Les maisons n°12 à 16 de la rue des Jésuites

 

This row of dwellings, 7.20 metres wide, is a precious example of the transition between the Romanesque and Gothic styles. Built in stone, which as early as the beginning of the 13th century replaced the private dwellings mentioned in the 12th century in the archives of the cathedral chapter as properties owned by the wealthy middle classes operating as money-changers. In the 14th century, the building was divided into three sections, one of which was subsequently significantly altered. In the 17th century, the building passed into the hands of the Jesuits, who used it to accommodate the teachers from their first school in the Low Countries. The modifications made at this time mainly affected the small columns dividing the high quadrangular windows of the two levels of the façade. Some of the windows on the ground floor were removed so that only rectangular openings remained broken up by entrance doors. The second half of the 17th century saw the creation of a foundation designed to provide assistance for orphaned girls. In the following century, it hosted Robespierre's two sisters. The row of houses was then divided between public institutions and private owners before being purchased and restored in the 1980s, guided by prior archaeological research.

Listed: 15-09-1936 (houses at  n° 12 and 14) and 30-06-1953 (houses at n° 14b and 16)

Exceptional heritage site of Wallonia