The Collegiate Basilica of the Most Holy Rosary, also known as the Matrix Church or Cathedral (Italian: Basilica minore del Santissimo Rosario) is a Catholic Minor Basilica located in Francavilla Fontana, an Italian municipality in the province of Brindisi in Apulia. It is the largest church in the Diocese of Oria, of which it is part, and has the highest dome in Salento, with a diameter of 13 meters.

The present building is the result of reconstruction in 1743, after an earthquake had destroyed much of the church built in the 14th century at the behest of Philip I of Taranto.

History

The first construction The origin of the church, according to tradition, is linked to the discovery, near a spring close to Casale di San Salvatore, of a Byzantine icon depicting the image of Our Lady, which took place on September 14, 1310 by the prince of Taranto, Philip I of Taranto. Immediately after the discovery of the sacred image, the prince ordered that a church be built around that site in which the icon would be preserved.

However, among the various local historians who speak of the church's origin, Caesar Theophilatus claimed that as early as around 1300 there was a church dedicated to St. Mary of Francavilla on that site, which must have been of Greek rite and with a parish function distinct from the other parishes in the area. He also claimed that baptismal rites took place in an immersive manner, as attested by the font for the baptism of children placed in the atrium of the Imperiali Castle.

Around 1510 the church was enlarged, and at that time the main door was located between the present niches of St. Lawrence and St. Joseph and stretched as far as the altar of St. Anne, where, surrounded by a gate, the wall on which the painting stood was preserved. It was not until 1552 that Domenico di Brindisi and Stefano Salinaro were commissioned to build a chapel to house the Marian icon, adorned with various sculptures and enclosed by an iron gate. Further improvements were made in 1560, and so the new building was consecrated on February 24, 1572, by Monsignor Figuerroa, bishop of Brindisi and Oria.

In 1613 a new chapel was built to place the icon, which until then had been on a wooden altar surrounded by iron gates; other improvements were made in 1615.

Reconstruction after the earthquake

The 1743 earthquake severely damaged the structure, and so instead of repairing it, it was preferred to be rebuilt. The entire population participated in the expenses for its reconstruction, from the prince, who offered more than half of the sum needed, to the University (the officials gave up their salaries), the Collegiate Chapter, and the people with their alms.

To solve the problems concerning the construction of the church, a special commission was appointed, which supervised the work that lasted from 1743 to 1759, and which, with the help of the architect Mauro Manieri and Prince Michele Imperiali, chose, among all those presented, a project that came from Rome.

The building site was directed for a year by Mauro Manieri and, after his death, by Friar Benedetto of the Pious Schools and Giuseppe di Lauro of Manduria.

On August 15, 1743, Michele Imperiali and his wife laid the first stone of the new mother church. As a symbolic gesture, a box of lead was inserted into the brick containing a coin depicting Benedict XII, a medal of Our Lady of the Fountain and a jar of oil. In 1759 the new church, although not fully completed, was inaugurated (a plaque placed on the right wall of the presbytery also testifies to this).

In 1764 the Chapter submitted a request to the UniversityThe term University refers to the ancient Universitas, or municipalities in southern Italy, administered by an assembly of public officials elected by the people in varying numbers depending on the number of inhabitants in the city. for the material left over from the construction of the church to be used in a new sacristy and for the bell tower. Despite the University's consent, the plans were not realized in a short time: from 1778 to 1784 the sacristy was built, while the bell tower was not started until 1791 (at the University's expense, not the Chapter's), following Manieri's original design, and was never completed, except in recent years, in the final part.

Once the building was finished, a dispute arose between the Chapter and the University because both claimed "jus patronatus." In 1792, following a meeting between the then bishop of Oria, the mayor and deputies of the Chapter, the University decided to provide only for material needs, giving up spiritual problems.

In 1842 the church was reconfirmed as Collegiate.

In 1864, due to another earthquake that had damaged its left side, the church needed consolidation work consisting of the construction of five barbicans, two at the arches of the Baptistery and Addolorata chapels and one at the end of the Blessed Sacrament chapel.

For several years the church was undergoing complete conservative restoration (dome, facade, exterior and interior). The work was then completed in 2012.

On April 8, 2012, the church was proclaimed a minor basilica thanks to the valuable cooperation of Vincenzo Pisanello, bishop of the diocese of Oria, upon the benevolence of Pope Benedict XVI, and officially elevated on Oct. 7, 2012, precisely on the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, titular of the Basilica, in a celebration presided over by the bishop of Oria.

In the same year, in September, changes were made to the exterior and interior of the Basilica: the marble ambon and the pontifical and diocesan coats of arms. As of Oct. 26, 2020, the Basilica was closed for the continuation of interior work, more specifically the interior of the dome, with a modification of the electrical system inside and a considerable restoration to its interior, and the restoration of the transept of the majestic Church. On May 16, 2021 with a Eucharistic Celebration presided over by the Diocesan Bishop, it was reopened for worship.

Description

The Angevin church

There are some discrepancies on the appearance of the Angevin church: according to the map of the city dating back to 1643 and drawn by the sculptor Carlo Francesco Centonze of Francavilla, the building had the appearance of a Romanesque church; on the other hand, according to the map of the abbot Giovan Battista Pacichelli (contained in the work Il Regno di Napoli in prospettiva), the church was built in an austere and elegant Gothic style.

The facade, despite the various restorations it underwent over the years, still retained a large rose window above the front door, the mullioned windows of the side walls, and the towering bell tower, ending in four soaring spires. The ancient church, dating from the period 1310-20, originally had nine altars, four to the right and four to the left of the high altar, dedicated to Our Lady of the Fountain, behind which was the grotto, girded with iron gratings, where the Byzantine fresco discovered by the prince of Taranto was placed. The side chapels, according to ancient documents, were, starting from the right: that of the Venerable, in which was placed a crystal tabernacle of the Blessed Sacrament, of St. Peter the Apostle, of St. Cataldo, and of the Holy Cross of Jerusalem, in which a large relic enclosing a fragment of Christ's cross was venerated. From the left, on the other hand, were the altar of St. Anthony the Abbot, of St. Francis of Paola, of Our Lady of Graces, and of St. Andrew.

The 18th-century church

External architecture In some respects, the structure of the facade is similar to the churches of the Gesù and of St. Ignatius, both located in Rome. The movement of the lesenes, combined with Corinthian capitals, creates a "plastic-pictorial" effect, giving the facade a wave-like pattern. In general, the design of the facade shows numerous affinities with the various designs executed by Vignola, Borromini and Barigioni, making it more similar to Roman Baroque churches than churches in neighboring towns, which were instead influenced more distinctly by the Lecce Baroque.

The interior is accessed through three doors: the two side ones, surmounted by mixtilinear tympanums, have a simple line, hemmed by roundels, to which they are joined with a curled volute. The central portal has a more complex structure and is rich in ornamental elements: it is enclosed by half-pillars incorporated into the wall, ornamented with acanthus leaves. The front of the pilasters is occupied by delicate encarpuses that also continue on the side walls and the entablature section. These support striped and projecting cornices, on which two large volutes rest, which in turn support two putti, arranged obliquely so as to emphasize the movement of the volutes. In the lunette, carved from a broken tympanum, on the central part of which rests a shield depicting the civic coat of arms, the image of Our Lady of the Fountain is inserted in a tangle of decorative elements. This concentration of elements contributes to giving greater vertical momentum to the central body. Ending the lower order is an empty entablature, which concludes with a projecting cornice, adorned with dentils, which with its Greek motif accentuates the horizontal partitions without sacrificing the vertical ones. On a base, which symmetrically resumes the lower order, the upper one is set, divided into three fields by the usual pilasters adorned with composite capitals reminiscent of Borromini.

On the extreme sides, placed on plinths next to the volutes joining the two orders, are statues of the apostles Peter and Paul. There is also another entablature on the facade that borders the second order and houses a cartouche on which the following motto stands out:

The entire facade, by its continuous reference to Roman cultural canons, would mark a decisive moment in the turning point of the Salento architectural tradition, clearly influencing the cathedrals of Oria and Martina Franca.

The dome

The dome is the tallest in Salento, and ends with a soaring lantern. It is clad on the outside with polychrome maiolica tiles, echoing the Neapolitan decorative technique. With a circular base, it is set on a high drum punctuated by double pilasters, where eight large windows face each other. Inside the drum decorative motifs accentuate the architectural lines. In 2006 it underwent a conservative restoration and static consolidation.

Internal architecture

The church has a domed central layout, with three naves and a Greek cross plan extended into the apse. This structural model is to be considered a rare example in 17th and 18th-century Salentine churches, almost all of which were laid out in the shape of a Latin cross.

Four large pillars, consisting of paired pilasters, lighten the mass, delimit the side chapels of the nave and support arches and spandrels that set the dome. The same arrangement of round-arched pillars, isolating the chapels in the side aisles, highlights the central apparatus.

The two side chapels, placed after the entrance and dedicated to St. Joseph and the Purgatory Souls (the one on the right) and St. Roch (the one on the left), are enlarged with apse areas, in which the altar of St. Joseph and the baptismal font, made in 1864, are arranged, respectively. The chapels of St. Anne (moved from the Castle in 1910) and of Our Lady of Sorrows have the same shape as the previous ones and end with the entrance to the chapels of Our Lady of the Fountain and of the Blessed Sacrament, raised three steps above the side aisles. They have a rectangular floor plan with the altar set away from the wall, on which, in the chapel of the Fountain, the ancient icon of the Virgin and Child has been placed.