Landstraße 31 (Linz)

The Ursulinenhof in Linz is a former convent with a church, forming a four-sided courtyard. The baroque building stands under heritage protection. It sits on the Landstraße, overlooked by the nearby Karmelitenkirche. The Ursulines arrived in 1679 after an imperial decree. They built their church between 1680 and 1681, then the convent from 1692 to 1723. During the Josephinism suppression, they gave refuge to expelled Carmelite nuns. The Nazis seized the building in 1938, turning it into a courthouse. After 1945 the order returned, but left again in 1968, selling it to the state. Today the Ursulinenhof houses several cultural institutions. The basement holds the u\hof: theatre, once staging avant-garde works. A fire in 2009 damaged parts of the building. The former cloister garden now hosts a 1695 chapel. Nearby, the old Ursulinenschule serves as an open cultural house.