At the beginning, in-house worship at the hospital was held in a simple room with a small altar. So that the patients could also be offered a mass, donations were collected as from 1876 and the chapel began to be built in a part of the side wing. In 1880, the first chapel was opened, and in 1907 a larger brick building was completed in the neo-Romanesque style. In 1925, the nuns were given a home of their own and, once again, a new, extended hospital chapel.
Since the last of the Franciscan nuns left St. Nicholas' Hospital at the end of 1989, the house chapel has remained a place where not only the sick but also many of Eupen's citizens can stop off for a brief prayer amid the haste of everyday life.
Interior furnishings
The large cross in the chancel dates from the post-war period. The body of Christ was carved by an artist in Oberammergau.
The way of the cross is also the work of a Bavarian artist and was consecrated in 1965.
The two statues (Mary and Joseph) were carved by the father of one of the nuns and were a gift to the hospital.
In 1883, the altar stone of the house chapel was consecrated with a relic of St. Gertrude. The relic was added to the neo-Romanesque altar in 1908. Precisely which name saint was involved here is not quite clear.
Windows
During the bombardment in December 1944, the wall of the choir and four windows were destroyed. It was not until shortly before Christmas of 1956 that the provisional panes were able to be replaced. This was financed by a donation from doctors at the hospital, the staff, neighbours, and a number of friends. The remaining glasswork was renewed in 1957 thanks to further donations.
The designs were the work of the French artist Guy Chabrol of Chartres. With their fervid colours, they were inspired by the famous mediaeval church windows of that city. The works in Eupen feature expressionistic church windows with figurative depictions. They depict the Holy Family, the symbols of the four evangelists, a Franciscan nun with a patient, and St. Francis of Assisi with birds and flowers.
