Santa Chiara is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church and monastery in the town of

Camerino Camerino is a town in the province of Macerata, Marche, central-eastern Italy. It is located in the Apennines bordering Umbria, between the valleys of the rivers Potenza and Chienti, about from Ancona. Camerino is home to the University of Ca ...

, province of Macerata, region of the

Marche Marche ( ; ), in English sometimes referred to as the Marches ( ) from the Italian name of the region (Le Marche), is one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. The region is located in the Central Italy, central area of the country, ...

, Italy. It is located just outside the old city walls, and is best known for housing for during the late 15th and early 16th centuries, the Clarissan nun, Saint Camilla Battista da Varano.

History

The monastery was originally built by 1384, named Santa Maria Nova, and assigned to

Olivetan The Olivetans, formally known as the Order of Our Lady of Mount Olivet, are a monastic order. They were founded in 1313 and recognised in 1344. They use the Rule of Saint Benedict and are a member of the Benedictine Confederation, where they are ...

monks, but in 1483, the Lord of Camerino, Giulio Cesare

da Varano The Da Varano was an Italian noble family who had an important role in the medieval and Renaissance history of central Italy, as rulers of Camerino and other lands in the Marche and Umbria. Overview The family is first mentioned in the 13th ...

refurbished the monastery and assigned it to Clarissan nuns, which his illegitimate daughter, Camilla Battista, had joined. In 1484, along with eight other nuns from the Monastery of

Urbino Urbino ( , ; Romagnol: ''Urbìn'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italy, Italian region of Marche, southwest of Pesaro, a World Heritage Site notable for a remarkable historical legacy of independent Renaissance culture, especially und ...

, Camilla Battista returned to Camerino, to occupy this monastery. She would serve as abbess for several years. However, her father fell afoul of the papacy, and the army of

Pope Alexander VI Pope Alexander VI (, , ; born Roderic Llançol i de Borja; epithet: ''Valentinus'' ("The Valencian"); – 18 August 1503) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 August 1492 until his death in 1503. Born into t ...

, captured the town and executed her father and three half-brothers. She fled first to

Fermo Fermo (; ancient: Firmum Picenum) is a town and ''comune'' of the Marche, Italy, in the Province of Fermo. Fermo is on a hill, the Sabulo, elevation , on a branch from Porto San Giorgio on the Adriatic coast railway. History The oldest huma ...

, but then to

Atri Atri or Attri is a Vedic sage, who is credited with composing numerous shlokas to Agni, Indra, and other Vedic deities of Hinduism. Atri is one of the Saptarishi (seven great Vedic sages) in the Hindu tradition, and the one most mentioned in ...

in the then Kingdom of Naples. Here he learned the sad news of the massacre of his father and three brothers. It was able to return to Camerino only in 1503, after the death of Alexander VI, and the restoration of the properties confiscated from the Varano. Camilla Battista was to return briefly to Camerino, but in 1522 was sent to reorganize the Monastery of

San Severino Marche San Severino Marche is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Macerata in the Italian region Marche, located about southwest of Ancona and about southwest of Macerata. History From prehistory to Roman age The oldest remains of human ...

. The structures in Camerino were nearly razed by the earthquake of 1799, and the nuns were expelled in 1810 by the Napoleonic occupation. They were able to return a decade later. They were again dispossessed in 1866, until regaining ownership in 1896. During the First World War, the monastery was used as a military hospital and the nuns moved to the Monastery of San Salvatore. Presently the a handful of nuns, derived from the Clarissan Monastery of

, are still associated with the monastery. The monastery suffered damage from the earthquake of 1977, and is still undergoing restorations. Camilla Battista was beatified in 1843, and canonized in 2010. The church sponsors a hostel for visitors. The church has the following paintings: *''Santa Chiara, the Blessed Pietro da Mogliano, and Battista da Varano'' (18th century) *''Mary at the Temple'' by an unknown author. *The crypt has the relics of Camilla Battista *Fresco by

Giovanni di Corraduccio Giovanni di Corraduccio, also called Giovanni Mazaforte, (active circa 1404–1437) was an Italian painter of the Gothic style, active mainly in Umbria and Marche. He was born in Foligno. Based on documents, he is thought to have worked in Assi ...

in refectory

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chiara Camerino Roman Catholic churches in Camerino 14th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy