Hooidonk Priory

The Hooidonk Priory stood on the site of the memorial chapel from the mid-12th century onward. It was one of the first monasteries in North Brabant. In 1146, the abbot of the Augustinian monastery of Rolduc in Limburg granted permission to establish the Hooidonk Priory on a natural island in the Dommel River near Nederwetten. Initially, it was a double monastery, meaning it housed both men and women. However, starting in 1242, only female religious of noble descent resided there.

The priory became famous for the miracle of Hooidonk. The sisters were said to possess a splinter of the Holy Cross. This was examined during the consecration of the monastery by Bishop Boniface. He submerged the relic in water; the splinter sank, and drops of blood flowed from it. Because of this miracle, the priory became a place of pilgrimage. The monastery is said to have been located here for five centuries, until the community was dissolved in 1648 by order of the Protestant government of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands.

Many of Hooidonk’s possessions were lost at that time, but what is perhaps the most striking piece was preserved and, after many wanderings, ended up in the St. Joseph Parish in Waubach, Limburg. It is a silver reliquary from 1400 containing the cross relic, a splinter of the Holy Cross of Christ. The monastery buildings eventually fell into disrepair. Excavations in the 20th century uncovered nearly the entire foundation of the medieval monastery chapel. A memorial and devotional chapel was built on this site in 1953. The chapel stands in a procession park featuring Stations of the Cross.

This text has been translated using AI.