In the early 6th centuryBenedict of Nursia, a man from a well-to-do family who was educated at Rome, retired to a grotto near an ancient Roman Villa in Subiaco, in the mountains of north Latium. His reputation as a spiritual guide quickly drew disciples to him there, including many of his old Roman friends, who also settled in the area. Over the years, no fewer than thirteen monastic communities arose around Subiaco, including the one that would come to be named for St. Scholastica, Benedict's sister and herself a monastic. Eventually, seeking greater solitude, Benedict would retire to Monte Cassino, where the same process would be repeated. In the 9th century, St. Scholastica's Abbey was twice destroyed by the Saracens, in 828-829 and 876-877. But it was restored, and grew in the tenth century thanks to the patronage and favour of several popes, many of whom were, in fact, Benedictine monks. As for monastic establishments throughout Europe, the 11th and 12thcenturies were a golden age for the abbey, when it boasted vast lands, a large number of monks, and elaborate, ornate liturgy. With economic power came political power as well. In the thirteenth century, a sanctuary was erected over the cave where St. Benedict had dwelt, the Sacro Speco or "Holy Cave". Riches also brought covetousness, and the abbey's prestige brought it enemies. Long power struggles with the feudal establishment weakened the abbey, and decadence set in when Calixtus III made Juan de Torquemadacommendatory abbot. Subsequently, powerful families tied to the papacy controlled it. Rodrigo Borgia, Borghese, and Barberini families would also gain control of its revenues. Some took their ownership of the abbey seriously and tried to restore it, but most were content to exploit its revenues, sometimes without even ever visiting the monastery. The spiritual well-being of the monks was rarely a concern. The tide began to turn in 1753, when Benedict XIV decided to remove commendatory abbots' power over the day-to-day running of their monasteries, leaving them only the spiritual and ecclesiastical dignity. Yet at the end of the century, when the French occupied the Papal States, the abbey was suppressed. Pius VII restored it as soon as he regained his independence. In 1915, Benedict XV accorded it the privilege of a territorial abbey.
Description
The monastic community today is made up of a little over twenty monks, including eleven priest-monks, living in two areas: St. Scholastica Abbey proper, and the Sacro Speco, the sanctuary to St. Benedict's hermitage, which can also be visited by pilgrims.
Located a few kilometers from the abbey proper, the sanctuary is attached to the side of the mountain, supported by nine high arcades. The interior is a maze of small cells, and chapels—including one over St. Benedict's own hermitage, others carved into the living rock. All is covered by frescoes of various periods. The upper church has works from the Sienese school, others from the Umbrian-Marche school, while in the lower church are works by Roman painters of the mid-13th century. There is a large statue of St. Benedict by Antonio Raggi. The frescoes include the representation of Saint Francis of Assisi, being the oldest known portrait in existence of the saint, having actually been drawn before his death. This dates back to St. Francis' retreat to Subiaco : he is depicted without the stigmata and without a halo.
