In the year 1314, several of the Servi, men of known piety, were
sent to Venice by Fra Pietro da Todi, eighth General of the Order,
and were well received by Giovanni Avanzo, who proposed to
found a Convent for them at his own expense.
sent to Venice by Fra Pietro da Todi, eighth General of the Order,
and were well received by Giovanni Avanzo, who proposed to
found a Convent for them at his own expense.
Sarpi - 1868 - Life of Fra Paolo Sarpi
net/2027/uc1.
31158010289923 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www.
hathitrust.
org/access_use#pd-google
? ET. 1-13. ] FRA PAOLO SARPI 7
encounters, -- he was no victor in these hard fought strifes, -- he
was but a beardless youth without station or influence, clad in the
simple black habit of a Servite friar. He was a stranger in the
lists of public controversy, he was as yet no aspirant for the palm.
Thirteen years only had passed over him, but he reasoned with an
ability which would have done honor to hoary hairs. The audience lis-
tened and wondered and admired, and the youth, unused to his con-
ventual habit, gave them cause to smile as, on bowing to the assem-
bly, instead of taking off his cap as he had been accustomed to do, he
was so engrossed with his subject that he took off his hood, and held
it in his hand all the time of the disputations.
In this Church, the arena of his first triumph in the world of let-
ters, the eye vainly seeks to rest on some monument to the fame of
Sarpi. A misconception exists as to the statue on the basement of the
tomb of Titian by Zandomenghi, that statue of an aged man is not a
representation of Fra Paolo, but an allegorical representation of the
sixteenth century; and the book which lies at the foot of the statue is
not the History of the Council of Trent, but the Canons and Decrees
of that Council, first published by Aldus Manutius A. D. 1564.
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? CHAPTER II.
A. D. 1233 -- A. D. 1565.
Fra Paolo's account of the origin and history of the Order of the Servites. -- The
seven founders leave Florence for Monte Sanario. --Ohurch and Convent. --
Monaldi, first General of the Order. --- S. Benizzi. --Servites sent to Venice.
--Church and Convent of the Servi there. --Government. --Bule.
Although it may perhaps be thought to be in some degree a digression
from our main subject, yet as every incident in the life of Fra Paolo, after
he took the vows, was so intimately connected with the Convent and Fra-
ternity of the Servi, some acquaintance with the history of that religious
Order cannot be altogether irrelevant, and almost appears to be required,
in this stage of his biography for the proper understanding of the sequel.
The reader will therefore pardon its introduction in this place, commen-
cing with an extract from his autograph letter, followed by a literal
translation.
" De ordine servorum quod quaeris explicabo. Origo est ex Flo-
rentiai; in ee? . civitate mercatores quidam se in (lollegium coe? gerunt
Anno Dom. 1230, quo tempore ea regio huiusmodi partuum ferax
fuit.
" Dicebant laudes * * primfim quod in laudibus B. Virginis can-
tillandis assidue occuparentur, mendioare coeperunt, ut tune et in ea
regione mos novorum Collegiorum fuit habito induti toto uigro, ut B. Vir-
gini mortuum filium lugenti collugerunt.
" Haec de causis. A vulgo tune servi B. Mariae vocati, unde ad nos suc-
cessores nomen et color vestium fuerit. " '
" Your inquiry, " says Fra Paolo to M. Gillot, " respecting the
Order of the Servi, I will explain. Their origin is from Florence.
In that city certain merchants united themselves into a College, A. D.
1230, at which period that country was fruitful in projects of this
nature. Their worship at first consisted of praises to * * and espe-
cially, they were assiduously occupied in chanting the praises of the
blessed Virgin, and they commenced begging as mendicants, as was
1 " Jesus Ohristus, " thus were the ** read to me by one of the Order.
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? FRA PAOLO SARPI 9
the custom of new Colleges in that period and in that country, habi-
ted entirely in black, to mark their sympathy with the Blessed Virgin
mourning for her dead Son.
" Such is their origin, and being called from that time ' Servi di Ma-
ria, ' or ' Servants of Mary, ' it is from thence that the name, and color
of the vestments have attached to us, their successors. "
It is evident from this statement that the Holy Saviour was the
first great object of worship, and this is readily admitted by the Servi
who remain. As the worship of the Virgin in the twelfth and thir-
teenth centuries rose to a great height, the founders of the Servi shared
in the innovation. In the statement of Fra Paolo there is no mention of
miracles or visions attendant on the institution of the Order, but there are
such in the Annals of the Servites by Gianio.
The Order of the Servi di Maria was instituted A. D. 1233, ' in the
time of Gregory IX; in the reign of S. Louis, King of France; of Alfonso,
King of Castile; Peter of Arragon; Sancius II, King of Lusitania; Henry II,
King of England; Boleslaus King of Poland, and Alexander II, King of
Scotland. 2 There were three Orders of the Servi: one for men, another
for seculars of both sexes, and a third for women living in perpetual se-
clusion. The Servi were a lesser Order of the Order of Saint Augustine.
Its founders were seven in number; they were all members of the Senate,
and gifted with ample fortune. Monaldi, Manetti, dell'Antella, Amidei,
Uggucioni, Sostegni and Falconnieri, had long been accustomed to meet
together in the church of the Santa Reparata, and on "the day of the As-
sumption " they were all inspired with the same wish to renounce the world.
They communicated to each other an account of the celestial visions which
they believed they had seen, and all sold their property, and gave the pro-
ceeds to the poor. The sale was effected after they had received advice from
the Bishop Ardingo Foraboschi, 3 who filled the Bishopric of Florence
with credit for many years. His credulity, however, was great, and his belief
in the appearance of the Virgin Mary to himself and to the Servi was one of
the sources whence credence in miracles without proof, and the worship of the
Virgin were fostered amongst the greater part of the Order of the Servi,
especially those of Florence. Had Bishop Ardingo risen, as did Paolo Sar'
1 From a curiouse? illuminated MS. of the fourteenth century; Laurentian
Library, Florence. " Dialogvs Fratris Pavli Florentini de Origine Ordinis Server
ad Petrus Cosme incipit. "--P. 1. Anne moxxxrn. Gregori Noni Pontificum anno
quarto decimo. --P. 10.
Z "Annalivm sacri ordinis Fratrvm Servorvm B. Mariae Virginis. Archangelo
Gianio. Florentia, 1618. Bib. Riccardi. -- Magliabechi, lib. 1, cap. Garbi, lib. I,
17, Annalium Servorum, Marciana.
8 Cerrachini p. 75. Nobilita di Firenze, MS.
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? 10 THE LIFE OF
pi, above the prejudice and ignorance of his age, had he rejected the ac-
counts of the visions of these Florentines, it would have been an easier
task for all who succeeded him to convince his fellow countrymen that the
worship of the Virgin had neither the sanction of Holy Writ, the Fathers,
nor the early Councils. But the Bishop, not only listened to their recital of
visions, but confirmed them in their belief of these, exhorted them not
to defer obedience to the commands of heaven, and permitted them to
have an oratory and an altar to celebrate mass wherever they judged expe-
dient. He also became their Protector, and as they intended to live on
alms only, he allowed them to beg in the town of Florence and its envi-
rons. Their homes were no longer sumptuous palaces within their own
beautiful city, but a miserable house without its walls, where they
exchanged their senatorial robes for habits the color of ashes, their
fine linen for hair--cloth, their jewelled girdles for chains of iron. The
people who had known their previous riches and condition regarded
them with admiration, but it is incredible that even infants, of whom
S. Philip Benizzi was said to have been one, and who was then only five
months old, pointed to the Seven in the streets and cried, " Behold the
Servants of the blessed Mary! " " Ecce Servi! Ecce Servi! B. Mariae. "
However, Bishop Ardingo enjoined them to adopt " the Servants of
Mary " as the name of their Order, and appears to have believed that it
was miraculously given. They remained for a year in their wretched dwel-
ling, but such was the influx of visitors which the fame of their sancti-
ty attracted to their abode, that unable to obtain either quiet or seclusion,
on the thirteenth of March A. D. 1249 they retired to Monte Sanario, a
mountain situated about eight miles north of the city of Florence, and
Bishop Ardingo, with the consent of his Chapter, having bestowed a part
of Monte Sanario upon them, they began to build a church on the ruins of
an ancient castle, around which they constructed wooden cells, where roots
and herbs were their only food, and the mountain stream their only be-
verage. These austerities, however, were too severe for some of his brethren,
and Monaldi sent Manetti and Falconnieri to Florence to solicit alms, from
whence they returned daily to Monte Sanario, and there, where the
Convent of the Servi now stands, they were located for some time.
The position of the Convent is very grand: it towers far above the val-
ley beneath, where lies the beautiful city of Florence, from which to Mon-
te Sanario there is a continuous incline, by which it is customary to ascend
the highest part of the mountain in a Waggon drawn by oxen, and on the
building where they are kept, there is a cross and the letter S above a
representation of the six hills which surround the Convent.
Near this isolated retreat the road is rugged and steep, and a forest of
dark pine trees of enormous growth, on the slope of the mountain on ei-
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? FRA PAOLO SARPI 11
ther side of the road, seem like an impenetrable phalanx of guards to defy
the approach of the rude tempest; but their dark frown is not reflected
within the Convent, the genial welcome of whose inhabitants to strangers
is as cordial as it is dignified. 1
The initials of the hermits of Monte Sanario may still be seen, with va-
rious other devices, over the entrance. The arms of the Servi in 1607 were
a lily interlaced with the letter S, as on the interior of the cloister and
on the Presbytero of the Aununciata, but in later years acrown was added.
On the writer questioning when this crown was added, the answer was,
" By a King of France, " and thus have the arms of the Servi remained.
But this addition of a crown is only one of many proofs of the increase of the
adoration of the Virgin among the Servites, and its history must be searched
into before determining what belongs to a present, what to a past age.
At length the seven founders obtained a small hospital at Florence, near
the gate which led to their solitude, and adjoining their Convent the
Church of the Annunciata was built by Falconnieri. ' Its riches and
magnificence need no comment here, but the story of the founders of the
Servi was represented in after years by the frescoes which adorn the
court of the Church and the cloisters of the Convent, as also by the words
placed beneath the frescoes , and thus have the reports of miracles, for which
there is no divine authority, been perpetuated.
Gianio remarks, that the Virgin not only appeared in a vision to the
Servi, but showed them a black habit which she commanded them to wear
in memory of the passion of her Son, and also presented them with the
rule of Saint Augustine; 8 but those conversant with the pages of Gianio
will agree with Helyot and others in charging him with being apt to re-
peat from hearsay. '
After the above mentioned vision in which Bishop A1-dingo believed,
he gave the seven founders a habit similar to that which the Servites
said had been shown to them by the Virgin Mary. It was a large
black tunic together with a woollen shirt , a small white tunic , a
hood and mantle, and a girdle of leather. It was of the same form
as that still worn by the Order, and it corresponds very nearly with the
form and color of the habit as represented to have been worn by Paolo
Sarpi in his portrait by Carpioni, which till 1811 adorned the refectory of
his Convent, the only apparent difference in the dress given by Bishop
Ardingo and that represented in this portrait being, that the color of the
under garment determines it to have been linen.
1 Visited 1864.
2 Migliore. Chiese di Firenze. MS. -- MSS. Magliabechi.
8 Annal. Serv. 6. 11.
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? 12 THE LIFE OF
With the exception of Falconnieri, all took orders, and the Servi enjoyed
the protection of Innocent IV and the approbation of Pope Alexander, who
permitted them to receive the Convents offered to them, and also to pos-
sess churches and grounds for burial.
After filling the office of Prior, Monaldi became the first General of
his Order, and was succeeded by Manetti. In a Chapter convoked at Flo-
rence A. D. 1266, the Order was divided into two provinces, but after-
wards into four. Dell'Antella succeeded Jacopo di Poggibonzd as fourth
General, and this distinguished Servite died in the arms of Benizzi
who was elected in his place, and as he contributed greatly to the exten-
sion of the Order of Servi, he demands notice.
He was a youth of enthusiastic temperament, wont to believe in visions
and dreams, as people of warm imagination but weak judgment are apt to
do, and having attended service in the Chapel of the Annunciata, the
words " Philippe accede et adjunge te ad currum istum, " ' convinced
him that heaven called upon him to serve God more devotedly. He went
home, slept, and dreamed. In his dream he believed that he heard in a
vision the Virgin calling him to serve her. He awoke, forsook the study
of medicine, attached himself to the Servi, and became one of the most
distinguished of the Order; he preached throughout many of the towns of
Italy and of France, and taught his hearers to show that peculiar adora-
tion to the Virgin Mary for which he was so conspicuous. As a lover
of peace his presence was hailed by the discordant families of Tuscany,
but he was arrested in his career by Pope Innocent V, who having appro-
ved of the revival of the edict of the Lateran Council against all new
Orders, determined to abolish that of the Servi. Benizzi was forbidden to
receive any novice, or 'to sell any property belonging to the Convent which
was declared confiscated to the Pope, but as the Pontiff only survived
some months the Order was spared suppression, but only to receive further
vexatious treatment from several of the Pontifi"s successors until relieved
by Honorius IV.
Sostegni and Uggucioni after much toil returned to Monte Sanario.
They had expressed a wish to die together, and while discoursing on sub-
jects relative to their Order, they both expired on the same day and . at
the same hour. Their death was followed by that of Benizzi, whose tomb
is yet to be seen near the Convent of Monte Sanario, as well as some of
the incidents of his life delineated in the paintings in its chapel.
Boniface VIII granted the same privileges to the Order of the Servi
as he had bestowed on the Hermits of Saint Augustine. Benedict XI
protected them; Urban VI allowed them to hear confession; Martin V
1 Annal. Serv. c. 18, 22.
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? FRA PAOLO SARPI 13
gave them the privileges of the begging Orders, and in the year 1484,
they were called Friars. Clement VI was the first Pope who approved
of their constitutions, Innocent VIII confirmed their former privileges
and bestowed greater upon them, and like all the other mendicant
Orders, the Servi were entitled to assist at the funerals of Cardinals.
Falconnieri, having attained the age of 110, expired in the year 1310,
and shortly after this event the Order was extended to Venice.
As in after years Fra Paolo was a friar of the principal Convent of
the Servites there, that body here claims our attention.
In the year 1314, several of the Servi, men of known piety, were
sent to Venice by Fra Pietro da Todi, eighth General of the Order,
and were well received by Giovanni Avanzo, who proposed to
found a Convent for them at his own expense. The Bishop was
absentl, but the Servi having procured a site, the Vicar General
allowed them to found an Oratory. The Bishop approved, pro-
mised the erection of a Church, and deputed the Bishop of Scar-
ponto to lay the first stone, and to consecrate the cemetery. The
Servi being held in great repute on account of their zeal, the of-
ferings were so large as to enable them to build a Convent: and
Avanzo having left a considerable revenue to the friars, they undertook
the building of their Church.
Its foundations were laid on those of the former, but it did not
reach the height of its magnificence till the close of the fifteenth cen-
tury. ' In raising this structure, the Friars had spent even the money al-
lotted for their food, in consequence of which the Cardinal Legate
enriched the Convent by the gift of S. Caterina d'Isola and its re-
venues, and his uncle Pope Sixtus granted plenary indulgence to all
who brought alms or offerings to the Church, ' by this means the
stately edifice was completed. This Church and the great Convent of
1 De Monasteris S. M. Ordinis Servorum, ccc. Ecclesia Venetze, 2, 6. F.
Gornelis.
2 " This manner of gaining money was put in practice after the ydare ? _
1100, for Pope Urbane II, having granted a plenary-Indulgence and remission
of all sins to whpever made warre in the Holy Land, to rcgaine and set at
liberty the sepulchre of Christ out of the hands of the Mahometans, was imi-
tated by his successors for many hundred of years, some of which, ( as always
new inventions are enlarged) granted it to thmho maintained a souldier in
case they could not or would not go to warre themselves in person. And in.
progresse of time, the same indulg-ehce and pardons were given for the taking
of arm_? _ against those that obeyed not _the Church of Rome, although they
Were Christians, and for the most part exactions Were made. Vnder these pre-
tences, all which, or the greater part, were applied to other uses. " -- Tran-
slation by Brent, and MS. His. of the Council of Trent. Marciana, Sarpi.
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? 14 THE LIFE OF
the Servi once occupied a large area of ground on the north of the
city of Venice, and stood near the bridge of Santa Fosca, and in the
street S. Hieronomo. The Convent filled more than two sides of the
area, and the Church of the Servi was thus described by Sansovini.
" It is built in the form of a square, and is rich in sculpture,
paintings and many noble chapels dedicated to illustrious men. Here
are the B. Virgin and Saint Augustine by Paul Veronese, the As-
sumpti'on which adorns the altar by Salviati, and the Palla, the-Man-
_ ger and the three Magi by Giovanni di Perugia. There are also five
beautiful sculptures on the altar of Gabriel di Gazoni, a knight of
Malta. The Church is likewise famous on account of two princes who
lie buried here, the Doge Vedramino in a marble tomb of great
beauty, and the Doge Francesco Donato. Here also is the altar of the
Magdalene, at whose feet in mezzo relievo lies Verda daughter of
Martina della Scala, Lord of Verona, and wife of N. d'Este, Duke of
Ferrara. Near the Sacristy is the marble statue of Giovanni Emo which
surmounts his richly gilded tomb. On the other side of the window
without, is the Oratory of the Volto Santo of Lucca, built by the
Lucchese who came to Venice A. D. 1309, and the story of the Volto
Santo was painted on their Fraternity by Semitecollo. The altar table
in the Sacristy was the work of Benedetto Diana.
On the two small pannels above an altar in the Church, the Saviour
is represented in the midst of his Apostles. It seems as it Philip were
asking him, "Lord show us the Father and it sufficeth us," and that
Christ was answering, "He that hath seen me hath seen the Fa-
ther; I and my Father are one. " These words are written at the feet
of the finely executed figures by Bonifacio the Venetian. Tintoretto
painted the Annunciation on the organ, S. Paul and S. Augustine-,
and underneath a fresco, Cain killing Abel, and another Annunciation
above the Altar of the Crucifixion. The altar with S. Onofrius and
S. James was the admirable work of Corona. Peranda painted the
altar cloth, S. Philip Benizzi is the subject. In the refectory is
the large painting on canvas of Christ as the guest of Simon the
leper with the Magdalen Weeping for her past sins, and washing his
feet with her hair. In the back ground two angels in admirable pers-
pective are pourtrayed flying in the midst bearing a scroll, and on the
scroll these words, " There is joy in heaven over one sinner that re-
penteth. " Judas in an angry attitude is in the act of reproving the penitent.
Among the persons seated at the table are the portraits of certain of
the Fathers of the Convent, all the Work of the great Paolo Caliari Vero-
nese. " Fra Antonio Gradenigo built an altar of great splendor in the Church
of the Servi for the reception of relics, and by permission of Pope
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? FRA PAOLO SARPI 15
John XXIII, many were removed thither. In those days of darkness,
Rome taxed the credulity of her subjects in a manner which at a
later period lessened the ties which once bound them to her rule.
But we must not omit to notice that regular discipline having declin-
ed amongst the Friars of the Servi, the Doge Vendramino requested
Sixtus IV to confer the Convent of the Servi at Venice on the regu-
lar Order of the Servi of Monte Sanario. This petition was granted,
and the Convent was made subject to the Patriarch of Venice, but
only till A. D. 1513, when Leo X declared it to be under the im-
mediate rule of the Prior General, on condition of its being main-
tained in the regular observance of established discipline.
Thirty two Generals presided successively over the Order which
had now risen to great popularity, many of its members being men of
learning and distinction. Gerardo, Bartholomeo and Calbo had many
worthy successors, but after naming the nobles Piccolomini, Stuffa, du
Bourg, du Saint Sepulchre, Adifnare? the Cardinals Laurerio and Be-
nutio, Helyot adds, " there were several writers amongst them, the
most famous of whom was Paul Sarpi, better known as Fra Paolo,
Theologian and Counsellor of the Republic of Venice, deeply versed
in the Latin Greek and Hebrew tongues, as well as in Mathematics. "
And now, having brought this account down to the time when Fra
Paolo became one of the Order of the Servi, it only remains to say
a few words respecting its government. This has been called a demo-
cracy although such were its restrictions that it was in reality almost
an aristocracy. Those who conducted its affairs were, a Protector, a
Vice' Protector, a Provincial General and subject to them were Priors,
Procurators, Definitors and Syndics, whose respective duties will be
noticed in another place, but it may be observed here, that the Ge-
neral resided at Home, that the Prior General ruled the provinces, that
the Prior was Head of his own Convent and could enforce obedience
to his commands, the Procurator and Syndic took account of the tem-
poral affairs of the Convent, the Sacristan had charge of all that be-
longed to the service of the Church, another member of the house-
hold- goods, the Custode of the bread and wine, as well as of all the
food or meat eaten with bread. The Hospitaller undertook the care of
the hospitals, and the porters, who were laics, of the doors of the
infirmary. 1 '
The Servi took the three vows common to all the religious Orders,
and continued to follow the rule called the Rule of Saint Augustine,
of which the following is a summary.
1 Giovini.
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? 16 THE LIFE OF
C
I. Union as becoming those who dwell in the same house, of
one heart and mind in God and the possessio? all things in common.
II. Prayer and fasting. A
III. Deportment and clothing.
IV. To show great charity to all especially to the weak.
V. Brotherly love. I
VI. Obedience to Prelates.
VII. Observance of the whole rule. '
1 Regula Beati Patris A-gostini et conditiones Fratrum Servorum.
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? _ F_. __---.
- |. . '
CHAPTER; III.
A. D. 1565 -- A. D. 1578.
Dooas or Vernon. G. Priuli. 1567. Pietro Loredano.
1570. Luigi Mocenigo. ; W ,/%L/'@/_,
1571. Sebastiano Veniero. '-w M
1578. Nicolo da Ponte.
SovnuErons or GERMANY. Maxfl II. Rodolph II.
ENGLAND. Elizabeth.
SCOLLAND. Mary.
FRANCE. Charles IX. 15f7l/Henry III.
SPAIN. Philip II.
TURKEY. Selim II. Amurath II.
Porrzs. Pius IV. 1566. Pius V. 1572. Gregory XIII.
AI-. A,v/{V-4-? -. /,\,
Fra Paolo Studies. -- Zacheria. - Disputation. - Famine. - Fire. - Divisions. - F.
Paolo solicited to go to Mantua. - Olivo Oamillo. - F. Paolo on astrology. -
Leaves Mantua. - Life at Venice. - He goes to Milan. - The plague. - MSS. -
Fra Paolo takes a degree at Padua. - Priest's Orders. - Provincial. -- Sent to
Rome. - Reform of the Constitutions. - Worship of the Virgin.
Fra Paolo continued to pursue his studies in the quietude of his Convent
during his novitiate; at the age of fifteen he professed; and thus by solemn
promise to observe the Rule, he united himself to the Order of the Servi for
life. Fortunately for him, Zaccheria 1 was General, and his wise govern-
ment was a salutary boon after the disorder which prevailed during the
Generalship of his predecessor. Zaccheria was the friend of the noble Brac-
cio Ricasoli, ' and Fra Paolo had thus early examples of piety and
worth in men who filled high positions with zeal and integrity. In his
seclusion Fra Paolo had not forgotten his schoolfellows, nor had they for-
1 It was usual for a General to choose his motto, Zaccheria's was, " Dc-
minus suscepit me. "
2 This great man was the ancestor of the illustrious Baron Ricasoli of the
present age, the patriot who has dared to show his reverence of religion in
the highest assembly of Italy, a noble who possesses all the infl? 1bility of the
high minded and ancient Roman, with an enlightenment which must ever
reflect honor on his country.
a
2
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? 18 THE LIFE OF [A.
? ET. 1-13. ] FRA PAOLO SARPI 7
encounters, -- he was no victor in these hard fought strifes, -- he
was but a beardless youth without station or influence, clad in the
simple black habit of a Servite friar. He was a stranger in the
lists of public controversy, he was as yet no aspirant for the palm.
Thirteen years only had passed over him, but he reasoned with an
ability which would have done honor to hoary hairs. The audience lis-
tened and wondered and admired, and the youth, unused to his con-
ventual habit, gave them cause to smile as, on bowing to the assem-
bly, instead of taking off his cap as he had been accustomed to do, he
was so engrossed with his subject that he took off his hood, and held
it in his hand all the time of the disputations.
In this Church, the arena of his first triumph in the world of let-
ters, the eye vainly seeks to rest on some monument to the fame of
Sarpi. A misconception exists as to the statue on the basement of the
tomb of Titian by Zandomenghi, that statue of an aged man is not a
representation of Fra Paolo, but an allegorical representation of the
sixteenth century; and the book which lies at the foot of the statue is
not the History of the Council of Trent, but the Canons and Decrees
of that Council, first published by Aldus Manutius A. D. 1564.
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? CHAPTER II.
A. D. 1233 -- A. D. 1565.
Fra Paolo's account of the origin and history of the Order of the Servites. -- The
seven founders leave Florence for Monte Sanario. --Ohurch and Convent. --
Monaldi, first General of the Order. --- S. Benizzi. --Servites sent to Venice.
--Church and Convent of the Servi there. --Government. --Bule.
Although it may perhaps be thought to be in some degree a digression
from our main subject, yet as every incident in the life of Fra Paolo, after
he took the vows, was so intimately connected with the Convent and Fra-
ternity of the Servi, some acquaintance with the history of that religious
Order cannot be altogether irrelevant, and almost appears to be required,
in this stage of his biography for the proper understanding of the sequel.
The reader will therefore pardon its introduction in this place, commen-
cing with an extract from his autograph letter, followed by a literal
translation.
" De ordine servorum quod quaeris explicabo. Origo est ex Flo-
rentiai; in ee? . civitate mercatores quidam se in (lollegium coe? gerunt
Anno Dom. 1230, quo tempore ea regio huiusmodi partuum ferax
fuit.
" Dicebant laudes * * primfim quod in laudibus B. Virginis can-
tillandis assidue occuparentur, mendioare coeperunt, ut tune et in ea
regione mos novorum Collegiorum fuit habito induti toto uigro, ut B. Vir-
gini mortuum filium lugenti collugerunt.
" Haec de causis. A vulgo tune servi B. Mariae vocati, unde ad nos suc-
cessores nomen et color vestium fuerit. " '
" Your inquiry, " says Fra Paolo to M. Gillot, " respecting the
Order of the Servi, I will explain. Their origin is from Florence.
In that city certain merchants united themselves into a College, A. D.
1230, at which period that country was fruitful in projects of this
nature. Their worship at first consisted of praises to * * and espe-
cially, they were assiduously occupied in chanting the praises of the
blessed Virgin, and they commenced begging as mendicants, as was
1 " Jesus Ohristus, " thus were the ** read to me by one of the Order.
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? FRA PAOLO SARPI 9
the custom of new Colleges in that period and in that country, habi-
ted entirely in black, to mark their sympathy with the Blessed Virgin
mourning for her dead Son.
" Such is their origin, and being called from that time ' Servi di Ma-
ria, ' or ' Servants of Mary, ' it is from thence that the name, and color
of the vestments have attached to us, their successors. "
It is evident from this statement that the Holy Saviour was the
first great object of worship, and this is readily admitted by the Servi
who remain. As the worship of the Virgin in the twelfth and thir-
teenth centuries rose to a great height, the founders of the Servi shared
in the innovation. In the statement of Fra Paolo there is no mention of
miracles or visions attendant on the institution of the Order, but there are
such in the Annals of the Servites by Gianio.
The Order of the Servi di Maria was instituted A. D. 1233, ' in the
time of Gregory IX; in the reign of S. Louis, King of France; of Alfonso,
King of Castile; Peter of Arragon; Sancius II, King of Lusitania; Henry II,
King of England; Boleslaus King of Poland, and Alexander II, King of
Scotland. 2 There were three Orders of the Servi: one for men, another
for seculars of both sexes, and a third for women living in perpetual se-
clusion. The Servi were a lesser Order of the Order of Saint Augustine.
Its founders were seven in number; they were all members of the Senate,
and gifted with ample fortune. Monaldi, Manetti, dell'Antella, Amidei,
Uggucioni, Sostegni and Falconnieri, had long been accustomed to meet
together in the church of the Santa Reparata, and on "the day of the As-
sumption " they were all inspired with the same wish to renounce the world.
They communicated to each other an account of the celestial visions which
they believed they had seen, and all sold their property, and gave the pro-
ceeds to the poor. The sale was effected after they had received advice from
the Bishop Ardingo Foraboschi, 3 who filled the Bishopric of Florence
with credit for many years. His credulity, however, was great, and his belief
in the appearance of the Virgin Mary to himself and to the Servi was one of
the sources whence credence in miracles without proof, and the worship of the
Virgin were fostered amongst the greater part of the Order of the Servi,
especially those of Florence. Had Bishop Ardingo risen, as did Paolo Sar'
1 From a curiouse? illuminated MS. of the fourteenth century; Laurentian
Library, Florence. " Dialogvs Fratris Pavli Florentini de Origine Ordinis Server
ad Petrus Cosme incipit. "--P. 1. Anne moxxxrn. Gregori Noni Pontificum anno
quarto decimo. --P. 10.
Z "Annalivm sacri ordinis Fratrvm Servorvm B. Mariae Virginis. Archangelo
Gianio. Florentia, 1618. Bib. Riccardi. -- Magliabechi, lib. 1, cap. Garbi, lib. I,
17, Annalium Servorum, Marciana.
8 Cerrachini p. 75. Nobilita di Firenze, MS.
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? 10 THE LIFE OF
pi, above the prejudice and ignorance of his age, had he rejected the ac-
counts of the visions of these Florentines, it would have been an easier
task for all who succeeded him to convince his fellow countrymen that the
worship of the Virgin had neither the sanction of Holy Writ, the Fathers,
nor the early Councils. But the Bishop, not only listened to their recital of
visions, but confirmed them in their belief of these, exhorted them not
to defer obedience to the commands of heaven, and permitted them to
have an oratory and an altar to celebrate mass wherever they judged expe-
dient. He also became their Protector, and as they intended to live on
alms only, he allowed them to beg in the town of Florence and its envi-
rons. Their homes were no longer sumptuous palaces within their own
beautiful city, but a miserable house without its walls, where they
exchanged their senatorial robes for habits the color of ashes, their
fine linen for hair--cloth, their jewelled girdles for chains of iron. The
people who had known their previous riches and condition regarded
them with admiration, but it is incredible that even infants, of whom
S. Philip Benizzi was said to have been one, and who was then only five
months old, pointed to the Seven in the streets and cried, " Behold the
Servants of the blessed Mary! " " Ecce Servi! Ecce Servi! B. Mariae. "
However, Bishop Ardingo enjoined them to adopt " the Servants of
Mary " as the name of their Order, and appears to have believed that it
was miraculously given. They remained for a year in their wretched dwel-
ling, but such was the influx of visitors which the fame of their sancti-
ty attracted to their abode, that unable to obtain either quiet or seclusion,
on the thirteenth of March A. D. 1249 they retired to Monte Sanario, a
mountain situated about eight miles north of the city of Florence, and
Bishop Ardingo, with the consent of his Chapter, having bestowed a part
of Monte Sanario upon them, they began to build a church on the ruins of
an ancient castle, around which they constructed wooden cells, where roots
and herbs were their only food, and the mountain stream their only be-
verage. These austerities, however, were too severe for some of his brethren,
and Monaldi sent Manetti and Falconnieri to Florence to solicit alms, from
whence they returned daily to Monte Sanario, and there, where the
Convent of the Servi now stands, they were located for some time.
The position of the Convent is very grand: it towers far above the val-
ley beneath, where lies the beautiful city of Florence, from which to Mon-
te Sanario there is a continuous incline, by which it is customary to ascend
the highest part of the mountain in a Waggon drawn by oxen, and on the
building where they are kept, there is a cross and the letter S above a
representation of the six hills which surround the Convent.
Near this isolated retreat the road is rugged and steep, and a forest of
dark pine trees of enormous growth, on the slope of the mountain on ei-
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? FRA PAOLO SARPI 11
ther side of the road, seem like an impenetrable phalanx of guards to defy
the approach of the rude tempest; but their dark frown is not reflected
within the Convent, the genial welcome of whose inhabitants to strangers
is as cordial as it is dignified. 1
The initials of the hermits of Monte Sanario may still be seen, with va-
rious other devices, over the entrance. The arms of the Servi in 1607 were
a lily interlaced with the letter S, as on the interior of the cloister and
on the Presbytero of the Aununciata, but in later years acrown was added.
On the writer questioning when this crown was added, the answer was,
" By a King of France, " and thus have the arms of the Servi remained.
But this addition of a crown is only one of many proofs of the increase of the
adoration of the Virgin among the Servites, and its history must be searched
into before determining what belongs to a present, what to a past age.
At length the seven founders obtained a small hospital at Florence, near
the gate which led to their solitude, and adjoining their Convent the
Church of the Annunciata was built by Falconnieri. ' Its riches and
magnificence need no comment here, but the story of the founders of the
Servi was represented in after years by the frescoes which adorn the
court of the Church and the cloisters of the Convent, as also by the words
placed beneath the frescoes , and thus have the reports of miracles, for which
there is no divine authority, been perpetuated.
Gianio remarks, that the Virgin not only appeared in a vision to the
Servi, but showed them a black habit which she commanded them to wear
in memory of the passion of her Son, and also presented them with the
rule of Saint Augustine; 8 but those conversant with the pages of Gianio
will agree with Helyot and others in charging him with being apt to re-
peat from hearsay. '
After the above mentioned vision in which Bishop A1-dingo believed,
he gave the seven founders a habit similar to that which the Servites
said had been shown to them by the Virgin Mary. It was a large
black tunic together with a woollen shirt , a small white tunic , a
hood and mantle, and a girdle of leather. It was of the same form
as that still worn by the Order, and it corresponds very nearly with the
form and color of the habit as represented to have been worn by Paolo
Sarpi in his portrait by Carpioni, which till 1811 adorned the refectory of
his Convent, the only apparent difference in the dress given by Bishop
Ardingo and that represented in this portrait being, that the color of the
under garment determines it to have been linen.
1 Visited 1864.
2 Migliore. Chiese di Firenze. MS. -- MSS. Magliabechi.
8 Annal. Serv. 6. 11.
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? 12 THE LIFE OF
With the exception of Falconnieri, all took orders, and the Servi enjoyed
the protection of Innocent IV and the approbation of Pope Alexander, who
permitted them to receive the Convents offered to them, and also to pos-
sess churches and grounds for burial.
After filling the office of Prior, Monaldi became the first General of
his Order, and was succeeded by Manetti. In a Chapter convoked at Flo-
rence A. D. 1266, the Order was divided into two provinces, but after-
wards into four. Dell'Antella succeeded Jacopo di Poggibonzd as fourth
General, and this distinguished Servite died in the arms of Benizzi
who was elected in his place, and as he contributed greatly to the exten-
sion of the Order of Servi, he demands notice.
He was a youth of enthusiastic temperament, wont to believe in visions
and dreams, as people of warm imagination but weak judgment are apt to
do, and having attended service in the Chapel of the Annunciata, the
words " Philippe accede et adjunge te ad currum istum, " ' convinced
him that heaven called upon him to serve God more devotedly. He went
home, slept, and dreamed. In his dream he believed that he heard in a
vision the Virgin calling him to serve her. He awoke, forsook the study
of medicine, attached himself to the Servi, and became one of the most
distinguished of the Order; he preached throughout many of the towns of
Italy and of France, and taught his hearers to show that peculiar adora-
tion to the Virgin Mary for which he was so conspicuous. As a lover
of peace his presence was hailed by the discordant families of Tuscany,
but he was arrested in his career by Pope Innocent V, who having appro-
ved of the revival of the edict of the Lateran Council against all new
Orders, determined to abolish that of the Servi. Benizzi was forbidden to
receive any novice, or 'to sell any property belonging to the Convent which
was declared confiscated to the Pope, but as the Pontiff only survived
some months the Order was spared suppression, but only to receive further
vexatious treatment from several of the Pontifi"s successors until relieved
by Honorius IV.
Sostegni and Uggucioni after much toil returned to Monte Sanario.
They had expressed a wish to die together, and while discoursing on sub-
jects relative to their Order, they both expired on the same day and . at
the same hour. Their death was followed by that of Benizzi, whose tomb
is yet to be seen near the Convent of Monte Sanario, as well as some of
the incidents of his life delineated in the paintings in its chapel.
Boniface VIII granted the same privileges to the Order of the Servi
as he had bestowed on the Hermits of Saint Augustine. Benedict XI
protected them; Urban VI allowed them to hear confession; Martin V
1 Annal. Serv. c. 18, 22.
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? FRA PAOLO SARPI 13
gave them the privileges of the begging Orders, and in the year 1484,
they were called Friars. Clement VI was the first Pope who approved
of their constitutions, Innocent VIII confirmed their former privileges
and bestowed greater upon them, and like all the other mendicant
Orders, the Servi were entitled to assist at the funerals of Cardinals.
Falconnieri, having attained the age of 110, expired in the year 1310,
and shortly after this event the Order was extended to Venice.
As in after years Fra Paolo was a friar of the principal Convent of
the Servites there, that body here claims our attention.
In the year 1314, several of the Servi, men of known piety, were
sent to Venice by Fra Pietro da Todi, eighth General of the Order,
and were well received by Giovanni Avanzo, who proposed to
found a Convent for them at his own expense. The Bishop was
absentl, but the Servi having procured a site, the Vicar General
allowed them to found an Oratory. The Bishop approved, pro-
mised the erection of a Church, and deputed the Bishop of Scar-
ponto to lay the first stone, and to consecrate the cemetery. The
Servi being held in great repute on account of their zeal, the of-
ferings were so large as to enable them to build a Convent: and
Avanzo having left a considerable revenue to the friars, they undertook
the building of their Church.
Its foundations were laid on those of the former, but it did not
reach the height of its magnificence till the close of the fifteenth cen-
tury. ' In raising this structure, the Friars had spent even the money al-
lotted for their food, in consequence of which the Cardinal Legate
enriched the Convent by the gift of S. Caterina d'Isola and its re-
venues, and his uncle Pope Sixtus granted plenary indulgence to all
who brought alms or offerings to the Church, ' by this means the
stately edifice was completed. This Church and the great Convent of
1 De Monasteris S. M. Ordinis Servorum, ccc. Ecclesia Venetze, 2, 6. F.
Gornelis.
2 " This manner of gaining money was put in practice after the ydare ? _
1100, for Pope Urbane II, having granted a plenary-Indulgence and remission
of all sins to whpever made warre in the Holy Land, to rcgaine and set at
liberty the sepulchre of Christ out of the hands of the Mahometans, was imi-
tated by his successors for many hundred of years, some of which, ( as always
new inventions are enlarged) granted it to thmho maintained a souldier in
case they could not or would not go to warre themselves in person. And in.
progresse of time, the same indulg-ehce and pardons were given for the taking
of arm_? _ against those that obeyed not _the Church of Rome, although they
Were Christians, and for the most part exactions Were made. Vnder these pre-
tences, all which, or the greater part, were applied to other uses. " -- Tran-
slation by Brent, and MS. His. of the Council of Trent. Marciana, Sarpi.
/. /Z {(12
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? 14 THE LIFE OF
the Servi once occupied a large area of ground on the north of the
city of Venice, and stood near the bridge of Santa Fosca, and in the
street S. Hieronomo. The Convent filled more than two sides of the
area, and the Church of the Servi was thus described by Sansovini.
" It is built in the form of a square, and is rich in sculpture,
paintings and many noble chapels dedicated to illustrious men. Here
are the B. Virgin and Saint Augustine by Paul Veronese, the As-
sumpti'on which adorns the altar by Salviati, and the Palla, the-Man-
_ ger and the three Magi by Giovanni di Perugia. There are also five
beautiful sculptures on the altar of Gabriel di Gazoni, a knight of
Malta. The Church is likewise famous on account of two princes who
lie buried here, the Doge Vedramino in a marble tomb of great
beauty, and the Doge Francesco Donato. Here also is the altar of the
Magdalene, at whose feet in mezzo relievo lies Verda daughter of
Martina della Scala, Lord of Verona, and wife of N. d'Este, Duke of
Ferrara. Near the Sacristy is the marble statue of Giovanni Emo which
surmounts his richly gilded tomb. On the other side of the window
without, is the Oratory of the Volto Santo of Lucca, built by the
Lucchese who came to Venice A. D. 1309, and the story of the Volto
Santo was painted on their Fraternity by Semitecollo. The altar table
in the Sacristy was the work of Benedetto Diana.
On the two small pannels above an altar in the Church, the Saviour
is represented in the midst of his Apostles. It seems as it Philip were
asking him, "Lord show us the Father and it sufficeth us," and that
Christ was answering, "He that hath seen me hath seen the Fa-
ther; I and my Father are one. " These words are written at the feet
of the finely executed figures by Bonifacio the Venetian. Tintoretto
painted the Annunciation on the organ, S. Paul and S. Augustine-,
and underneath a fresco, Cain killing Abel, and another Annunciation
above the Altar of the Crucifixion. The altar with S. Onofrius and
S. James was the admirable work of Corona. Peranda painted the
altar cloth, S. Philip Benizzi is the subject. In the refectory is
the large painting on canvas of Christ as the guest of Simon the
leper with the Magdalen Weeping for her past sins, and washing his
feet with her hair. In the back ground two angels in admirable pers-
pective are pourtrayed flying in the midst bearing a scroll, and on the
scroll these words, " There is joy in heaven over one sinner that re-
penteth. " Judas in an angry attitude is in the act of reproving the penitent.
Among the persons seated at the table are the portraits of certain of
the Fathers of the Convent, all the Work of the great Paolo Caliari Vero-
nese. " Fra Antonio Gradenigo built an altar of great splendor in the Church
of the Servi for the reception of relics, and by permission of Pope
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? FRA PAOLO SARPI 15
John XXIII, many were removed thither. In those days of darkness,
Rome taxed the credulity of her subjects in a manner which at a
later period lessened the ties which once bound them to her rule.
But we must not omit to notice that regular discipline having declin-
ed amongst the Friars of the Servi, the Doge Vendramino requested
Sixtus IV to confer the Convent of the Servi at Venice on the regu-
lar Order of the Servi of Monte Sanario. This petition was granted,
and the Convent was made subject to the Patriarch of Venice, but
only till A. D. 1513, when Leo X declared it to be under the im-
mediate rule of the Prior General, on condition of its being main-
tained in the regular observance of established discipline.
Thirty two Generals presided successively over the Order which
had now risen to great popularity, many of its members being men of
learning and distinction. Gerardo, Bartholomeo and Calbo had many
worthy successors, but after naming the nobles Piccolomini, Stuffa, du
Bourg, du Saint Sepulchre, Adifnare? the Cardinals Laurerio and Be-
nutio, Helyot adds, " there were several writers amongst them, the
most famous of whom was Paul Sarpi, better known as Fra Paolo,
Theologian and Counsellor of the Republic of Venice, deeply versed
in the Latin Greek and Hebrew tongues, as well as in Mathematics. "
And now, having brought this account down to the time when Fra
Paolo became one of the Order of the Servi, it only remains to say
a few words respecting its government. This has been called a demo-
cracy although such were its restrictions that it was in reality almost
an aristocracy. Those who conducted its affairs were, a Protector, a
Vice' Protector, a Provincial General and subject to them were Priors,
Procurators, Definitors and Syndics, whose respective duties will be
noticed in another place, but it may be observed here, that the Ge-
neral resided at Home, that the Prior General ruled the provinces, that
the Prior was Head of his own Convent and could enforce obedience
to his commands, the Procurator and Syndic took account of the tem-
poral affairs of the Convent, the Sacristan had charge of all that be-
longed to the service of the Church, another member of the house-
hold- goods, the Custode of the bread and wine, as well as of all the
food or meat eaten with bread. The Hospitaller undertook the care of
the hospitals, and the porters, who were laics, of the doors of the
infirmary. 1 '
The Servi took the three vows common to all the religious Orders,
and continued to follow the rule called the Rule of Saint Augustine,
of which the following is a summary.
1 Giovini.
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? 16 THE LIFE OF
C
I. Union as becoming those who dwell in the same house, of
one heart and mind in God and the possessio? all things in common.
II. Prayer and fasting. A
III. Deportment and clothing.
IV. To show great charity to all especially to the weak.
V. Brotherly love. I
VI. Obedience to Prelates.
VII. Observance of the whole rule. '
1 Regula Beati Patris A-gostini et conditiones Fratrum Servorum.
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? _ F_. __---.
- |. . '
CHAPTER; III.
A. D. 1565 -- A. D. 1578.
Dooas or Vernon. G. Priuli. 1567. Pietro Loredano.
1570. Luigi Mocenigo. ; W ,/%L/'@/_,
1571. Sebastiano Veniero. '-w M
1578. Nicolo da Ponte.
SovnuErons or GERMANY. Maxfl II. Rodolph II.
ENGLAND. Elizabeth.
SCOLLAND. Mary.
FRANCE. Charles IX. 15f7l/Henry III.
SPAIN. Philip II.
TURKEY. Selim II. Amurath II.
Porrzs. Pius IV. 1566. Pius V. 1572. Gregory XIII.
AI-. A,v/{V-4-? -. /,\,
Fra Paolo Studies. -- Zacheria. - Disputation. - Famine. - Fire. - Divisions. - F.
Paolo solicited to go to Mantua. - Olivo Oamillo. - F. Paolo on astrology. -
Leaves Mantua. - Life at Venice. - He goes to Milan. - The plague. - MSS. -
Fra Paolo takes a degree at Padua. - Priest's Orders. - Provincial. -- Sent to
Rome. - Reform of the Constitutions. - Worship of the Virgin.
Fra Paolo continued to pursue his studies in the quietude of his Convent
during his novitiate; at the age of fifteen he professed; and thus by solemn
promise to observe the Rule, he united himself to the Order of the Servi for
life. Fortunately for him, Zaccheria 1 was General, and his wise govern-
ment was a salutary boon after the disorder which prevailed during the
Generalship of his predecessor. Zaccheria was the friend of the noble Brac-
cio Ricasoli, ' and Fra Paolo had thus early examples of piety and
worth in men who filled high positions with zeal and integrity. In his
seclusion Fra Paolo had not forgotten his schoolfellows, nor had they for-
1 It was usual for a General to choose his motto, Zaccheria's was, " Dc-
minus suscepit me. "
2 This great man was the ancestor of the illustrious Baron Ricasoli of the
present age, the patriot who has dared to show his reverence of religion in
the highest assembly of Italy, a noble who possesses all the infl? 1bility of the
high minded and ancient Roman, with an enlightenment which must ever
reflect honor on his country.
a
2
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? 18 THE LIFE OF [A.
