I Do Not
Know The Short Piece Between The Lago Di Cadagno And S. Maria, But
It Is Sure To Be Good.
It is a pity there is no place at S. Maria
where one can put up for a night or two.
There is a small inn
there, but it did not look tempting.
Before leaving the Val Leventina, I would call attention to the
beautiful old parish church at Biasca, where there is now an
excellent inn, the Hotel Biasca. This church is not so old as the
one at Giornico, but it is a good though plain example of early
Lombard architecture.
CHAPTER VII - S. Michele and the Monte Pirchiriano
Some time after the traveller from Paris to Turin has passed
through the Mont Cenis tunnel, and shortly before he arrives at
Bussoleno station, the line turns eastward, and a view is obtained
of the valley of the Dora, with the hills beyond Turin, and the
Superga, in the distance. On the right-hand side of the valley and
about half-way between Susa and Turin the eye is struck by an
abruptly-descending mountain with a large building like a castle
upon the top of it, and the nearer it is approached the more
imposing does it prove to be. Presently the mountain is seen more
edgeways, and the shape changes. In half-an-hour or so from this
point, S. Ambrogio is reached, once a thriving town, where
carriages used to break the journey between Turin and Susa, but
left stranded since the opening of the railway. Here we are at the
very foot of the Monte Pirchiriano, for so the mountain is called,
and can see the front of the building - which is none other than the
famous sanctuary of S. Michele, commonly called "della Chiusa,"
from the wall built here by Desiderius, king of the Lombards, to
protect his kingdom from Charlemagne.
The history of the sanctuary is briefly as follows:-
At the close of the tenth century, when Otho III was Emperor of
Germany, a certain Hugh de Montboissier, a noble of Auvergne,
commonly called "Hugh the Unsewn" (lo sdruscito), was commanded by
the Pope to found a monastery in expiation of some grave offence.
He chose for his site the summit of the Monte Pirchiriano in the
valley of Susa, being attracted partly by the fame of a church
already built there by a recluse of Ravenna, Giovanni Vincenzo by
name, and partly by the striking nature of the situation. Hugh de
Montboissier when returning from Rome to France with Isengarde his
wife, would, as a matter of course, pass through the valley of
Susa. The two - perhaps when stopping to dine at S. Ambrogio - would
look up and observe the church founded by Giovanni Vincenzo: they
had got to build a monastery somewhere; it would very likely,
therefore, occur to them that they could not perpetuate their names
better than by choosing this site, which was on a much travelled
road, and on which a fine building would show to advantage. If my
view is correct, we have here an illustration of a fact which is
continually observable - namely, that all things which come to much,
whether they be books, buildings, pictures, music, or living
beings, are suggested by others of their own kind. It is; always
the most successful, like Handel and Shakespeare, who owe most to
their forerunners, in spite of the modifications with which their
works descend.
Giovanni Vincenzo had built his church about the year 987. It is
maintained by some that he had been Bishop of Ravenna, but Claretta
gives sufficient reason for thinking otherwise. In the "Cronaca
Clusina" it is said that he had for some years previously lived as
a recluse on the Monte Caprasio, to the north of the present Monte
Pirchiriano; but that one night he had a vision, in which he saw
the summit of Monte Pirchiriano enveloped in heaven-descended
flames, and on this founded a church there, and dedicated it to St.
Michael. This is the origin of the name Pirchiriano, which means
[Greek text], or the Lord's fire.
The fame of the heavenly flames and the piety of pilgrims brought
in enough money to complete the building - which, to judge from the
remains of it embodied in the later work, must have been small, but
still a church, and more than a mere chapel or oratory. It was, as
I have already suggested, probably imposing enough to fire the
imagination of Hugh de Montboissier, and make him feel the
capabilities of the situation, which a mere ordinary wayside chapel
might perhaps have failed to do. Having built his church, Giovanni
Vincenzo returned to his solitude on the top of Monte Caprasio, and
thenceforth went backwards and forwards from one place of abode to
the other.
Avogadro is among those who make Giovanni Bishop, or rather
Archbishop, of Ravenna, and gives the following account of the
circumstances which led to his resigning his diocese and going to
live at the top of the inhospitable Monte Caprasio. It seems there
had been a confirmation at Ravenna, during which he had
accidentally forgotten to confirm the child of a certain widow.
The child, being in weakly health, died before Giovanni could
repair his oversight, and this preyed upon his mind. In answer,
however, to his earnest prayers, it pleased the Almighty to give
him power to raise the dead child to life again: this he did, and
having immediately performed the rite of confirmation, restored the
boy to his overjoyed mother. He now became so much revered that he
began to be alarmed lest pride should obtain dominion over him; he
felt, therefore, that his only course was to resign his diocese,
and go and live the life of a recluse on the top of some high
mountain. It is said that he suffered agonies of doubt as to
whether it was not selfish of him to take such care of his own
eternal welfare, at the expense of that of his flock, whom no
successor could so well guide and guard from evil; but in the end
he took a reasonable view of the matter, and concluded that his
first duty was to secure his own spiritual position.
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