L'Aquila - Santa Maria di Collemaggio

L'Aquila is located about 700 meters high in the valley of the Aterno. It is dominated on all sides by the mountains of Abruzzo, including to the east the Gran Sasso d'Italia, the highest mountain in mainland Italy outside the Alps.

In 1230, Emperor Frederick II founded Aquila on the site of - according to tradition - 99 villages. Since then, the number 99 has a special meaning for the Aquilians. The city walls were completely built in 1316.

In the 15th century it had about 8000 inhabitants and was the most important fortress of the Kingdom of Naples. In 1528 the city was conquered by Emperor Charles V for the Spanish crown. After the earthquake of 1786, the city was partially rebuilt in the Baroque style.

On April 6, 2009, an earthquake destroyed large parts of the city. There were 308 fatalities, and about 1,500 people were injured. Around 65,000 people were rendered homelessThe then Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi immediately promised help to the earthquake victims of L'Aquila. There is circumstantial evidence that the mafia has infiltrated the authorities and is leaking aid money. It took almost five years for construction work to begin in L'Aquila.

Santa Maria di Collemaggio is a large Romanesque-early Gothic church set in a park on the outskirts of town. It is known for its architecture, the extraordinary jewel-box style facade made of red and white stones.


The origin of the church dates back to 1274. At this time, the hermit and founder of an order, Pietro del Murrone, later Pope Celestine V, returned from the Council of Lyons, where he had gained recognition of the Order he had founded. On the way, he spent the night on the hill of Collemaggio and in a dream received from Maria the commission to build a church there. In 1287 Pietro acquired the land and the following year began construction, which was completed in 1289.

When Pietro was elected Pope Celestine V in 1294, he had himself crowned in Santa Maria di Collemaggio and granted the privilege of a plenary indulgence. From then on, the church became a popular place of pilgrimage, especially when Celestine V was canonized in 1313 and buried in Santa Maria di Collemaggio in 1326. The festivities of the “Perdonanza Celestiniana” have been included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage since 2019.

The church was badly damaged during the 2009 earthquake with the roof and dome collapsing over the transept and part of the choir. However, the reliquary with the bones of Pope Celestine V was recovered from the rubble. The shrine was subsequently transferred to the crypt of Sulmona Cathedral, near which St. Celestine had lived as a hermit for a long time. In 2013, his bones were returned to Santa Maria di Collemaggio. Works for the restoration of the building were concluded in 2017 and since then the church is open to the public.