The early Christian imperial basilica of the Saints Martyrs Vitale, Valeria, Gervasio and Protasio known more commonly as the

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...

of San Vitale and Compagni Martiri in Fovea (Roman Parish) or more simply as San Vitale al

Quirinale The Quirinal Palace ( ) is a historic building in Rome, Italy, the main official residence of the President of the Italian Republic, together with Villa Rosebery in Naples and the Tenuta di Castelporziano, an estate on the outskirts of Rome, som ...

. It is the oldest Catholic place of worship in the historic center of Rome, located in via Nazionale. The imperial basilica of San Vitale al Quirinale, built under the pontificate of

Pope Siricius Pope Siricius ( – 26 November 399) was the bishop of Rome from December 384 to his death on 26 November 399. In response to inquiries from Bishop Himerius of Tarragona, Siricius issued the ''Directa'' decretal, containing decrees of baptism, ...

after 386 and consecrated and richly decorated by Pope Innocent in 402 (Luigi Hutter and Vincenzo Golzino) is the first public Christian basilica with a baptistery (still not found) not founded on pre-existing pagan temples, mentioned in the

Liber pontificalis The ''Liber Pontificalis'' (Latin for 'pontifical book' or ''Book of the Popes'') is a book of biography, biographies of popes from Saint Peter until the 15th century. The original publication of the ''Liber Pontificalis'' stopped with Pope Adr ...

, built by the

Emperor Theodosius Theodosius I ( ; 11 January 347 – 17 January 395), also known as Theodosius the Great, was Roman emperor from 379 to 395. He won two civil wars and was instrumental in establishing the Nicene Creed as the orthodox doctrine for Nicene ...

at the behest of

Saint Ambrose Ambrose of Milan (; 4 April 397), venerated as Saint Ambrose, was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promoting Roman Christianity against Ari ...

of Milan, in honor of the miraculous discovery of the bodies of martyrs Gervasius and Protasius in Milan. It is the most frescoed basilica in Rome.

History

The basilica was built in 400 with funds provided by Vestina, a wealthy widow, and was consecrated by

Pope Innocent I Pope Innocent I () was the bishop of Rome from 401 to his death on 12 March 417. From the beginning of his papacy, he was seen as the general arbitrator of ecclesiastical disputes in both the East and the West. He confirmed the prerogatives of ...

in 401/402. It was dedicated to Ss. Gervasius and Protasius, and called the "titulus Vestinae". The dedication to St. Vitalis and his family ( Saint Valeria, his wife, and Sts. Gervasius and Protasius, their sons) is dated to 412. This church is recorded as ''Titulus Vestinae'' in the acts of the 499 synod of

Pope Symmachus Pope Symmachus (died 19 July 514) was the bishop of Rome from 22 November 498 to his death on 19 July 514. His tenure was marked by a serious schism over who was elected pope by a majority of the Roman clergy. Early life He was born on the Medi ...

, and three priests from the church subscribed their names. San Vitale was restored several times, most importantly when it was extensively rebuilt by

Pope Sixtus IV Pope Sixtus IV (or Xystus IV, ; born Francesco della Rovere; (21 July 1414 – 12 August 1484) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 August 1471 until his death in 1484. His accomplishments as pope included ...

before the Jubilee of 1475. Other interventions took place in 1512 under Cardinal del Monte; in 1598, in 1859 by the generosity of

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

; in 1938 and 1960. Because of changes in the city over the centuries, the floor level of the church is now several metres below the level of the street on which it is located, the present-day via Nazionale.

Customs

Free bread was distributed to the poor by the church every Friday, according to the will of a gentleman from the Marches, Francesco Silla.

Architectural and Artistic Features

Exterior

The

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cu ...

is the most ancient part of the church, possibly dating back to the 5th century. It was altered at the end of the 16th century. The inscription on the portico, with the arms of Pope Sixtus IV, dates from this time.

built the staircase to the 5th century portico in 1859.

Interior

The church has a single nave, with walls frescoed with scenes of martyrdom, among which a '' Martyrdom of St Ignatius of Antioch'', in which a ruined

Colosseum The Colosseum ( ; , ultimately from Ancient Greek word "kolossos" meaning a large statue or giant) is an Ellipse, elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphi ...

is depicted. The apse, a surviving part of the original 5th century church, is decorated with a fresco by

Andrea Commodi Andrea Commodi (1560–1638) was an Italian painter of the early-Baroque period. Born in Florence, but mostly active in Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also t ...

, ''The Ascent to Calvary''.

Cardinal Priests

Among the cardinals who previously took their title from the church were:

John Fisher John Fisher (c. 19 October 1469 – 22 June 1535) was an English Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Rochester from 1504 to 1535 and as chancellor of the University of Cambridge. He is honoured as a martyr and saint by the Catholic Chu ...

, executed for treason in 1535 by

Henry VIII of England Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...

; and Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte, who became Pope Julius III (1550–1555). The titulus was suppressed by

Pope Clement VIII Pope Clement VIII (; ; 24 February 1536 – 3 March 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 30 January 1592 to his death in March 1605. Born in Fano, Papal States to a prominen ...

in 1596. It was united with the nearby Jesuit church of S. Andrea. The titulus was restored by

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII (; born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2March 181020July 1903) was head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 until his death in July 1903. He had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of Peter the Ap ...

in 1880, with the appointment of Cardinal Andon Bedros IX Hassoun. The current

Cardinal Priest A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. Ca ...

is Cardinal Adam Maida. *Caelius Januarius (attested 499) ::... *Lictifredus (attested 1128–1130; 1133–1140) *Matthaeus (1130) *Thomas (1141–1146) * Theodinus (1166–1179) ::... *Gregorius (1202–1207) *Joannes de Castrocoeli (1294–1295) *Petrus de Capella (1305–1306) * Jacques Duèse (1312–1313) * Bertrand de la Tour, O.Min . (1320–1323) *Joannes de Convenis (Jean de Comminges) (1327–1331) *Elias de Nabinalis, O.Min. (1342–1348) * Nicolaus Capocci (1350–1361) * Guillaume de Chanac, O.S.B. (1371–1383) *Jean de Muriolo (Murol) (1385–1399) (Avignon Obedience) * Peter von Schaumberg (1440−1469) * Ausiàs Despuig (1473–1477) * Cristoforo della Rovere (1477–1478) * Domenico della Rovere (1478–1479) * Ferry de Clugny (1480–1482) * Joan Margarit i Pau (1483–1484) * Giovanni Conti (1489–1493) * Raymond Peraudi (1496–1499) * Jaime Serra i Cau (1500–1502) * Gianstefano Ferrero (1502–1505) * Antonio Ferrero (1505–1508) * René de Prie (1509–1511) * Antonio Maria Ciocchi del Monte (1511–1514) * Francesco Conti (1517–1521) * Marino Grimani (1528–1532) * Esteban Gabriel Merino (1533–1534) *

(1535) * Gasparo Contarini (1535–1537) * Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte (1537–1542) * Giovanni Morone (1542–1549) * Filiberto Ferrero (1549) * Giovanni Ricci (1551–1566) * Luigi Pisani (1566–1568) * Luigi Cornaro (1568–1569) * Gaspar Cervantes (June 1570) * Pietro Donato Cesi (1570–1584) * Costanzo da Sarnano, O.Min.Conv. (1587) * Antonio Sauli (1588–1591).

Restored title

* Andon Bedros IX Hassoun (1880–1884) * Guglielmo Massaia, O.F.M.Cap. (1884–1889) * Albin Dunajewski (1891–1894) * Jan Puzyna de Kosielsko (1902–1911) * Louis-Nazaire Bégin (1914–1925) * Vicente Casanova y Marzol (1925–1930) * Karel Kašpar (1935–1941) * Manuel Arce y Ochotorena (1946–1948) * Benjamín de Arriba y Castro (1953–1973) * František Tomášek (1977–1992) * Adam Maida (1994–present)Bräuer, p. 566.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * Forcella, Vencenzo (1877). ''Le inscrizioni delle chiese e d'altri edifici di Roma'' Volume XI (Roma: L. Cecchini 1877). (in Latin and Italian) * *

External links

Official website of the Basilica di San Vitale
{{DEFAULTSORT:San Vitale 401 establishments Vitale 5th-century establishments in Italy 5th-century establishments in the Roman Empire 15th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Vitale Vitale Vitale