Shelter Sint-Michielsabdij - Mechelen

The Sanctuary of the Abbey of Sant Miquel in Antwerp is located on Plaça Bruul .

A refuge house , also called a shelter or refuge, was a place of refuge for the occupants of abbeys and monasteries during times when they did not feel safe in their often remote primary residence due to war or other disturbances.

A refuge house was often a fortified stone house at the gates of a walled city . Not only monks could find a safe haven in a refuge; Valuables and relics from monasteries were also carried there in troubled times

When a monastery had to be closed somewhere, as in the Republic of the United Netherlands during the Reformation, religious sometimes settled in a neighboring area where the monastic ban did not apply , with the intention of returning in due course.

Willem Vandenameele