The original neo-Gothic church you see here was built in the 19th century by the Augustinian Fathers of the adjacent Mariënhage monastery. Construction began in 1895 and was completed in 1897. Because of the swampy ground, the church was built on 1400 piles. The church has a tower of 66 meters high, crowned with a four-meter-high and 800-kilo statue of Jesus with outstretched arms, called the Sacred Heart statue.
The church survived the First World War almost unscathed and, unlike the St. Catherine’s Church In Eindhoven, this church also survived the Second World War well. Only the bells were requisitioned by the German occupiers and a boiler from a factory served as an alternative clock. The only real damage was only discovered in 1956, when a lightning rod was placed on the Sacred Heart statue. Bullet holes were discovered in it, 12 years after the liberation. Since May 2012, except on Sundays, no services or activities have been held in the church.
In 2016, the fathers stopped and the redevelopment of De Paterskerk, the former Augustinianum and the Student Chapel began. It took no less than seven years to make this oldest part of Eindhoven accessible to everyone again.
DOMUSDELA stands for ‘house by DELA’. It is a reference to the DELA cooperative, which took over the Mariënhage monastery and all associated buildings from the Order of the Augustinians at the end of 2017. DOMUSDELA consists of various parts, including the Chapel, The Paterskerk, Brasserie Rita, Boutique Hotel Mariënhage, meeting rooms, the courtyard and the gardens. All this is run by DELA, LBG Hotels, caterer Hutten and the Muziekgebouw Eindhoven.
Be sure to take a look inside DomusDela and admire this historic spot in Eindhoven. Explore the old church and enjoy the beautiful courtyard when the weather is nice, while Brasserie Rita offers a pleasant atmosphere.
You can discover this beautiful location in various tours of City Tours Eindhoven, including the E-Fatbike tour Eindhoven and surroundings.
