Basilica of Sant’Angelo in Formis

The Benedictine Basilica of Sant’Angelo in Formis stands at the foot of Mount Tifata, on the remains of a temple dedicated to Diana Tifatina. The pagan temple’s ruins, found in 1877, show that the plan of the basilica traces its perimeter. The construction date of the primitive church of Sant’Angelo in Formis is unknown, but it is placed at the end of the sixth century AD. and it’s attributed to the Lombard princes.

We do know that a church certainly existed in the 10th century, when the Cassinese monks were granted a permission to build a monastery there. In 1072 the ownership of the building passed from Richard I, Prince of Capua and Count of Aversa, to the Abbey of Montecassino, ruled in those years by Abbot Desiderio (1027-1087). Under his rectorate, the Basilica of Sant’Angelo in Formis was rebuilt and equipped with a wall decoration whose remains today represent one of the most important monuments of the Middle Ages.

Address
Via Luigi Baia 191, Capua, Italy

Established
11th century