For centuries, monasteries were important seats of learning, and they kept the flame of study alight during the centuries for which the description of the “Dark Ages” was probably excessive but nonetheless expresses the sense of loss following the downfall of the great classical civilizations. Saint Benedict set down rules on reading, literature and libraries in the 6th century A.D.; these gradually extended throughout the monastic world, and, much later, they were adopted by universities all over Europe. Therefore, to discover that what is now the Catholic University in Milan was once a Benedictine monastery is not really surprising, except that the cloisters are now rife with notices and lots of students. Let’s see how this transformation came about.
After the Barbarian invasions of Europe, the monks, supported by the Holy Roman Emperor, Charlemagne, worked hard at reconstruction, not only in spiritual and intellectual terms, but also in practical ways. As each monastery had an area of land allotted to it, the monks developed agricultural techniques in order to improve profitability, and over the years, monasteries amassed considerable wealth and power. The monastery of Sant’Ambrogio was founded by the Benedictines in 784 A.D., and it expanded rapidly, so that several hundreds of years later, there were so many monks that they needed a new location. This in turn brought up the problem of in what style to build the monastery.
The Basilica of Sant’Ambrogio itself had become a prototype for the Lombard Romanesque style, with its triangular pedimented façade in brick, round arches and circular pillars. When Gian Galeazzo Visconti founded the Cathedral in 1386, he commissioned some of the leading architects in Europe to design and build the massive construction in the International Gothic style, with its flying buttresses and a wealth of decoration. But just a hundred years later, artists and intellectuals had rediscovered classical architecture and philosophy, giving rise to the Renaissance. When Duke Ludovico il Moro took over the dukedom in 1480, he specifically chose the Renaissance style for his architectural improvements, at the Castle, the monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie, and for the cloisters of Sant’Ambrogio, commissioning work from the Florentine artist Leonardo da Vinci, and the architect Donato Bramante.
In particular, Bramante was asked to work on the cloisters at Sant’Ambrogio, where the principal requirement was to create more space, and so he created a two-floor design, with tall pillars and circular arches that made for a harmonious composition. It was an innovative design, and it should have extended to four courtyards built in the different orders. But the project was never fully completed, and so today just two courtyards can be seen, in Doric and Ionic orders.
The Benedictine monks remained at the monastery until 1799, when Napoleon’s Cisalpine Republic suppressed the monastery and converted it into a military hospital. After Napoleon’s defeat, with the return of the Austrians, the church was reopened, while the hospital continued to operate. However, by the late 19th century, many of the buildings had begun to deteriorate due to insufficient use, and so time was ripe for a change.
The first signs of a new departure appeared in 1921 (on 7 December, the day dedicated to St. Ambrose), when several Catholic intellectuals founded the Giuseppe Toniolo Institute for Advanced Study. This marked the start of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, and it was a monumental landmark for the Church. The Catholics wanted a University solely for those practicing the faith, an institution that could provide an education that would enable graduates to spread the religion to the general public. The university was initially housed in a converted convent in Via Sant’Agnese. Attendance increased rapidly from the 68 students of the first year, requiring new programs of study and a larger building to suit to the growing number of attendees. Bramante’s unique approach to the architecture of the cloisters made the monastery a perfect location, and the University purchased the monastic buildings in 1932. Architect Giovanni Muzio worked on the conversion from 1928 until the late 1940s, also repairing the damage caused by air-raids in 1943. He brilliantly distinguished the new structures – in clean-honed rationalist style – from the old, avoiding pastiche and increasing the space available. Today, the “Cattolica” is the largest Catholic University in the world, with more than 40,000 students on five campuses in as many cities.
The Università Cattolica is a perfect example of the dramatic changes that buildings can undergo over the course of the centuries. It is also a good example of Bramante’s work, which in Milan is accompanied by the presbytery and two cloisters at Santa Maria delle Grazie, and the church of Santa Maria presso San Satiro with its lovely perspective illusion behind the altar. Both are open to the public. A visit to the Basilica of Sant’Ambrogio inevitably sets you thinking about architecture and its survival over the centuries. One wonders, how would Donato Bramante feel about his cloisters today?
Henry Neuteboom
Grace Nordloh