Nonantola
Encyclopedia
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
.
monastery
, founded in 752 by the Lombard
duke of Friuli
, St. Anselm, which supplanted the old Roman colony. It was richly endowed by King Aistulph; of the latter's edifices only traces remain. Pope Stephen II
appointed Anselm its first abbot, and presented the relics of St. Sylvester to the abbey, named in consequence S. Sylvester de Nonantula. After the death of Aistulph (756), Anselm was banished to Monte Cassino
by the new king, Desiderius, but was restored by Charlemagne
after seven years.
In the High Middle Ages Nonantola held some importance, as it was chosen for the meeting in 883 between Pope Marinus I
and the emperor Charles the Fat
. Pope Hadrian III was buried here.
In the year 890 the city and the monastery were devastated by Hungarian marauders. Later Nonantola's history is connected to that of the monastery.
Up to 1083 it was an imperial monastery, and its discipline often suffered severely on account of imperial interference in the election of abbots. In the beginning of the Conflict of Investitures it sided with the emperor, until forced to submit to the pope by Mathilda of Tuscany in 1083. It finally declared itself openly for the pope in 1111. In that year Placidus of Nonantola wrote his De honore Ecclesiæ, a defence of the papal position during the Conflict of Investitures. It is printed in Bernhard Pez
, "Thesaurus Anecdot. noviss." (Augsburg, 1721), II, ii, 73 sq.
It decayed badly from the 13th century onwards; the final decline of the monastery began in 1419, when it came under the jurisdiction of commendatory abbot
s.
The city was disputed between Modena
and Bologna
until it fell under Este
's suzerainty (as an autonomous commune) in 1412. A constitution was issued in 1419. Nonantola remained a pacific agricultural centre well into the 17th century, when it had several urbanistic renovations.
In 1514 the abbey came into the possession of the Cistercians, but continued to decline until it was finally suppressed by Clement XIII in 1768.
Pius VII restored it 23 January 1821, with the provision that the prelature nullius attached to it should belong to the Archbishop of Modena.
In the Napoleonic Wars
the abbey lost all its territories, which were acquired by the count Leonardo Salimbeni. His palace was sold to the comune
of Nonantola in 1898, becoming the Town Hall. In this age the agriculture started dying out, as the Modenese nobles used archaic methods of cultivation, and industries, trade and water were lacking.
During the German occupation in World War II
the Nonantolani hosted 73 Jewish children, enabling them to flee to Switzerland
. The city was awarded a Cross of War Medal for Military Valour
for this feat and for its contribution to the Italian resistance movement
.
Today Nonantola has achieved renowned status as an increasingly important cultural and tourist resort.
. These include the two towers called dei Modenesi and dei Bolognesi
, and the Pieve of S. Michael Archangel (9th century).
The main monument, however, is the famous abbey
of San Sylvester, a Romanesque
monument erected from the 8th century onwards.
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
in the province of Modena
Province of Modena
The Province of Modena is a province in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Modena.It has an area of 2,689 km², and a total population of 659,925 . There are 48 comuni in the province, see Comuni of the Province of Modena.At May 31, 2005, the main comuni by population...
in the Emilia-Romagna
Emilia-Romagna
Emilia–Romagna is an administrative region of Northern Italy comprising the two historic regions of Emilia and Romagna. The capital is Bologna; it has an area of and about 4.4 million inhabitants....
region in northern 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...
. It is located about 10 km from 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....
on the road to Ferrara
Ferrara
Ferrara is a city and comune in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital city of the Province of Ferrara. It is situated 50 km north-northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream of the Po River, located 5 km north...
.
History
Nonantola's history is strongly connected to that of Nonantola Abbey a BenedictineBenedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
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...
, founded in 752 by 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...
duke of Friuli
Duke of Friuli
The dukes and margraves of Friuli were the rulers of the Duchy and March of Friuli in the Middle Ages.The dates given below, when contentious, are discussed in the articles of the respective dukes.-Lombard dukes:* 568–c.584 Grasulf I...
, St. Anselm, which supplanted the old Roman colony. It was richly endowed by King Aistulph; of the latter's edifices only traces remain. 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 the relics of St. Sylvester to the abbey, named in consequence S. Sylvester de Nonantula. After the death of Aistulph (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, 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 the High Middle Ages Nonantola held some importance, as it was chosen for the meeting in 883 between 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:...
and the emperor 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...
. Pope Hadrian III was buried here.
In the year 890 the city and the monastery were devastated by Hungarian marauders. Later Nonantola's history is connected to that of the monastery.
Up to 1083 it was an imperial monastery, and its discipline often suffered severely on account of imperial interference in the election of abbots. In the beginning of the Conflict of Investitures it sided with the emperor, until forced to submit to the pope by Mathilda of Tuscany in 1083. It finally declared itself openly for the pope in 1111. In that year Placidus of Nonantola wrote his De honore Ecclesiæ, a defence of the papal position during the Conflict of Investitures. It is printed in Bernhard Pez
Bernhard Pez
Bernhard Pez was an Austrian Benedictine historian and librarian.-Life:He studied at Vienna and Krems, and in 1699 entered Melk Abbey...
, "Thesaurus Anecdot. noviss." (Augsburg, 1721), II, ii, 73 sq.
It decayed badly from the 13th century onwards; the final decline of the monastery began in 1419, when it came under the jurisdiction of commendatory abbot
Commendatory abbot
A commendatory abbot is an ecclesiastic, or sometimes a layman, who holds an abbey in commendam, drawing its revenues but not exercising any authority over its inner monastic discipline...
s.
The city was disputed between 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....
and Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
until it fell under Este
Este
The House of Este is a European princely dynasty. It is split into two branches; the elder is known as the House of Welf-Este or House of Welf historically rendered in English, Guelf or Guelph...
's suzerainty (as an autonomous commune) in 1412. A constitution was issued in 1419. Nonantola remained a pacific agricultural centre well into the 17th century, when it had several urbanistic renovations.
In 1514 the abbey came into the possession of the Cistercians, but continued to decline until it was finally suppressed by Clement XIII in 1768.
Pius VII restored it 23 January 1821, with the provision that the prelature nullius attached to it should belong to the Archbishop of Modena.
In the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
the abbey lost all its territories, which were acquired by the count Leonardo Salimbeni. His palace was sold to the comune
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
of Nonantola in 1898, becoming the Town Hall. In this age the agriculture started dying out, as the Modenese nobles used archaic methods of cultivation, and industries, trade and water were lacking.
During the German occupation in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the Nonantolani hosted 73 Jewish children, enabling them to flee to Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. The city was awarded a Cross of War Medal for Military Valour
Croce di Guerra
The Croce di Guerra al Valor Militare is an Italian decoration for military valour.- Past recipients :* Edouard Izac, Lieutenant, United States Navy* Douglas MacArthur, General, United States Army...
for this feat and for its contribution to the Italian resistance movement
Italian resistance movement
The Italian resistance is the umbrella term for the various partisan forces formed by pro-Allied Italians during World War II...
.
Today Nonantola has achieved renowned status as an increasingly important cultural and tourist resort.
Main sights
Nonantola contains several remains from the Middle AgesMiddle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. These include the two towers called dei Modenesi and dei Bolognesi
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, and the Pieve of S. Michael Archangel (9th century).
The main monument, however, is the famous abbey
Abbey of Nonantola
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.-History:...
of San Sylvester, a Romanesque
Romanesque 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,...
monument erected from the 8th century onwards.