The Frans Loenenhofje is a

hofje {{inline refs needed, date=May 2012 A hofje (diminutive of 'hof', 'court') is a Dutch word for a courtyard with almshouses around it. Hofjes have existed since the Middle Ages. A hofje provided housing for elderly people (mostly women). ...

in Haarlem,

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, on the Witte Heren straat. It was named the "Five room" or ''Vijfkamer'' hofje in 1607 after the five new rooms that were built from the proceeds of the will and testament of Frans Loenen (1543–1605). Frans Loenen was a Catholic who fled to Haarlem from

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

in 1578 for their milder disposition toward people of the

Old Catholic The terms Old Catholic Church, Old Catholics, Old-Catholic churches or Old Catholic movement designate "any of the groups of Western Christians who believe themselves to maintain in complete loyalty the doctrine and traditions of the Great Chu ...

faith. He left all of his goods to the poor in an extraordinary will drawn up 3 days before he died. His friends gave up trying to sort out his legacy, because most of his property was still located in the

Spanish Netherlands Spanish Netherlands (Spanish: Países Bajos Españoles; Dutch: Spaanse Nederlanden; French: Pays-Bas espagnols; German: Spanische Niederlande.) (historically in Spanish: ''Flandes'', the name "Flanders" was used as a ''pars pro toto'') was the H ...

, then enemy territory, and some of his money was tied up in outstanding bets. For example, he had bet a small fortune of 16,000 guilders that the siege of Sluis would not last two years. It was decided that a hofje would be the best option, in case any of the bets paid out, which they did. The garden of this hofje used to be part of a famed garden from the St Anthony's monastery, which was founded in 1414. The St. Anthony order was later associated with the

Vrouwe- en Antonie Gasthuys The Vrouwe- en Antonie Gasthuis is a hofje on the Klein Heiligland 64a in Haarlem, Netherlands. It is open on weekdays from 10-17.00. History of the Foundation This hofje is run by a charitable foundation called 'Vrouwe- en Antonie Gasthuis', wh ...

and the monastery was inhabited by

Norbertine The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular of the Catholic Church ...

monks in 1484. The Norbertines who tended the garden wore white scapulars. Thus the name of the street; "White gentlemen street". They remained there until 1543, when the monastery lands came under the control of the St. Elisabeth Gasthuis. Their lands were officially confiscated and secularized in 1581 by the city council after the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and ...

, just as all other Catholic buildings and lands in Haarlem after the

iconoclasm Iconoclasm (from Greek: grc, εἰκών, lit=figure, icon, translit=eikṓn, label=none + grc, κλάω, lit=to break, translit=kláō, label=none)From grc, εἰκών + κλάω, lit=image-breaking. ''Iconoclasm'' may also be conside ...

. For some reason the actual moment of transferral of the deeds only took place fifteen years later in 1596, and the Catholic associations with this property was probably the reason it was selected by the executors of the Frans Loenen will. Two years later, in 1607, the provost

Jacobus Zaffius Jacobus Hendriksz Zaffius also known as Saffius or Saffio (1534 – 19 January 1618), was a Catholic pastor in Haarlem. Biography He was born in Amsterdam where he later owned some property. From 1568 he was Prior of the Canons Regular mona ...

sponsored an additional 5 rooms, thereafter known as the " provost rooms" of the Frans Loenen Hofje. Jacobus Zaffius had been abbot in the St. Anthony's monastery in

Heiloo Heiloo () is a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality and Dorp (town), town in the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland. The community is part of the cooperation region Kennemerland and is located in the histori ...

from 1578 to 1571, when he became provost of the

Sint-Bavokerk The Grote Kerk or St.-Bavokerk is a Reformed Protestant church and former Catholic cathedral located on the central market square ( Grote Markt) in the Dutch city of Haarlem. Another Haarlem church called the Cathedral of Saint Bavo now serves ...

. He witnessed the iconoclasm and 3 years later went to jail for refusal to turn over Catholic property to the city council. William of Orange granted him amnesty, and it was on this occasion that he made his donation to the hofje and in 1611 he had his painting made as a memorial to this fact. The hofje currently has 10 rooms for women, who must have a minimum age of 60 years and who must have lived in Haarlem for five years or longer.

External links

description of Frans Loenenhofje

References

* Deugd boven geweld, Een geschiedenis van Haarlem, 1245–1995, edited by Gineke van der Ree-Scholtens, 1995, * ''Haarlems hofjes'', Dr. G. H. Kurtz, Schuyt & Co C.V., Haarlem, 1972, * ''Door gangen en poorten naar de hofjes van Haarlem'', L. Peetorn and L. van der Hoek, Stichting Uitgeverij Barabinsk Leiden, 2001, * Meer dan Steen, De Haarlemse kerken en andere gebedshuizen, vroeger en nu, Haarlem Historical Society, 2007 {{Hofjes in Haarlem Hofjes 1607 establishments in Europe Rijksmonuments in Haarlem 17th-century establishments in the Dutch Republic