municipality in 1964. Archipelago The Grip archipelago consists of 82 islets and skerries about into the Norwegian Sea northwest off the town of Kristiansund. The fishing village of Grip (no permanent residents) is located on Gripholmen, which is the largest and only habitable islet. On the south side of the fishing village is the main harbor, protected by two breakwaters. The older and northern harbour is smaller and less protected. Other breakwaters protects the fishing village from large ocean waves. The highest point is just above mean sea level. The Inngripan group of skerries lies about closer to Kristiansund, where a small storm shelter offered protection for shipwrecked fishermen. The storm shelter has recently been restored. Since all the turf and vegetation on Gripholmen was removed to provide clean cliffs for drying cod there was little room for agriculture. Only a few tiny gardens remained. The inhabitants could keep one or two cows grazing on the nearby islet of Grønningen, and a few hens and pigs. After being depopulated in 1974, Grip is slowly revegetating. The Sea village The first indications of settlement at Grip is from the ninth century, where fishermen settled close to the fishing grounds. Grip might because of that, be the oldest settlement in the Nordmøre district. Exports of fish from Norwegian fishing villages became important during the monopoly of the Hanseatic League. The Grip Stave Church is thought to have been constructed around 1470. The village belonged to the archbishop of Norway until the protestant reformation in 1537, when king Christian III seized all church properties in Norway. Merchant Hans Horneman in Trondheim bought the islet from King Frederick IV in 1728 and the fishermen and their families became, in effect, vassals. The fishermen had to sell the catch to the merchants at a price decided by them later. This arrangement lasted until it was forbidden in 1893. The merchants, becoming landlords, also bought most of the