History

The monastery of Cinqfontaines (Fünfbrunnen) was built in 1906 by the Catholic order of the Sacred Heart and priests lived there continuously until 2021, apart from an interruption during the Second World War.

In 1941, the Nazi occupiers closed the monastery and used the site as a place of internment – called “Jewish Retirement Home” by the Nazis – for Jews living in Luxembourg. From 1941 to 1943, about 300 Jews who had previously been expelled from their homes were interned there. Most of them were later deported to concentration camps.

After the end of the war, the priests returned to Cinqfontaines. From the 1950s onwards, holiday camps were organised on the site. Following an agreement with the Jewish community of Luxembourg, the monastery of Cinqfontaines was acquired in 2020 by the State with the aim of setting up a memorial and educational centre.

In 2021, the last priests left the monastery. The Service national de la jeunesse (SNJ) and the Zentrum fir politesch Bildung (ZpB) have offered educational activities since 2022 based on the following themes: “Remembrance of the victims of the Shoah”, “Raising awareness of anti-Semitism and racism” and “Fostering democracy and human rights”.

  • 1822-1829

    Construction of the mill on the Woltz

  • 1903

    Purchase of the farm by the German Order of Sacred Heart Priests

  • 1904

    Purchase of the mill by the Sacred Heart Priests

  • 1906–1907

    Construction of the Cinqfontaines (Fünfbrunnen) monastery as a novitiate and school for missionaries

  • 1909–1910

    Construction of the monastery chapel

  • 1924

    Completion of the new farm

  • 1930

    Establishment of the Lourdes Grotto

  • 1933

    Establishment of the monastery cemetery

  • 1940

    Occupation of Luxembourg and beginning of the persecution of Jews

     

  • 1941

    03/1941 Closure of the monastery and eviction of the monastery residents by the Gestapo (German Secret State Police)

    08/1941 Establishment of the “Jewish Retirement home” in Cinqfontaines
    Arrival of the first Jews

    16/10/1941 First deportation from Luxembourg to the East (21 Jews from the “Retirement home”)

    10-11/1941 Plans for expansion of the “Jewish Retirement home”, start of construction of the barracks

  • 1942

    23/04/1942 Second deportation (7 Jews from the “Retirement home”)

    12/07/1942 Third deportation (8 Jews from the “Retirement home”)

    26/07/1942 Fourth deportation (13 Jews from the “Retirement home”)

    28/07/1942 Fifth deportation (77 Jews from the “Retirement home”)

    07/1942 Halt of the construction of the barracks

  • 1943

    06/04/1943 Sixth deportation (88 Jews from the “Retirement home”)
    Official Closure of the “Jewish Retirement home Cinqfontaines”

    17/06/1943 Seventh and last deportation from Luxembourg (3 Jews from the Retirement home”)

  • 1944/45

    Battle of the Bulge: use of the monastery as a military hospital

  • 1950

    Start of the holiday colonies run by catholic Caritas in Cinqfontaines

  • 1954

    Return of the Sacred Heart Priests

  • 1955

    Cinqfontaines Monastery becomes a novitiate again
    Used as a spiritual retreat

  • 1957

    Inauguration of the Caritas holiday home

  • 1961

    The last novice finishes his training in Cinqfontaines

  • 1962–1963

    Renovation of the chapel

  • 07/1969

    Inauguration of the monument in memory of the victims of the Shoah

  • 1989

    Takeover of the holiday home by the Sacred Heart priests

  • 12/2020

    Sale of the monastery and its grounds to the Luxembourg state

  • 01/2021

    Signing of the Reparation Agreement between the Luxembourg state and the Jewish Community of Luxembourg

  • 2022

    Symbolic handover of the keys to the Ministère de l’Éducation nationale, de l’Enfance et de la Jeunesse

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