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[Bart]

Since this phenomenon seems to be situated especially in the Low countries, perhaps a small introduction.

A beguinage, from the French term béguinage, is an architectural complex which was created to house beguines: lay religious women who lived in community without taking vows or retiring from the world.

Originally the beguine institution was the convent, an association of beguines living together or in close proximity of each other under the guidance of a single superior, called a mistress or prioress. Although they were not usually referred as "convent", in these houses dwelt a small number of women together: the houses small, informal, and often poor communities that emerged across Europe after the twelfth century. In most cases, beguines who lived in a convent agreed to obey certain regulations during their stay and contributed to a collective fund.

 

Specifically for this beguinage in Kortrijk:

The Saint Elisabeth Beguinage dates back to the year 1238, has been destroyed several times over the course of the centuries. It was given its current shape in the 17th century. It features some forty Baroque houses with a private front garden.

Listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1998.
The very last beguine in the world, Marcella Pattyn, resided at the Kortrijk beguinage from 1960 to 2005. She passed away in her sleep on 14 April 2013. She was 93 years old.

 

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Next, the Saint Martin church.