Apartment Cologne presents: Ensen

The district Ensen is located on the right bank of the Rhine. It belongs to the municipality of Porz.

District number	area	residents
703	1,620.5 square kilometers	8,000

Location of Ensen

Ensen borders on Westhoven in the west. Ensen borders on Gremberghoven to the northeast along with the Gremberg marshalling yard. Ensen borders on Porz to the southeast. The Rhine forms the border in the south. Weiß and Rodenkirchen are located opposite the Rhine river and thus form the border with Ensen.

History about Ensen

Ensen is probably derived from the Celtic and has the meaning "flowing water" . The Rhine often brings floods with it and of course this is a problem. The residents of Westhoven are often severely affected. Ensen is also a derivative of the word "island". Ensen is located higher than its neighbor Westhoven. Westhoven is derived from "Wüsthoven". If there is a flood, you can see the difference in height between Ensen and Westhoven. Ensen was first mentioned in a miracle book of St. Anno II. Since 1773 Ensen has been its own parish. At the end of the 18th century, Ensen had only around 160 inhabitants.

In the Middle Ages

In the Middle Ages, Ensen belonged to the Porz office, which was located in the Duchy of Berg. The French troops did not stop at Ensen either. So Ensen was occupied in 1795. In 1815 Ensen was incorporated into the Prussian Rhine province. Ensen got a psychiatric clinic at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1929 Ensen was incorporated into the Porz office and in 1932 to the Rheinisch-Bergisch district. In 1975 it was incorporated into Cologne.

Religion

The church of St. Laurentius was built between 1894 and 1896. The church has a three-aisle step hall in the neo-Gothic style. The church has a gable roof with cross gables as well as a roof rider and a retracted choir. The Catholic Church also has a square tower. This shines with some corner turrets and an octagon helmet.

Clubs in Ensen

The following clubs can be found in the district:

• TV Ensen-Westhoven 07 e.V.
• Boy Scout Tribe St. Laurentius
• Citizens' Association Ensen-Westhoven e. V.
• Spielmannszug St. Sebastian Ensen-Westhoven 1948 e. V.
• Festival Committee Ensen- Westhoven Carnival e. V.
• SV Westhoven-Ensen 1931 e. V.
• St. Seb. Rifle Brotherhood Ensen-Westhoven
• KG Foolish Laurentius e.V.

Special facilities

The following facilities and buildings should also be mentioned:

• The Alexian Hospital was built between 1905 and 1908 as a psychiatric clinic by the Convent and Alexian Brothers' Hospital.
• The volunteer fire brigade in Cologne, extinguishing group Ensen-Westhoven
• The Ensen Community Community School

The Alexian hospital in Cologne Ensen

Today's Alexianer Köln GmbH looks back on a very long tradition. Because the origins go back to the Middle Ages! In 1306 the Begardenkonvent was founded in Cologne. It was found in Lungengasse. Because of the location in Lungengasse, the house was often called "Haus zur Lunge". And because of this name, the people in the house were often called "Lung Brothers". At that time there were just over 200 guards in the cathedral city.

In the 16th century, exactly in 1665, even 22 Alexian brothers died caring for the sick. They died of the "Black Death" at the time or were plague sufferers.

The purchase in Lindenthal

In 1888 the Alexian brothers came to Cologne from Aachen. They bought a former “institution for the mentally ill” in the beautiful district of Lindenthal and expanded it. It was a private institution. The road construction plans of the city of Cologne prevented further expansion of the rooms and therefore the Alexian brothers switched to Porz Ensen.

Moving to Ensen

The monastery started there in 1904 and also had a “sanatorium for the mentally ill”. The whole undertaking was then completed in October 1908. In 1900 the Alexian brothers were trained to be capable nurses in a hospital in the cathedral city. In 1911 there were already 260 patients in the institution. These were cared for by 34 Alexian brothers. The majority of the patients suffered from mental illnesses. In addition, there were also addicts who were addicted to alcohol or drugs.

The war time

In 1942 the facility was converted into a military hospital. The nearby train station attracted many enemy planes in 1944. There were numerous air strikes. An attempt was made to avert the accident by drawing a red cross on the roof of the monastery. But even this hint could not prevent the monastery from being hit several times in December 1944. The dining room was destroyed in a severe explosion. The south wing was also damaged and many people died in the attack. When the war was over, many people in need visited the monastery. The Alexian brothers distributed thousands of food rations in the post-war period. From 1945 to 1948 seminaries were held there. The participants supported the brothers in the reconstruction.

The transformation

In the 80s, the Alexian hospital was a dormitory and also a treatment center for many mentally ill men. Only then were acute patients admitted, as were the female patients. The chronically ill men, who previously lived there all the time, were put up in nearby dormitories. After that, the Alexian hospital was transformed into a specialist clinic for psychiatry and psychotherapy. It is a very modern specialist clinic and treats more than 3000 cases a year. In 2005 the congregation of the Alexian brothers dissolved the monastery in Porz Ensen. The reason was that there were only six Alexian brothers left. These then went to Münster or Aachen.

Hospital departments

Today, the following departments can be found in the Alexian hospital: general psychiatry, gerontopsychiatry, psychosomatics and addiction treatment.

Accommodation in downtown Cologne!

Do you want to walk to the cathedral? Do you want to walk to the fair? Then book our holiday apartment Cologne , then you can easily reach Cologne Cathedral on foot! Simply cross the Rhine over the Deutzer Bridge and stroll through the old town. You have reached the cathedral in about 14 minutes! We look forward to your inquiry!