Nieuwenhofklooster (Nieuwenhof Convent and Chapel), Maastricht

Built up against the inside of the Maastricht city wall, the Zwingelput 4 complex, formally known as the ‘Nieuwenhof’ (Nieuwenhofklooster or Klooster van de Nieuwenhof) is a former nunnery.

Over the centuries this complex has served a variety of purposes. Originally built in 1484-1489 as a beguinage (a convent-like institution for devout lay women), by 1625 it had become a proper convent whose nuns cared for the ill. In 1652 the nunnery was expanded, but in 1788 it went bankrupt due to mismanagement and during the French period was closed down. In 1797 the complex was repurposed as a Catholic poorhouse to accommodate needy orphans. The Nieuwenhof served as a children’s home up until 1980.

In 1981 the property was taken over by the University of Maastricht, which radically renovated it. Following that, the then recently-established UM Faculty of Law moved onto the premises in 1982. The faculty moved out in 1998, making way for University College in the Nieuwenhof.

Part of the complex, situated within a walking distance from the bank of the River Maas, is the Nieuwenhof Chapel – a mid-sized octagonal Gothic structure built in 1492-1493. The structure was converted into a lecture hall in 2002. To retain its spaciousness, the lecture hall was situated in the open area like a piece of wooden furniture. Incidentally, the hall is oriented towards the rood loft rather than the altar. During the renovation, a common room with a glazed roof was also constructed, creating a kind of covered courtyard.

Both the chapel and the remaining monastic buildings, some of which, including lower parts of the Zwingelput complex, date from 1652, now represent a national monument.