The Saint Elisabeth Béguinage (Begijnhof) from 1238 is a combination of a béguinage square and street and was added to UNESCO World Heritage List in 1998. The Kortrijk béguinage was surrounded by the castle of the Counts of Flanders, the city walls and the St. Martin's Church Cemetery and is situated between the Church of Our Lady and the St. Martin's Church. The Kortrijk béguinage has been destroyed several times and its current form dates back to the 17th century. It comprises forty small Baroque houses each with an enclosed front garden.
The house with the double stepped-gable (1649) belonged to the 'Grand Dame'. The remarkable stair turret is the corner tower of the former St. Anna hall from 1682. In the Sint-Annaroom you will find the new experience centre. Her you will be immersed in many centuries of history in a remarkably dynamic manner. The béguinage also includes three chapels, including the Gothic Saint Matthew Chapel from 1464 that was transformed into the Baroque style in the 18th century. House number 41, near the entrance to the béguinage, will be converted into a house museum.
References:The Church of St Donatus name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.
The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.
The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.