#beguine

1947

This is Part One of Five of a series of places around Western Europe which were important during the Protestant Reformation of the Catholic Church.

Ten Wijngaerde: Bruges, Belgium

Ten Wijngaerde is the last preserved Beguinage in the city of bruges. A Beguinage is a community of Beguines, who were essentially Catholic nuns, but with less rules and restrictions. The woman in the Beguine order did take vows of chastity, but they were free to leave whenever they wanted, and they could give up a life of chastity as long as they left the order first.

A Beguinage was unlike a convent in that there were no large walls keeping the women in, there was no social hierarchy led by a Mother Superior, and there were less vows and no sponsorship from The Catholic Church.

Ten Wijngaerde was founded in 1244 by Margaret of Constantinople, and became a parish the next year. It came under authority of Philip the Fair, the King of France, in 1299, and was then called "The Princely Beguinage".

Today, Ten Wijngaerde is home to Benedictine nuns and other women from the area who wish to remain unmarried. The complex looks like a small neighborhood, with a square of houses built in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries. A Beguine church takes up one of the sides, but the main attraction for me was the grove of trees in the middle of the complex (pictured). It was a great spot for photos.

De Kift - Beguine

Self-released

L’Inquisition condamnera une béguine au bûcher pour avoir osé écrire un livre sur la foi.