Morimondo Monastery
| Morimondo Cistercian Abbey | |
|---|---|
 View from the north |
|
| location |
 ItalyRegion Lombardy Metropolitan Municipality of Milan |
| Coordinates: | 45 ° 21 '6.9 " N , 8 ° 57' 17.6" E |
| Serial number according to Janauschek |
79 |
| founding year | 1134 |
| Year of dissolution / annulment |
1798 |
| Mother monastery | Morimond Monastery |
| Primary Abbey | Morimond Monastery |
|
Daughter monasteries |
Acquafredda Monastery (1143) |
Morimondo Monastery (Morimondo Coronato) is a former Cistercian monastery in Lombardy , Italy . It is located in the municipality of Morimondo, south of Abbiategrasso, in the metropolitan city of Milan (Milano), not far from the Ticino River .
history
In 1134, at the instigation of Milanese nobles and clergy, the convent sent from the primary abbey of Morimond settled on the Coronago or Coronate estate, six kilometers from Abbiategrasso. As early as 1136, the convent moved a few kilometers further into the new monastery, which was built on a field of the Fulcherio or Gualcherio. The monks named the monastery Morimondo Coronato in memory of the Coronate estate. After confirmation by Pope Alexander III. The monastery received rich donations, including from Emperor Friedrich Barbarossa , and developed into a wealthy abbey with around 50 monks and 200 converses, to which several grangia belonged. The daughter monastery of Acquafredda was founded as early as 1147, and Casalvolone monastery as another daughter in 1169 . Located near the border of the dominions of Milan and Pavia , the abbey got into the clashes between the two cities and was plundered and burned down by Paveser mercenaries in 1237, the monks and conversers had to leave the monastery temporarily; further destruction took place in 1245, 1266 and 1314. The later decline was followed by the conversion to the Coming in the middle of the 15th century. The monastery was converted into a priory while the number of monks greatly decreased. However, in 1490, under the later Pope Leo X (Giovanni de 'Medici) and with the approval of Pope Innocent VIII, it was repopulated with eight Cistercian monks from the Settimo Monastery (San Salvatore a Settimo) in Tuscany . A little later, the monastery joined the Italian Congregation of St. Bernard. In 1556 Pope Pius IV gave the abbey to the Ospedale Maggiore in Milan. In 1564, a parish was established by Cardinal Karl Borromeo . In 1578 the monastery was raised again to an abbey. In 1714 the monastery had 18 monks. Under the rule of the Cisalpine Republic , the monastery was abolished in 1798 and the remaining goods were secularized. Since 1952 the parish has been looked after by the Oblates of the Virgin Mary.
Plant and buildings
The north-western boundary of the abbey forms the Gothic gatehouse with a stepped arch. The church is a brick basilica around 60 m long with a small crossing tower . It was built from 1182 to 1296 essentially according to the Bernardine plan, rebuilt during the Renaissance and Baroque, and restored from 1948 to 1950. The north side shows stepped buttresses and an arched frieze along the eaves of the nave. The rectangular choir is single yoke; The square crossing is followed by an almost square transept yoke on both sides, to which originally three chapels with pointed barrels were attached in the east on both sides (one partition was broken out in the Baroque era). The nave shows eight bays (no double bays!) With round pillars, the third pair of which is enlarged, while the west pair has bundle pillars and rib vaults in the central nave as in the side aisles. The baroque high altar is from 1704. A carved Renaissance choir stalls (1522; by Francesco Giramo from Abbiategrasso) offer space for 70 monks.
The convent buildings are located to the south (to the right of) the church and correspond to what is usual in Cistercian complexes. The chapter house, over which the dormitory lies, is square and nine-bay; it opens to the cloister with an axial portal between triforias from the early 13th century. To the south is the refectory wing with the kitchen from the 12th century. The Konversenbau in the west is baroque. The cloister was changed shortly after 1500 and in the 18th century.
literature
- Heinz Schomann: Reclam's Art Guide Italy Volume I, 1 , Philipp Reclam jun., Stuttgart 1981, p. 431 ff., ISBN 3-15-010305-3 , with a floor plan of the church;
- Balduino Gustavo Bedini: Breve prospetto delle abbazie cistercensi d'Italia , o. O. (Casamari), 1964, p. 15 f. without ISBN, with further references.
