Former Damsels' Convent, Former Lutheran noblewomen's convent in Barth, Germany

The former Damsels' Convent in Barth is a three-winged baroque building on the site of the former ducal castle. Its long east wing has a mansard roof, two high gabled central projections and a lantern; the chapel occupied the upper floor. The west side is open, with a gatehouse and an entrance portal from Klosterstraße bearing the inscription of King Frederick I and Queen Ulrike Eleonore of Sweden and the Swedish coat of arms.

Built from 1733 on the site of the ruined Pomeranian dukes' town castle, the foundation was not medieval: King Frederick I and Queen Ulrike Eleonore of Sweden granted the castle plot to the nobility in 1726 and endowed the house. The first conventual ladies moved in in 1733. It was dissolved in 1948, and the buildings passed to the Pomeranian Evangelical Church, then to the town in 1974.

The convent took no religious vows: women of the landed nobility could leave at any time, for instance to marry, yet rules governed daily outings, holidays, prayer and worship. Each canoness had a four-room apartment and her own garden plot; 15 ladies lived here in 1840. The gate inscription of 1741 calls the house a fruit of piety.

The building is located in Barth's town center and is easily accessible on foot. Visitors should note that this is a protected heritage structure best viewed from the outside.

The convent was not founded on an older monastery: it rose on the grounds of the dukes of Pomerania's town castle, which had decayed after the Thirty Years' War. King Frederick I and Queen Ulrike Eleonore of Sweden gave the plot to the knighthood in 1726. The entrance portal on Klosterstraße bears their names and the Swedish royal arms, with a Latin inscription dated 1741.