The Diocesan Seminary of Liège (in French: ''Séminaire épiscopal'' or ''Grand Séminaire de Liège''), now also Espace Prémontrés, is an educational institution in the

Diocese of Liège In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated ...

, founded in 1592.

History

The seminary was first founded by

Ernest of Bavaria Wittelsbach- Hapsburg aristocrat Ernest of Bavaria () (17 December 1554 – 17 February 1612) was Prince-Elector-Archbishop of the Archbishopric of Cologne and, as such, Archchancellor of the Holy Roman Empire and Duke of Westphalia, from 158 ...

in 1592 to train diocesan clergy in line with the decrees of the

Council of Trent The Council of Trent (), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation at the time, it has been described as the "most ...

. The papal breve of foundation was dated 5 March 1592, and the seminary was formally opened on 28 May that year, in the buildings of the former Hôpital Saint-Mathieu. In 1605, the seminary opened a dependent college, Liège College, at the University of Leuven. In 1786, after the

suppression of the Society of Jesus The suppression of the Society of Jesus was the removal of all members of the Jesuits from most of Western Europe and their respective colonies beginning in 1759 along with the abolition of the order by the Holy See in 1773; the papacy acceded ...

, the seminary moved into the vacated premises of the Jesuit college. Teaching was suspended during the

French period In Northern European historiography, the term French period (, , ) refers to the period between 1794 and 1815 during which most of Northern Europe was controlled by Republican or Napoleonic France.Eduard Rothert''Rheinland-Westfalen im Wechsel d ...

but resumed in 1814, and since 1815 the seminary has been based in the buildings of the former Beaurepart Abbey. The buildings are listed as immovable heritage. While candidates for the priesthood from the diocese of Liège have since 2010 been trained at the Seminary of Namur, the ''Séminaire épiscopal'' continues to function as a diocesan centre for training and education. In 2014 the diocesan treasurer was charged with misappropriating funds from the seminary. In 2018 he was convicted of embezzling 689,000 euros.

References

1592 establishments in Europe Buildings and structures in Liège Education in Liège History of Liège

Liège Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...

Educational institutions established in the 1590s {{Catholic-seminary-stub