St. Nikolaus-Hospital (Cusanus Foundation)

The construction of the senior residence founded by Nicholas of Cusa began even before his elevation to cardinal in the year 1450. In agreement with his father, his brother Johannes, and his sister Klara, the entire parental inheritance was to flow into the foundation of the hospital. The foundation was named after Nicholas of Myra, the patron saint of the cardinal. Between 1452/53 and 1456, the entire facility was built for 10,000 Rhenish gold guilders.
The beauty and dignity of this site have remained unchanged to this day, although the gardens no longer exist to the same extent as before. Meanwhile, the buildings house a residential area for older citizens and the Kues Academy as a senior academy and meeting place.

A foundation in service to the people
The foundation document was issued on December 3, 1458. Thereafter, the house was to provide housing and support for 33 needy men aged at least 50 years, including six clergy and six nobles, corresponding to the number of Christ's years of life. The consecration of his foundation and the admission of the first residents only took place after the cardinal's death. Since then, the foundation has been continuously in service to the people, day and night.

Here beats the heart of Cusanus
The chapel is one of the most significant Gothic structures of the Moselle region. It consists of two parts: the almost square nave and the slightly narrower chancel. In the chancel of the chapel stands a triptych altar from the second half of the 15th century, depicting scenes from the Passion of Christ. In the middle section, there is one of the oldest representations of Cusanus, depicting the founder of the hospital kneeling under the cross. In the altar area, one can also admire the heart epitaph of Nicholas of Cusa, a brass grave slab under which the heart of Cusanus rests in a lead capsule.

St. Nikolaus Hospital Cusanus Foundation - Valuable spaces with history
The cloister is closed off from the courtyard. Each wing has its own net vault, but together they form a harmonious unity. On the ground floor of the hospital is the most beautiful room from the 18th-century construction period. It is the Baroque convent hall with a magnificent stucco ceiling and five paintings by the artist Johannes Leutzgen from Graach. On the stucco ceiling, which is considered one of the most valuable in the Trier region, one can see, in addition to the two coats of arms of Cusanus, the symbols of various ecclesiastical ranks as well as allegorical representations of the four continents. The upper floor above the sacristy, now accessible by a spiral staircase in the small courtyard after comprehensive renovation, contains the library of Nicholas of Cusa. It is one of the most precious private libraries in the world, as it has uniquely preserved the majority of the manuscript collection of a great humanist scholar for future generations. The astronomical instruments from the cardinal's possession as well as the documents of the hospital are also preserved here.
The library also contains the major works of Nicholas of Cusa as well as the manuscripts of his sermons written in his own hand. Among his most important works are, among others, "De concordantia catholica," "De docta ignorantia," "De visione Die," and "De pace fidei."