Walk the Europa series
In the Preface-1 and Preface-2, I talked about "the worship of the gods, the prehistoric European culture of Christ" and "the monotheistic dominance, and the rise of Christianity out of the need to strengthen the power of the state", and has analyzed the rise of Christianity in Europe, and especially emphasized: "The rise and fall of the church is a thousand-year history of Europe." When people concentrate all their hope, wisdom, wealth, and labor into the church where their spiritual sustenance is located, the church fully demonstrates the connotation of architecture, culture, art, music and other aspects, so the church is the essence of the European cultural landscape. It's no exaggeration to say that if you don't visit churches in Europe, you're going for nothing. That's why this "Italy + Balkans Tour" tour of the local churches is a must.
保拉·圣方济各教堂(Basilica di San Francesco di Paola)位于那不勒斯王宫对面,公民表决广场西侧(Piazza del Plebiscito,也称平民表决广场)。 公民表决广场得名于1860年的公民投票，从此决定了那不勒斯加入意大利王国。
▲ Figure 1, the church of St. Francis of Paola Francis in Naples and the referendum square.
At the beginning of the 19th century, King Joachim Murat of Naples (Marshal of the French Army and brother-in-law of Napoleon) planned the church, the square and its surrounding buildings, which had been used as a place for military training, to please Napoleon. After Napoleon's fall from power, the Bourbon dynasty was restored, and Ferdinando I (king of the Bourbon-Two Sicilians) restarted the construction of the square to celebrate the restoration of the kingdom. When the church was built in 1816, it became part of the Church and was named after St. Francis Paula, who had been here in the 16th century.
Today's Paola St. Francis Church is of high rank and belongs to the Basilica (Sanctuary), with a body that almost completely imitates the Pantheon in Rome, and a curved cloister in the two wings that imitates the Piazza della St. Peter's Basilica in the Papal States. It's just that the skylight of the dome of St. Francis of St. Francis of Paola has a closed glass-topped window, while the dome of the Pantheon in Rome is open and can be entered by wind and rain (there are drainage holes in the floor of the temple).
▲ Figure 2, the church of St. Francis of Paola of Naples.
▲ Figure 3, the lintel of the church is engraved with DOM (Cathedral) St. Francis Paula, Ferdinand I, 1816 (MDCCCXVI).
▲ Figure 4, Ferdinando I statue.
▲ Figure 5, the statue of Carlos III.
There are two bronze statues on both sides of the square, on the south side (on the left side of the square) is King Ferdinando I of Bourbon-Two Sicily; To the north (to the right of the square) is the statue of Carlos III, King of Naples and Sicily (also known as the Bourbon Riding Statue). In 1994, the G-7 Summit was held in Naples, and the Referendum Square was the main venue of the G-7 Summit.
▲ Figure 6, interior view of the church of St. Francis of Paula.
▲ Figure 7, the dome of the church of St. Francis of Paola is almost the same as that of the Pantheon.
▲ Figure 8, interior view of the church of St. Francis of Paula.
▲ Figure 9, interior view of the church of St. Francis of Paula.
▲ Figure 10, the main altar and priest of the Church of St. Francis of Paula.
This St. Francis was born in 1416 in Paola, a small town near Naples, so he was called Paola St. Francis. In 1436 he founded the "Smallest Brotherhood" to distinguish it from the Lesser Brotherhood (i.e. Franciscans) founded by St. Francis of Assisi in 1210, and the "Smallest Brotherhood" of St. Francis Paola was officially approved by Pope Heath IV in 1474. It is said that King Louis XI of France suffered a stroke, and the doctors were helpless. So he sent for Francis, hoping to snatch his life back from death. Francis initially refused, but reluctantly went because of the king's repeated urgings. When Louis saw him, he fell down on his knees and begged Francis to send a miracle to save his life. Francis said frankly to the king: "The life of a king is in God's hands, and the length of his life is beyond the control of man. We may wish to ask God to heal our sickness, but if God refuses, we should obey His will. Francis' words could not help but enlighten the king. Louis XI's son, Charles VIII, respected Francis, regarded him as a teacher, and asked the saint to answer and advise him on all difficult matters of conscience. Francis was canonized by Pope Leo X in 1519.
However, this St. Francis is not St. Francis of St. Francis – this refers to St. Francis of Assisi, Italy, who is far more famous than the former.
San Francesco of Assisi is also known as "San Francisco", from which the city of San Francisco (San Francisco) in the United States takes its name. Today's pope is also called Francis, which roughly means St. Francis of Assisi.
The Basilica di San Francesco (also known as the Basilica of St. Francis) in Assisi, located in the small city of Assisi in central Italy, serves as the burial place of St. Francis and the mother church of the Franciscans, and is one of the pilgrimage sites for Catholics. In 2000, it was listed as a World Heritage Site.
▲ Figure 11, the World Cultural Heritage Signage of Assisi.
▲ Figure 12, the Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi.
St. Francis founded the Little Brotherhood (i.e. Franciscans) in 1210, which was the largest of the four major dervishes of medieval Catholicism in Europe (the four major dervishes: Franciscans, Domincans, Augustines and Carmelites). The Little Brotherhood was approved by Pope Innocent III, and in 1223 Pope Honorius III approved its statutes.
▲ Figure 13, St. Francis Cathedral of Assisi.
In November 2019, I wrote "Basilica of Assisi-St. Francis: Travelogue in Italy (6)", which I will not repeat here.
In the next section, I will describe the Amalfi coastal journey south from Naples.
我将沿着那不勒斯Naples → 索伦托(苏莲托)Sorrento → 波西塔诺Positano → 康加德马里尼Conca dei Marini → 阿马尔菲Amalfi(Minori米诺利)一路走下去。 只是阿马尔菲沿海这一带给我的印象不佳，并不像网络上某些人描述的那样美艳宜人。
2024-6-28