Church of the Holy Spirit (Sicily)
Encyclopedia
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
church in Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
, Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
, southern Italy.
The church is located within the boundaries of Sant'Orsola cemetery
Cemetery
A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. The term "cemetery" implies that the land is specifically designated as a burying ground. Cemeteries in the Western world are where the final ceremonies of death are observed...
.
The Cistercian monastery was founded between 1173 and 1178 by the archbishop of Palermo
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Palermo
The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Palermo was founded as the Diocese of Palermo in the 1st Century but was raised to the level of an archdiocese in the 11th century...
, Walter of the Mill
Walter of the Mill
Walter of the Mill , Italianised as Gualtiero Offamiglio or Offamilio and Latinised as Ophamilius , was the archdeacon of Cefalù, dean of Agrigento, and archbishop of Palermo , called il primo ministro...
, and was entrusted to monks of the calabrese Abbey of Sambucina. Considerable donations of King William II of Sicily
William II of Sicily
William II , called the Good, was king of Sicily from 1166 to 1189. William's character is very indistinct. Lacking in military enterprise, secluded and pleasure-loving, he seldom emerged from his palace life at Palermo. Yet his reign is marked by an ambitious foreign policy and a vigorous diplomacy...
and his mother, Margaret, enriched the monastery's property.
On March 30, 1282, it was in front of this church that the popular insurrection, later named the Sicilian Vespers
Sicilian Vespers
The Sicilian Vespers is the name given to the successful rebellion on the island of Sicily that broke out on the Easter of 1282 against the rule of the French/Angevin king Charles I, who had ruled the Kingdom of Sicily since 1266. Within six weeks three thousand French men and women were slain by...
, exploded.