The monastery was built from 1893-1895 by the Society of Jesus, who had been expelled from Germany because of the Kulturkampf. Architect was H.J. Hurth. The Ignatius College for the German Jesuits was established here. In 1911 another wing and a library were added. An imposing E-shaped complex was created with a central neo-Gothic chapel with crossing tower. The Jesuits brought together many precious books and published the Commentaries on Sacred Scripture.
During the Second World War, the Jesuits were again expelled, this time by the Gestapo, and in 1943 the chapel was blown up by the occupying forces. In 1942 the occupying forces established a National Socialist Reichsschule in the building. The most precious books had been taken to safety and after the occupation the Jesuits found the rest of the library virtually unscathed. In 1959 the books were transferred to the Jesuit College of Theology in Frankfurt am Main.
The building stood empty from 1948-1961, after which the Franciscan Sisters of Saint Joseph moved into the building and established a retirement home there under the name: Huize Boslust. From 1962-1964, a new chapel was built to replace the destroyed chapel during the occupation, with money from the German compensation scheme.
In 1984 houses for the remaining sisters were built in the garden of the monastery, and in 1985 the sisters moved here, and called this new complex Saint Joseph Monastery. The old Jesuit monastery has stood empty ever since. At the end of the 20th century it was sold to the Transcendental Meditation Foundation in the Netherlands, which for the time being let the building fall apart.
