Kinderhaus is a district of

Münster Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...

, a city in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It lies approximately 4 km to the north of the centre of Münster and belongs to the borough Münster-Nord, together with Coerde and Sprakel. It has 16,000 inhabitants and is mainly a residential area, though it has attracted some service enterprises, primarily in a large strip mall surrounding the Bürgerzentrum.

History

Kinderhaus was founded in 1333, at that time far outside the city walls of

. The name is derived from a house for

lepers Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...

with the name "kinderen hus". Until the start of the 19th century, Kinderhaus consisted only of this house, a church and a few farms. In the year 1903 Kinderhaus became a part of Münster, and since then it has been steadily growing. During the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

period, Kinderhaus was home to a very large number of

USA The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

and

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

Armed Forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a ...

Personnel and their

families Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...

, probably the biggest

enclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is so ...

in Münster at the time.

Sights

* Wasserschloss Wilkinghege built in 1311, now used as hotel and restaurant * The leprosy museum of Münster * The Waldschule (forest school) built in 1673, probably the oldest schoolbuilding in Germany that is still in use

External links

Homepage of the leprosy museum
Münster States and territories established in 1333 {{Münster-geo-stub