Marsberg Capuchin Monastery
The Capuchin Monastery Marsberg was founded in the 18th century by Capuchins from the Cologne Order Province . In Niedermarsberg and the surrounding area they were active in pastoral care. In 1812 the monastery was closed and the building turned into an asylum. Today the Westphalian Clinic Marsberg is located here .
History and Development
The first plans to found a Capuchin monastery in Niedermarsberg go back to 1687. In 1745 the city council gave permission to build a monastery. It took another five years for the Capuchins to start building in 1750. Two years later the west wing was ready to move into. The completion of the construction work took until 1785. The monastery church was built between 1753 and 1755.
At first only one priest and one lay brother lived there. For a long time from 1753 there were no more than four priests and one lay brother. After the completion of the monastery, an average of 12 to 15 priests and a few lay brothers lived in the building. In 1812 there were still 10 priests and two lay brothers.
The fathers limited their activity to helping out in pastoral care, especially in the Catholic parish church in Niedermarsberg. In addition, they provided temporary help in the communities of Arolsen , Essentho , Madfeld , Thülen and Rösenbeck .
In 1812 the monastery was closed by the Grand Duke of Hesse-Darmstadt . The conventuals then moved to the Werl , Brunnen and Geseke monasteries .
The sources mention the Capuchin convent "Conventus Stadtbergensis" (1744). The Guardian was in charge of the convention .
There is no news about the archive. During the secularization , the archival material was scattered over various archives. The library consisted of just five volumes in 1746, so it practically did not exist.
The Provincial Insane Asylum Westphalia was set up in the monastery complex. In the course of the 19th century the old buildings were demolished and replaced by new ones.
List of Guardians
- 1744 Bonifatius Raesfeld
- 1745 Boniface Raesfeld
- 1751 Henricus Hülsmann
- 1766 Fidelis Gese
- 1773 Achatius Giffers
- 1785 Anselmus Venloh
- 1803 Cosmas Vornarez (?)
- 1812 Gabriel Kligge
Literature and Sources
- Karl Hengst (Ed.): Westphalian monastery book. Part 1: Ahlen - Mülheim. Aschendorff, Münster 1992, ISBN 3-402-06886-9 , pp. 579-581 ( sources and research on church and religious history 2, publications of the Historical Commission for Westphalia 44).
- Michael Senger (Red.): Monastery fates. On the history of the secularized monasteries in the Sauerland region of Cologne. Westfälisches Schieferbergbau- und Heimatmuseum, Holthausen 2003 ( Westfälisches Schieferbergbau- und Heimatmuseum Holthausen contributions 13).
Coordinates: 51 ° 27 '28.7 " N , 8 ° 51' 17.1" E