Nederland - Amsterdam, Begijnhof

Begijnhof is the only almshouse founded in medieval Amsterdam, located within the innermost canal the ‘Singel’. Begijnhof is not an ordinary almshouse as it was not founded by private persons. It bore closer resemblance to a convent, although the beguines enjoyed more freedom than nuns in a convent. They were a group of unmarried or widowed women who lived together in a close community under a vow of chastity, but were free to leave the court at any time in order to get married. The ‘begijntjes’ (beguines) received free lodging for caring the sick and educating the poor in Amsterdam.

It is unclear when the Beguinage was founded. The beguines lived in 1346 still in one house; in a document called "Beghynhuys". In 1389 for the first time is spoken of a courtyard.

Begijnhof doesn’t have the small houses, so characteristic for most of the Dutch almshouses, but exist of 47 ordinary townhouses, each with facades from the 17th and 18th century (PiP 1). Most of the houses are older and quite a lot of them still have a Gothic timber frame. One of the oldest wooden houses of Amsterdam - Houten Huys from 1528 - is located within the Begijnhof (PiP2).

The Begijnhof Chapel features a series of panels telling the story of the Miracle of Amsterdam. For more info and pictures about this chapel see: www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/41236526

Nowadays the houses in Begijnhof are still occupied by single women. The secluded courtyard is a green oasis, surrounded by the hustle and bustle of the city centre of Amsterdam.