While everyone naturally wants to live on their own for as long as possible, this isn’t always possible. Before the arrival of today’s care homes, the elderly could go to live in Old Men’s Homes and Old Women’s Homes. These houses were built from the 16th Century and were intended for men and women aged 60 years and older who could no longer take care of themselves. These houses were generally run as a charity, meaning that people could live there for free. The ‘regents’ of the houses did ask the residents to behave in a virtuous way and attend church regularly.
Vianen also has an Old Men’s and Wo…
While everyone naturally wants to live on their own for as long as possible, this isn’t always possible. Before the arrival of today’s care homes, the elderly could go to live in Old Men’s Homes and Old Women’s Homes. These houses were built from the 16th Century and were intended for men and women aged 60 years and older who could no longer take care of themselves. These houses were generally run as a charity, meaning that people could live there for free. The ‘regents’ of the houses did ask the residents to behave in a virtuous way and attend church regularly.
Vianen also has an Old Men’s and Women’s Home. At first, they were two separate institutions. They were then combined in the year 1683, probably for financial reasons. Around 1800, the institution ran into financial difficulties and was dissolved. The Old Women’s Home was demolished in the year 1830. The ground-floor basement rooms of the Old Men’s Home still exist in the houses at Brederodestraat 21-23. It’s possible that the houses at Brederodestraat 21 to 29 originally formed a whole, since the land behind them is still called the Manhuistuin (“Men’s Home Garden”). The design of the Old Men’s Home with a street-level covered basement is unusual in the Netherlands. This form can often be found in castles and town halls. In the second half of the 19th Century, the plots and roofs of the buildings were modified and the walls of the front and rear façades were lowered.
Further reading: Vianen Catholic Church, Vianen town centre, Guesthouse chapel, Vianen town hall, Town wall and town canal.
