Abbey of San Martino al Cimino

About

The Abbey of San Martino al Cimino (or San Martino in Monte) is a former monastery on the northwest slopes of the Monti Cimini. It was a Cistercian territorial abbey between the 13th and 16th centuries. The buildings are located at an elevation of 580 metres (1,900 ft), 4 miles (6.4 km) outside of Viterbo.

A church dedicated to Saint Martin in the Monti Cimini existed by 833 (or 838), when a certain Benedict, son of Anspert, gave it to Abbot Sichard of Farfa. By 1045, it was had its own abbot and followed the Benedictine rule, like its mother house. It was abandoned shortly after 1122 as Farfa went into decline.

In 1150, Pope Eugene III gave the site to the Cistercians of the Abbey of Saint-Sulpice. Its holdings were insufficient to provide a living for the monks and in 1206 the general chapter of the Cistercian Order admonished the abbot of Saint-Sulpice to provide more support. In 1207, Pope Innocent III convinced the abbot to renounce Saint-Sulpice's control of San Martino al Cimino to its own mother house, the Abbey of Pontigny.

Abbot Peter of Pontigny personally led a large contingent of monks from Pontigny to San Martino. The 13th century was the high point for San Martino. It...