Abbey of Nonantola
Encyclopedia
Nonantola Abbey, dedicated to Saint Sylvester
, is a former a Benedictine monastery
and prelature nullius in the commune of Nonantola
, c. 10 km north-east of Modena
, in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy
. The abbey church remains as a basilica
.
and brother-in-law of the Lombard
king Aistulf
. The latter richly endowed the new abbey, starting its role as one of the main landed proprietors of northern Italy. Pope Stephen II
appointed Anselm its first abbot, and presented some relics of Saint Sylvester to the abbey, named in consequence S. Silvestro de Nonantula. After the death of Aistulf in 756, Anselm was banished to Monte Cassino
by the new king, Desiderius
, but was restored by Charlemagne
after seven years. In 813 the abbot Peter of Nonantola was chosen as Imperial ambassador to Constantinople
. His successor, Ansfrid
, held the same post in 828. In 883 the abbey was chosen as the place of a conference between Charles the Fat
and Pope Marinus I
.
In 889 the monastery and church were completely destroyed by invading Hungarians, and all who had not fled were killed. Reconstruction began almost immediately.
Up to the 11th century Nonantola was an imperial monastery, and its discipline often suffered severely on account of imperial interference in the election of abbots: Nonantola was in fact one of the most powerful abbeys of Europe
and control over it was considered a major issue by the emperors and popes. It had a famous scriptorium
and the abbot Godeschalc had a new basilica
built in 1058. At the beginning of the Investiture Conflict it sided with the emperor, until forced to submit to the pope by Matilda of Tuscany
in 1083. It finally declared itself openly for the papal party in 1111. In that year the famous monk Placidus of Nonantola wrote his De honore Ecclesiæ, one of the most able and important defences of the papal position that was written during the Investiture Conflict.
The decline of the monastery can be dated to 1419, when it came under the jurisdiction of commendatory abbots
. In 1514 abbot Gian Matteo Sertorio gave it to the Cistercians, but the abbey continued to decline until it was suppressed by Pope Clement XIII
in 1768. Alternatively it may have been replaced by Duke Francesco III d'Este
in 1783, during the abbacy of Francesco Maria d'Este, with a collegiate foundation of canons.
Pope Pius VII
restored it as a monastery on January 23, 1821, with the provision that the prelature nullius attached to it should belong to the Archbishop of Modena
, into which the exempt territory was finally absorbed in 1986 to form the Diocese of Modena-Nonantola. The monastery itself was appropriated by the Italian
government in 1866.
es have been discovered.
The Museo Benedettino Nonantolano e Diocesano di Arte Sacra ("The Benedictine Nonantolan and Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art") is also now housed in the premises, as are the important abbey archives and library.
edifice built during the tenure of abbot Damian, which in the early 20th century was restored to its original early 12th century condition. The church has a nave and two aisles, with the presbytery
. The crypt
, with sixty-four columns, dates from the 8th century and contains relics of seven saints: Saint Anselm the founder (d. 3 March 803); the virgins Saint Fusca and Saint Anseris; the martyrs Saints Theopontus and Senesius, Saint Adrian III, and those of Saint Sylvester himself.
Pope Silvester I
Pope Sylvester I was pope from 31 January 314 to 31 December 335, succeeding Pope Miltiades.He filled the See of Rome at a very important era in the history of the Catholic Church, but very little is known of him....
, is a former a Benedictine monastery
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
and prelature nullius in the commune of Nonantola
Nonantola
Nonantola is a city and comune in the province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is located about 10 km from Modena on the road to Ferrara.-History:...
, c. 10 km north-east of Modena
Modena
Modena is a city and comune on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy....
, in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. The abbey church remains as a basilica
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
.
History
The abbey was founded in 752 by Saint Anselm, Duke of FriuliFriuli
Friuli is an area of northeastern Italy with its own particular cultural and historical identity. It comprises the major part of the autonomous region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, i.e. the province of Udine, Pordenone, Gorizia, excluding Trieste...
and brother-in-law of the Lombard
Lombards
The Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...
king Aistulf
Aistulf
Aistulf was the Duke of Friuli from 744, King of Lombards from 749, and Duke of Spoleto from 751. His father was the Duke Pemmo.After his brother Ratchis became king, Aistulf succeeded him in Friuli. He succeeded him later as king when Ratchis abdicated to a monastery...
. The latter richly endowed the new abbey, starting its role as one of the main landed proprietors of northern Italy. Pope Stephen II
Pope Stephen II
Pope Stephen II was Pope from 752 to 757, succeeding Pope Zachary following the death of Pope-elect Stephen. Stephen II marks the historical delineation between the Byzantine Papacy and the Frankish Papacy.-Allegiance to Constantinople:...
appointed Anselm its first abbot, and presented some relics of Saint Sylvester to the abbey, named in consequence S. Silvestro de Nonantula. After the death of Aistulf in 756, Anselm was banished to Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, Italy, c. to the west of the town of Cassino and altitude. St. Benedict of Nursia established his first monastery, the source of the Benedictine Order, here around 529. It was the site of Battle of Monte Cassino in 1944...
by the new king, Desiderius
Desiderius
Desiderius was the last king of the Lombard Kingdom of northern Italy...
, but was restored by Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
after seven years. In 813 the abbot Peter of Nonantola was chosen as Imperial ambassador to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. His successor, Ansfrid
Ansfrid of Nonantola
Ansfrid was the third abbot of Nonantola. He greatly enriched his abbey, providing it with a chalice and Gospel Books.Ansfrid succeeded Peter between 821 and 825. Later abbatial records, from 1037–45, date his consecration to 821, but documents from 824 name Peter as abbot...
, held the same post in 828. In 883 the abbey was chosen as the place of a conference between Charles the Fat
Charles the Fat
Charles the Fat was the King of Alemannia from 876, King of Italy from 879, western Emperor from 881, King of East Francia from 882, and King of West Francia from 884. In 887, he was deposed in East Francia, Lotharingia, and possibly Italy, where the records are not clear...
and Pope Marinus I
Pope Marinus I
Pope Marinus I , Pope between December 16, 882 and May 15, 884. He succeeded John VIII in about the end of December 882.-Prior history:...
.
In 889 the monastery and church were completely destroyed by invading Hungarians, and all who had not fled were killed. Reconstruction began almost immediately.
Up to the 11th century Nonantola was an imperial monastery, and its discipline often suffered severely on account of imperial interference in the election of abbots: Nonantola was in fact one of the most powerful abbeys of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and control over it was considered a major issue by the emperors and popes. It had a famous scriptorium
Scriptorium
Scriptorium, literally "a place for writing", is commonly used to refer to a room in medieval European monasteries devoted to the copying of manuscripts by monastic scribes...
and the abbot Godeschalc had a new basilica
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
built in 1058. At the beginning of the Investiture Conflict it sided with the emperor, until forced to submit to the pope by Matilda of Tuscany
Matilda of Tuscany
Matilda of Tuscany was an Italian noblewoman, the principal Italian supporter of Pope Gregory VII during the Investiture Controversy. She is one of the few medieval women to be remembered for her military accomplishments...
in 1083. It finally declared itself openly for the papal party in 1111. In that year the famous monk Placidus of Nonantola wrote his De honore Ecclesiæ, one of the most able and important defences of the papal position that was written during the Investiture Conflict.
The decline of the monastery can be dated to 1419, when it came under the jurisdiction of commendatory abbots
In Commendam
In canon law, commendam was a form of transferring an ecclesiastical benefice in trust to the custody of a patron...
. In 1514 abbot Gian Matteo Sertorio gave it to the Cistercians, but the abbey continued to decline until it was suppressed by Pope Clement XIII
Pope Clement XIII
Pope Clement XIII , born Carlo della Torre di Rezzonico, was Pope from 16 July 1758 to 2 February 1769....
in 1768. Alternatively it may have been replaced by Duke Francesco III d'Este
Francesco III d'Este
Francesco III was Duke of Modena and Reggio from 1737 until his death.-Biography:He was born in Modena, the son of Rinaldo d'Este, Duke of Modena, and Charlotte of Brunswick-Lüneburg....
in 1783, during the abbacy of Francesco Maria d'Este, with a collegiate foundation of canons.
Pope Pius VII
Pope Pius VII
Pope Pius VII , born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti, was a monk, theologian and bishop, who reigned as Pope from 14 March 1800 to 20 August 1823.-Early life:...
restored it as a monastery on January 23, 1821, with the provision that the prelature nullius attached to it should belong to the Archbishop of Modena
Modena
Modena is a city and comune on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy....
, into which the exempt territory was finally absorbed in 1986 to form the Diocese of Modena-Nonantola. The monastery itself was appropriated by the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
government in 1866.
Buildings
The Town Hall of Nonantola is now accommodated in some of the remaining monastic buildings, in one of which 11th century frescoFresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...
es have been discovered.
The Museo Benedettino Nonantolano e Diocesano di Arte Sacra ("The Benedictine Nonantolan and Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art") is also now housed in the premises, as are the important abbey archives and library.
Basilica
The Basilica is a RomanesqueRomanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
edifice built during the tenure of abbot Damian, which in the early 20th century was restored to its original early 12th century condition. The church has a nave and two aisles, with the presbytery
Presbytery (architecture)
The presbytery is the name for an area in a church building which is reserved for the clergy.In the oldest church it is separated by short walls, by small columns and pilasters in the Renaissance ones; it can also be raised, being reachable by a few steps, usually with railings....
. The crypt
Crypt
In architecture, a crypt is a stone chamber or vault beneath the floor of a burial vault possibly containing sarcophagi, coffins or relics....
, with sixty-four columns, dates from the 8th century and contains relics of seven saints: Saint Anselm the founder (d. 3 March 803); the virgins Saint Fusca and Saint Anseris; the martyrs Saints Theopontus and Senesius, Saint Adrian III, and those of Saint Sylvester himself.