Suitbertus-Stiftsplatz

St. Suitbertus Church

The Suitbertus-Stiftsplatz in Kaiserswerth , a district of Düsseldorf , consists of an ensemble of buildings around the Church of St. Suitbertus . The houses and the church have been under monument protection since 1982/83 . The Stiftsplatz is located between the Kaiserpfalz in the south and the market settlement to the north.

history

The monastery founded by Suitbert at the end of the 7th century was transformed into a canon monastery by the 11th century at the latest . As a result, canons' houses were built around the church . At least three of them have their origins in the Romanesque period. The monastery immunity formed a separate legal area. The immunity area was clearly demarcated by walls and provided with two entrances (probably through today's Stiftsgasse and Dauzenbergstraße). The Stiftsplatz corresponds inside the former Stiftsimmunität. Today's buildings were built after the destruction of Kaiserswerth during the War of the Spanish Succession in 1702.

description

The narrow south edge of the square is formed by three predominantly free-standing houses with courtyard gates and gardens. Opposite the choir of the church is the eastern area of the square, which is lined by seven linden trees. A narrowing between house number 18 and the north-eastern choir leads to the northern square, which forms almost a square. The monastery cemetery, which was closed in 1786, was located here.

The late Baroque development with mainly eaves-standing houses is loosened up by gabled houses and tower extensions. Several houses were built on the barrel-vaulted cellars of the previous buildings. After the abolition of the monastery as a result of secularization in 1803, the houses gradually came into civil ownership. However, they have only been slightly redesigned to this day. Only the gate to the hospital, which was added to house number 15 in 1949, changed the place. It closes off the formerly open area to the former collegiate gardens. Inside the houses, most of the wooden stairs, often with balusters , and many Cologne ceilings have been preserved.