Klarissenkloster Münster

The history of the Poor Clares in Münster is marked by several new foundations and relocations. An initial Poor Clares monastery existed from 1617 to 1811 at Stubengasse. It was damaged in 1652 by a gunpowder tower explosion and, by 1802, housed Münster's largest female convent with 33 sisters. This monastery was dissolved in 1811/1812 during the secularization, and the buildings later served as a magazine and an institution for the helpless. The foundations of the monastery church were uncovered during excavations in 1999. A revival of the order in Germany occurred in the 19th century, and in 1857, Poor Clares Colettines arrived in Münster. A new monastery was built in 1864 at Aasee on Scharnhorststraße. During the Kulturkampf, the sisters were forced into exile in the Netherlands in 1875 and only returned in 1887. In 1926, the Poor Clares Monastery of Paderborn was founded from Münster. During World War II, the monastery buildings were destroyed in 1943 and 1944, with reconstruction completed by 1954. The current monastery at Domplatz was founded in 1973 at the initiative of Bishop Heinrich Tenhumberg to create a spiritual counterpoint to the cathedral. In 2001, the Poor Clares from the Scharnhorststraße monastery moved to join their sisters at the cathedral. The former monastery building on Scharnhorststraße was later demolished.

The Poor Clares Monastery is situated in the city of Münster in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, at an elevation of approximately 71 m above sea level.

Today, the monastery is an active convent where the sisters, also known as “Domklarissen” (Cathedral Poor Clares), can participate in public services due to the opening of the cloister boundaries towards the cathedral. In 2025, seven Poor Clares reside in the cathedral monastery.

• Palais Erbdrostenhof (Residence, approx. 238 m away)
• Beverfoerder Hof (Residence, approx. 284 m away)
• St.-Paulus-Dom (Sacred building, approx. 464 m away)
• Landsbergsche Kurie (Residence, approx. 473 m away)