Collège Notre-Dame de la Paix is a mixed

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

primary and secondary school in Erpent, Namur, Belgium. Its origins go back to 1610 and the creation of the College of Namur by the

Jesuits , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...

in the centre of Namur. After the

suppression of the Jesuits The suppression of the Jesuits was the removal of all members of the Society of Jesus from most of the countries of Western Europe and their colonies beginning in 1759, and the abolishment of the order by the Holy See in 1773. The Jesuits we ...

in 1773 and Belgian independence, the college was opened in 1831 on the rue be Bruxelles in the centre of Namur and in 1971 the entire school was transferred to Erpent, Namur.

History

In 1610, the Jesuits built the College of Namur in the centre of the city. It was built on the street that become the rue du Collège. The college complex included the Church of Saint-Ignace. In 1645, the church was consecrated, later it became the Church of Saint-Loup. In 1773, there was the

suppression of the Society of Jesus The suppression of the Jesuits was the removal of all members of the Society of Jesus from most of the countries of Western Europe and their colonies beginning in 1759, and the abolishment of the order by the Holy See in 1773. The Jesuits were ...

and the college became the Royal College.Jean-françois Lahaut
Namur: le demi-siècle du collège Notre-Dame de la Paix à Erpent
'' L'Avenir'', 11 November 2021, retrieved 4 November 2022 In 1814, the Society of Jesus was restored. In 1831, after Belgian independence, the Jesuits returned to Namur and opened a new college in the buildings of the former Benedictine Abbey of Peace-Notre-Dame. The site was restored and enlarged by Fr Herman Meganck. Faculties of the University of Namur still occupy the site. Originally, there were twelve students and during the first seven years all the students were boarders. In 1838, the doors of the college were opened to external students, after a request from the

Bishop of Namur The Diocese of Namur is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Belgium. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels. The diocese is a suffragan in the ecclesiastical province in the metropoli ...

, Nicolas-Joseph Dehesselle. Originally, the college and the university occupied the same site and were under the jurisdiction on a single rector. In 1926, part of the college left Namur to create Collège Saint-Paul in the Godinne area of Namur. And at the end of the 1960s, the site was too small to accommodate the university and the college. A new site for the college was built in the Erpent area of Namur. The architect was Georges Housiaux (1933-2013), he also designed the restoration of the Casino de Namur, after it burned down in 1980. The first intake for the college in Erpent was in 1971.

Status

The college is part of the association of 'Jesuit Colleges and Institutes of French-speaking Belgium' as well as the General Secretariat of Catholic Education (French: Secrétariat Général de l’Enseignement Catholique). In 2019, the college was given €1.3million by the

Government of Wallonia The Walloon Government (french: Gouvernement wallon) or Government of Wallonia (french: Gouvernement de Wallonie) is the executive branch of Wallonia, and it is part of one of the six main governments of Belgium. It sits in Namur, where the Parli ...

to build a new sports hall and cafeteria. In addition, at the college, delegates from other schools in Namur agreed on how to support students who engage in climate protests.Au collège d'Erpent, élèves et professeurs s'organisent pour conjuguer, chaque jeudi, école et climat
'' RTBF'', 28 January 2019, retrieved 4 November 2022

References

External links

* {{Catholic Church in Belgium Buildings and structures in Namur (city) Jesuit secondary schools in Belgium 1831 establishments in Belgium Secondary schools in Belgium Educational institutions established in 1831

History

Status

See also

References

Further reading

External links