The story of the Cellebroeders is one born from the darkest chapter of European history: the Black Death. When the plague ravaged the Low Countries between 1348 and 1352, a group of pious laymen emerged to perform the “works of mercy” that few others dared to touch. Known by the colorful and sometimes derisive names of matemannen, lollarden, and schokkebroeders, these men dedicated their lives to nursing the sick, comforting the “insane,” and—most critically—burying the dead who lay abandoned in the streets.

The transition from a band of wandering lay-caregivers to a fixed Brussels institution occurred in 1368. A prominent citizen named Jan Collay, who served as the fabrieksmeester (warden) of the nearby Kapellekerk, donated a plot of land to the brothers. This land sat beside the Droge Heergracht (Dry Lord’s Moat), a section of the city’s defenses just outside the first and inner city wall, that never had water due to its elevation. According to Jean d’Osta in his “Les Rues Dispararues de Bruxelles,” in winter this dry moat beside the Cellebroedersklooster was where children slid off the frozen moat and played ‘rijzeboentjes’.

For nearly a century, the brothers lived under simple vows as members of the Derde Orde van Sint-Franciscus (Third Order of Saint Francis). However, in 1462, seeking a more formal spiritual structure, the community officially transitioned to the Order of Saint Augustine. With this shift, they began to transform their simple almshouse into a true cloistered sanctuary, complete with a chapel that featured six elegant pointed windows facing the street.

What made the Cellebroeders stand out was the paradoxical tension between their humble mission and their struggle for status. In the status-obsessed world of 16th-century Brussels, even a community dedicated to burying the poor found itself embroiled in the “tower race.” For years, the brothers were forbidden from ringing bells, a privilege strictly guarded by the Sint-Goedelekapittel (Chapter of Saint Gudula), the city’s primary religious authority. It was only in 1482 that they were finally granted the right to possess a small bell tower—a significant victory that signalled their arrival as a respected pillar of the community.

This quest for legitimacy continued into the next century. In 1524, the brothers found themselves in a heated legal dispute with the Kapelleproosdij, the provost of their parish church of Kapellekerk. The conflict was not just about bells, but about the right to own a cemetery. In an era where burial fees were a major source of church income, the right to bury the dead was a fiercely contested “market.”  With so many dying persons on their hands, the Cellebroeders definitely had a chance at entering this market. Eventually, an agreement was reached, allowing the brothers to maintain their own graveyard.

However modest their community may look like on the outside, inside the monastery walls, the brothers curated a surprisingly rich artistic heritage. The chapel was adorned with a masterpiece by Gaspar de Crayer, depicting the desert hermits Saint Paul of Thebes and Saint Anthony of Egypt (housed today in Brussels’ Royal Fine Arts Museum), while their refectory featured the work of Maximilien De Haese. Around 1500, they officially adopted Sint-Alexius (Saint Alexius)—the patron saint of pilgrims and beggars—as their protector, leading to their common name: the Alexianen.

The Mystery of the Accolaystraat Name

Historian Bram Vannieuwenhuyze explores several competing theories regarding the origin of the Accolaystraat name, which defined one side of the monastery complex.

• The Collay Family: Earlier historians suggested the name was a French corruption of à Collay (belonging to Collay), referencing Jan Collay’s 1368 land donation to the brothers. Vannieuwenhuyze disputes this, noting that the name appeared in records as early as 1304—over sixty years before the donation. Plus, streets named after people were not common until the 18th century and most of Brussels was also predominantly Dutch-speaking until the 19th century.
• The Holy Virgin: Researcher Frieda Janssens proposed that Acoleye was an alternative poetic name for the Heilige Maagd (Holy Virgin), the patroness of the parish church of Kapellekerk dedicated to the Virgin Mary. Vannieuwenhuyze finds this unlikely, as Mary-themed streets in Brussels typically used the name Sint-Mariastraat.
• The Columbine Plant: A third proposal by Roel Jacobs links the name to the Akelei (Columbine), a plant used by medieval dyers. While the family name Accolay (or van Ackeleyen) is indeed derived from this plant, Vannieuwenhuyze finds no historical evidence of such a family owning property in this specific street.

Hence, the origins of the name of Accolaystraat remains an enigma today.

The Secret Moat: Cellebroersstraat and the Sint-Jorisgalerij

The modern Cellebroersstraat (Rue des Alexiens) was only first mentioned in 1599, which clearly derives from the monastery’s presence. In fact, the street follows the path of the Drogeheergracht, the original dry moat of the first city walls. Hidden beneath this historic street is a remarkable architectural secret: the Sint-Jorisgalerij (Galerie Saint-Georges). This underground vaulted passage begins in the back kitchens of the former Sint-Jorisinstituut (Institut Saint-Georges)—the 19th-century successor to the Sint-Jorisgilde (Guild of Saint George) that once practiced its archery on the grounds opposite the monastery.

Running for approximately 100 to 150 meters up the valley slope, this 17th-century gallery served as a vital extension of Brussels’ water network. It provided access to ten different water wells and played a crucial role in supplying the city’s most famous fountain, Manneke Pis. Some historical maps refer to a stadsbeek (city brook) in this area, which may be an artificial, vaulted channel linked to this same underground system.

In the 16th century, the Cellebroedersklooster was a secluded world of Gothic brick and stone. The chapel, with its soaring windows and modest bell tower, served as the public face of the community.

Behind it lay a series of cloisters and garden wings where the brothers lived and cared for the mentally ill, a quiet refuge just steps away from the bustling Hoogstraat (High Street).

Evicted by the French

The architecture of the site underwent a dramatic transformation following the French occupation. In 1796, the monastery was suppressed, and the brothers were forced to abandon their home on November 26. The building’s identity shifted from a house of mercy to a place of state control; parts of the complex were converted into a state prison and a reformatory. After liberation, the site briefly housed a hospice for old men.

Built on Bones: The United Hospices

There was an interesting story about the site of the Cellebroedersklooster in the 19th century.

Prior to the edict of Emperor Joseph II, which generally forbade burials in churches, chapels, and oratories in urban areas, the Alexian friars’ chapel served as a burial ground, many of whom were Protestants. Before beginning the planned appropriation work, the city council wrote to several families whose members had been buried there, and inquired about their intentions regarding the remains. Two of the families contacted indicated that they would defer to the wisdom of the administration for the necessary measures.

No sooner had the excavations begun than a multitude of previously unknown graves were discovered. Beneath the old church, whose floor was thought to be solid, were underground chambers filled with the tombs of Cellebroeder friars and perhaps of many of their patients. A multitude of corpses had been laid in the earth without any covering, that the ground was filled with putrid miasmas, capable of causing the most serious diseases.

To remedy these problems and make the premises as healthy as if they were built on fresh ground, the removed earth was replaced with broken bricks, onto which quicklime was poured. Above these crushed and cemented bricks, light vaults were erected, separated from them by a gap of 45 to 50 centimetres. To allow any miasmas that might have formed beneath the vaults to escape, ventilation shafts were built at the corners of the cloister. The church, which had served as a lime store, was in turn demolished and, along with the old monastery buildings, was replaced by a vast neo-classical building.

This was the most significant physical change that took place in 1826, when the architect Hendrik Partoes was commissioned to redesign the site into the a government-run merge of all hospices in Brussels, now known as the Vereenigde Godshuizen (Hospices Réunis). Partoes replaced the medieval Gothic atmosphere with the stern, orderly lines of Neoclassicism. The above reason was why he demolished the old chapel, and he constructed grand facades along the Cellebroersstraat (Rue des Alexiens) to house twenty disparate charities for the elderly under a single roof.

On the facade of the main building  – which still exists today along the Accolaystraat, the Latin inscription Hospitia XX in Uno – MDCCCXXX (“Twenty Godshouses in One – 1830”) stands as a final reminder that for over six centuries, this specific plot of Brussels land has been dedicated to the care of the vulnerable.

In 1975, the west wing of United Hospice was completely demolished and rebuilt. In 1988, the east wing underwent extensively renovation such that mainly the facades of the main building remained.

Today, the sprawling site of the former monastery and the neoclassical Vereenigde Godshuizen has been incorporated into the CHU Saint-Pierre (Sint-Pietersziekenhuis) medical complex. While the hospital has undergone massive modernisation, physical echoes of the Cellebroedersklooster remain if one knows where to look.

Traces of the former Cellebroersklooster

Along the Accolaystraat (Rue d’Accolay), the brickwork of the neoclassical building still displays several sealed round-arch arcades. These are the skeletal remains of the original 16th and 18th-century cloister wings that Partoes chose to preserve and integrate into his 1830 design. Though the west wing of the medieval structure was unceremoniously demolished in 1975 to make way for office space, these arches remain the last visible vestige of the monks’ cloister.

The monastic heritage also lives on in the neighbourhood’s famous bars and restaurants along the Cellebroersstraat:

The restaurant located at n° 63 Brasserie des Alexiens also preserved part of the monastery walls, with some stoneworks revealed in parts of its dining hall.

Voted as Europe’s Best Bar in 2025, the structure of the 16th century building of Belgian’s most famous bar –  Het Goudblommeke in Papier (La Fleur en Papier Doré) – at n° 55 is widely believed to incorporate original monastic outbuildings.

The most intact remains of Brussels’ Cellebroedersklooster has to be La Porte Noire, located at n° 67. This underground bar occupies the vaulted 16th-century cellars that were once part of the monastery complex. According to ‘Brussels On Draught’, the building used to be the kitchen of the Cellebroedersklooster. On the site itself, one of the barmen told me that it could well be storage space for coal, because the windows opened directly to the street level. What was evident, is the very well-preserved brickwork and stonemasonry and one of the doorframes. You can see these in the photos below.

Sources:

Vannieuwenhuyze, B. (2011) “Brussel, de Ontwikkeling van een middeleeuwse stedelijke ruimte.” Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.
Henne, A. Wauters, A. (1845) “Histoire de la ville de Bruxelles. Volume I-III” Brussels: Librairie Encyclopédique de Périchon.
Hymans, L.S. (1884) “Bruxelles à travers les âges” Bruxelles : Bruylant-Christophe
Rombaut, J-A. (1777) “Bruxelles illustrée, ou description chronologique et historique de cette ville.” Brussels: Chez Pauwels.
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellebroedersklooster_(Brussel)
https://www.odis.be/hercules/toonORG.php?taalcode=nl&id=3777
https://www.bruzz.be/samenleving/verloren-verleden-het-begraven-van-de-doden-2005-04-23
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellebroersstraat
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rue_des_Alexiens
https://monument.heritage.brussels/fr/Bruxelles_Pentagone/Rue_des_Alexiens/10002002
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Het_Goudblommeke_in_Papier
https://www.bruzz.be/actua/samenleving/het-goudblommeke-papier-het-beste-cafe-van-europa-2025-01-27

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