MONTEVERGINE, ABBEY OF. – Historic sanctuary on Monte Partenio, 1,270 m above sea level, near Avellino. It was founded by St. William of Vercelli between 1114 and 1126 in the place called “Acqua delle colombe” on the ruins of a pagan temple of the goddess Cybele, where, even during the period of persecutions, St. Felix, Bishop of Nola, St. Modestinus, Bishop of Antioch, with SS. Florentius and Flavian, St. Hippolytus, and in 685 St. Vitalian, Bishop of Capua, had found temporary refuge; the latter erected the first chapel in honor of “Sancta Maria de Monte Virgine.” The first church was consecrated on Pentecost in 1124 and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. St. John, Bishop of Avellino, with a bull of May 1126, granted the monastery exemption from episcopal jurisdiction.
The holy founder saw other monasteries arise throughout the Norman kingdom, and their number increased even after his death, which occurred at S. Salvatore del Goleto, near S. Angelo dei Lombardi, in 1142. Abbot John obtained from Alexander III (1181) approval for the new institution, operating under the Rule of St. Benedict. The same abbot, as the number of monks and pilgrims grew, had a new church built, consecrated on 11 November 1182 in the presence of thirteen bishops.
Montevergine soon acquired great political importance through the gift made by Henry VI in 1195 to Abbot Daniel of the Castle and barony of Mercogliano, as well as through the goods and privileges bestowed by the supreme pontiffs and ruling dynasties. In 1310, Catherine of Valois, by donating to the abbey the precious Byzantine icon, which Baldwin II had stolen from Constantinople due to the unfortunate events of the Latin Empire of the East, further enhanced the renown of a pilgrimage already flourishing.
The life of the abbey of Montevergine was rich in vitality and splendor for more than two centuries, until in 1430 it was given in commendam and in 1515 by the last commendatory abbot, Cardinal d’Aragona, sold to the Hospital of the A.G.P. of Naples. Pius V, with a bull of August 1588, restored it to the Verginiani. Two centuries of prosperity followed, during which the abbey, almost revived, gradually regained its original vigor through works of virtue and ingenuity, until the French suppression first and then that of 1860 dealt it a fatal blow, dispersing its religious and confiscating its goods. The last Verginian abbot, D. G. De Cesare, obtained from Leo XIII in 1879 the recall of the Cassinese Benedictines of the P. O.
The present appearance of the Basilica is a reconstruction from the 17th century. The interior has three naves, with the chapel of the Madonna in the first half of the right nave. It was begun by Abbot Danuscio and completed in 1640 by Abbot Giordano, according to the design of Gian Giacomo Conforti. Notable historical and artistic relics include: the high altar, a precious Florentine masterpiece of the 17th century; a wooden chair (12th century), a reminder of the civil jurisdiction of the abbots; the choir (1573); Cosmatesque marble baldachins; Lombard sarcophagi; the mausoleum of Caterina Filangieri; a wooden crucifix of the 13th century; a Roman sarcophagus; and the panel of the Madonna of St. William. In addition to the body of the holy founder, the relics of nineteen saints and other distinguished remains are venerated. More than 500,000 faithful and visitors come each year on devout pilgrimage. The archives, very rich, are kept in the Abbey Palace of Mercogliano, divided into two sections (parchment and paper).
CARLO RABASCA
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**MONTEVER**
Montevergine, Abbey of – Diploma of Abbot Donatus of M., disposing in favor of the poor the use of certain goods of the Abbey (September 1210) – Montevergine, Abbey, archive.
MONTEVIDEO, ARCHDIOCESE OF. – Archdiocese and capital city of Uruguay. It has an area of 40,062 sq km with a population of 1,345,000, of whom 935,000 are Catholics, distributed in 82 parishes, served by 97 diocesan priests and 450 regular clergy, a conciliar seminary, 71 male religious communities and 110 female (Ann. Pont., 1951, p. 277).
Until 1620 the territory was under the jurisdiction of Buenos Aires; in 1828 it was erected as an apostolic vicariate; on 13 July 1878 Pope Leo XIII created the diocese and the first bishop was Msgr. Jacinto Vera; the same Pontiff on 19 April 1897 elevated Montevideo to a metropolitan see, assigning as suffragans the dioceses of Florida-Melo and Salto; the first archbishop was Msgr. Mariano Soler.
The city was founded in 1723 by the Portuguese. The cathedral, begun in 1803, was completed only in 1905; other notable churches are those of St. Francis, of Aguada, of the Seminary, of the Immaculate Conception, of Our Lady of Lourdes, of the Reducto, of the Adorers, of the Redemptorists, of the Capuchins, and the Jackson chapel of the Jesuits. Notable buildings include those of the Catholic Club and the Catholic Workers’ Circle. In 1880 the National Museum was founded; later the Historical Museum and Archive, the Museum of Fine Arts, and the National Meteorological Museum. The two principal libraries are the National Library and that attached to the University.