San Francesco a Ripa

The Church of San Francesco a Ripa is located in Rome's Trastevere quarter, right next to the River Tiber. The word "Ripa" actually indicates the church's location on the riverbank.

Built in the mid 13th century, the Church of San Francesco a Ripa gets its name from St. Francis of Assisi who stayed at a neighboring house during his crucial 1209 visit to Rome. It was then that he and his 11 companions met with Pope Innocent III at the Basilica of St. John Lateran and asked him to approve their Franciscan way of life. The pope did provide an approval, albeit an oral one.

In 1212 the property where Francis had stayed in 1209 reverted to the care of the Franciscans. It is said that Brother Giles – one of Francis’ earliest followers – spent a fair bit of time at Ripa. As is customary of Franciscans, he performed various types of manual labor, such as collecting firewood and picking grapes, during his stay at Ripa.

1833 2005 San Francesco a Ripa by Roma ieri, Roma oggi di Alvaro de Alvariis.

San Francesco a Ripa

In the years 1682 to 1689, the more than 400 year old Church of San Francesco a Ripa was rebuilt according to a design by Mattia de'Rossi. Today inside the church visitors can delight their souls with Bernini's sculpture of Blessed Ludovica Albertoni (from 1674). They can also take a look at a portrai of St. Francis of Assisi, which many experts attribute to Margaritone d'Arezzo, a 13th century painter who was born 24 years after the death of Francis.

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