Franziskanerobservantenkloster Geseke

The monastery's establishment dates back to an authorization granted by Ferdinand of Bavaria, Archbishop of Cologne, on December 10, 1637. The city of Geseke conditioned its approval on the Franciscans founding and operating a new gymnasium. Initially, the friars set up the monastery and chapel in three acquired houses. On October 14, 1651, the settlement was elevated to an independent convent. Construction of its own church began in 1668, with the shell completed in 1674, but it was consecrated only in 1712, after the interior decoration was finished by 1742. The convent, referred to in 1736 as “Conventus Gesecanus Patrum Franziscanorum strictioris observantiae,” had up to 35 members in 1735. The Franciscans, primarily from Westphalian and Dutch bourgeois and farming families, dedicated themselves to pastoral care in numerous surrounding parishes and to aiding the poor. The “Gymnasium Antonianum” could only open in 1687 after overcoming financial difficulties and disputes with the city magistrate. Despite a temporary closure in 1704, the gymnasium reopened in 1717. An order-specific philosophy study also existed within the convent. Although the monastery was not dissolved in 1802, it faced restrictions under Hessian-Darmstadt rule, leading to its ultimate dissolution in 1834.

The monastery is located in the town of Geseke in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

The former monastery church now serves as a chapel for the Westphalian Clinic for Geriatric Psychiatry Geseke. The complex is a protected historical monument.

• Störmede Ruin (ruin, approx. 2984 m away)
• Eringerfeld Castle (castle, approx. 6292 m away)
• Vernaburg (Verne) Ruin (ruin, approx. 6734 m away)
• Schwarzenraben Castle (castle, approx. 6800 m away)