Vallumbrosan Order - Foundation

Foundation

The founder, a Florentine named Gualberto Visdomini, was born in the year 985 or 995, and died at Passignano in the year 1073, on 12 July, (his feast day is still celebrated on this day); he was canonized in 1193. Because one of his relatives was murdered, his duty was to avenge the deceased. He met the murderer in a narrow lane and was about to slay him, but when the man threw himself upon the ground with arms outstretched in the form of a cross, John forgave him through the love of Christ. On his way home, he entered the Benedictine Church at San Miniato to pray, and the figure on the crucifix bowed its head to him in recognition of his generosity. This story forms the subject of Burne-Jones's picture "The Merciful Knight", and has been adapted by Shorthouse in "John Inglesant".

John Gualbert became a Benedictine monk at San Miniato, but left that monastery to lead a more perfect life. His attraction was for the cenobitic, and not eremitic life, so after staying for some time with the monks at Camaldoli, he settled at Vallombrosa, where he founded his monastery. Mabillon estimates its foundation at a little before 1038. Here, it is said, he and his first companions lived for some years as hermits, but this is rejected by Martène as inconsistent with the reason for leaving Camaldoli. The chronology of the early days of Vallombrosa has been much disputed. The dates given for the founder's conversion varying between 1004 and 1039, and a recent Vallumbrosan writer places his arrival at Vallombrosa as early as 1008. We reach surer ground with the consecration of the church by Rotho, Bishop of Paderborn, in 1038, and the donation by Itta, abbess of the neighbouring monastery of Sant' Ellero, of the site of the new foundation in 1039. The abbess retained the privilege of nominating the superiors, but this right was granted to the monks by pope Victor II, who confirmed the order in 1056. Two centuries later, in the time of Alexander IV, the nunnery was united with Vallombrosa in spite of the protests of the nuns.

The holy lives of the first monks at Vallombrosa attracted considerable attention and brought many requests for new foundations, but there were few postulants, since few could endure the extraordinary austerity of the rule. Thus only one other monastery, that of San Salvi at Florence, was founded during this period. But when the founder had mitigated his rule somewhat, three more monasteries were founded and three others reformed and united with the order during his lifetime. The early Vallombrosans took a considerable part in the struggle of the popes against simony, of which the most famous incident was the ordeal by fire undertaken successfully by St. Peter Igneus in 1068 (Delarc, op. cit.). Shortly before this the monastery of S. Salvi had been burned and the monks ill-treated by the anti-reform party. These events still further increased the reputation of Vallombrosa.