External excavations of Ancient Abbey of St.Vincenzo Volturno, Rocchetta a Volturno, Castel San Vincenzo, Isernia, Italy

The Abbey of San Vincenzo al Volturno is a historic Benedictine abbey located in the territory of the municipalities of Castel San Vincenzo and Rocchetta a Volturno in the Province of Isernia, in the Upper Volturno Valley, Campania, Italy. Between the 5th and 6th centuries, a church and a funerary area were built among the now disused buildings.Theory of six female saints in Byzantine costume, fresco decoration of the crypt of Epiphanius, second quarter of the 9th century.According to the Chronicon Vulturnense the monastery was born thanks to three nobles from Benevento, Paldo, Tato and Taso, who in 731 used all their rich heritage there. To undertake an ascetic life, they reached the Abbey of Farfa, a Benedictine abbey in Sabina. Abbot Tommaso di Moriana suggested they found an abbey near the Volturno river, where there was already an oratory dedicated to the saint who would give its name to the future abbey, San Vincenzo. The foundation of this oratory is attributed to Constantine I the Great. Underlining the Benevento origin of the three founders by the Chronicon suggests that the institution was favored by seeking new prestige by the Lombard Gisulf II, Duke of Benevento from 743 to 749.With the arrival of the Franks from the north, the abbey found itself in a border area between the Franks and the Lombards. In 774 the Frankish Ambrose Autpert was abbot. In 782 the Lombard Potone became abbot: he was deposed for having left the choir during a praise sung to Charlemagne only by swearing loyalty to the king of the Franks was he able to return to his duties. On 27 March 787 the king of the Franks himself granted fiscal and jurisdictional privileges such as to put the abbey on a par with the major European ones. In the 9th century, with the abbots Giosuè, Talarico and Epifanio, the abbey expanded, becoming a small city, with 350 brothers and vast land holdings.In 848 the abbey was damaged by an earthquake. Twelve years later she was blackmailed by Sawd?n, emir of Bari, who was paid a huge tribute so as not to suffer plunder. In 881 some Saracens in the pay of Duke Athanasius II of Naples, thanks to the betrayal of the monks' servants, plundered and burned the monastery. The survivors fled to Capua they returned to build the abbey in 914, succeeding only at the end of the century thanks to the direct support of the emperors Otto II and Otto III. The monks attempted to build a podestà in the Upper Volturno Valley through the administration of justice and the collection of taxes.

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