Lucedio Abbey

Lucedio Abbey (Italian: Abbazia di Santa Maria di Lucedio) is a 12th-century former

. It played an important role in the development of rice production in the region.

History

The

Renier I of Montferrat

provided an extensive tract of marsh, heath and woodland known as Locez, on whose agricultural development the future prosperity of Lucedio would depend.

As the second daughter-house of

.

The Abbey's political ties to the

. After the sack of Constantinople in 1204 Boniface, as leader of the crusade, had expectations of being appointed the first emperor of the new .

Thwarted in this ambition, Boniface and his crusaders conquered

by the Church) took his place as Abbot of Lucedio in 1205. The abbey then housed fifty monks. In 1214 two further daughter-houses of Lucedio were founded in the Crusader states: Saint George de Jubino in the Principality of Antioch and Chortaïton in Thessalonica.

The abbey managed its agricultural assets employing the grange system and was effective in developing the productivity of the land, notably introducing the cultivation of rice to this damp riverside area in the fifteenth century. Today the Vercelli region is one of the most important areas of rice production in Italy.

From 1457, by an act of Pope

, losing prestige and autonomy.

The abbey was secularized in 1784, the remaining monks being transferred to a

. Today the abbey buildings are incorporated into a rice farm.

Architecture

The original church dated to the founding of the monastery, and had become in danger of collapse. It was rebuilt between 1767 and 1770 in a baroque style, designed by the monk architect Valente de Giovanni. Its striking medieval bell-tower however remains intact: a rectangular base from 1150 to 1175 supporting an octagonal structure from perhaps a hundred years later. After the closure of the abbey, this became the town's parish church. It underwent extensive restoration work in the first decade of the 21st century.

Notes

1. ^ Marin, Şerban (2003). "The Venetian 'Empire'. The Imperial Elections in Constantinople on 1204 in the Representation of the Venetian Chronicles". Annuario. Istituto Romeno di cultura e ricerca umanistica (5). Archived from the original on 2009-10-21.

External links

• "Lucedio". Cistercian Monastery, Certosa di Firenze. Archived from the original on 2008-10-02. Retrieved 2006-03-07. (Basic data on Lucedio.)
  • "Lucedio: storia". Cistercian Monastery, Certosa di Firenze. Archived from the original on 2007-07-01. Retrieved 2006-03-07. (History of Lucedio. In Italian.)
  • "Lucedio: architettura". Cistercian Monastery, Certosa di Firenze. Archived from the original on 2007-07-01. Retrieved 2006-03-07. (Architecture of Lucedio. In Italian.)
• Bolognini, Daniele (2005). "Beato Ogliero". santiebeati.it. Retrieved 2006-02-28.

45°14′17″N 8°13′57″E / 45.23806°N 8.23250°E / 45.23806; 8.23250