Begijnhof - Turnhout, Belgium ID 855-004 - World Heritage Sites on Waymarking.com

"No exact date is known for the beguinage of Turnhout, but it was probably founded in the 13th century.

The early Classicist gatehouse and the elongated tree-lined square characterize this beguinage. There is a well-preserved Baroque church, infirmary and houses from the 16th and 17th centuries."

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"The Béguines were women who dedicated their lives to God without retiring from the world. In the 13th century they founded the béguinages , enclosed communities designed to meet their spiritual and material needs. The Flemish béguinages are architectural ensembles composed of houses, churches, ancillary buildings and green spaces, with a layout of either urban or rural origin and built in styles specific to the Flemish cultural region. They are a fascinating reminder of the tradition of the Béguines that developed in north-western Europe in the Middle Ages.

Brief synthesis

The Flemish béguinages are a series of 13 sites in the Flanders Region of Belgium. They bear extraordinary witness to the cultural tradition of the Beguines that developed in north-western Europe in the Middle Ages.

These Beguines were either unmarried or widowed women who entered into a life dedicated to God, but without retiring from the world. In the 13th century they founded the béguinages, enclosed communities designed to meet their spiritual and material needs.

The Flemish béguinages formed architectural ensembles, enclosed by walls or surrounded by ditches, with gates opening to the outside world during the day. Inside, they were composed of houses, churches, ancillary buildings, and green spaces organized in a spatial conception of urban or rural origin, and built in styles specific to the Flemish cultural region."

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Type: Site Reference number: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/855-004

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Date Logged Log User Rating   07/03/2022 GEOrgCACHING visited it