San Carlo al Corso
Encyclopedia
Sant'Ambrogio e Carlo al Corso (usually known simply as San Carlo al Corso) is a basilica
church in
Rome
, Italy, facing onto the central part of the Via del Corso
. It is dedicated to Saint Ambrose
of Milan
and Saint Charles Borromeo, also a native of that city. It is one of at least three churches in Rome dedicated to Borromeo, others include San Carlo ai Catinari
and San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane
.
Its construction was begun in honour of the canonization of St. Charles Borromeo in 1610, under the direction of Onorio Longhi
and, after his death, of his son Martino Longhi the Younger
. The site was that of the former church of San Nicola de Tofo. The ground plan is based on the Latin cross. The dome, resembling that of Santi Luca e Martina
, was designed by Pietro da Cortona
(1668), who was also responsible for the apse and rich internal decorations. The façade was designed by Cardinal Luigi Alessandro Omodei, who did not like the project prepared by Carlo Rainaldi
.
The central vault is frescoed with a Fall of the Rebel Angels (1677–1679) by Giacinto Brandi
. The altarpiece, depicting the Saints Ambrose and Charles, was painted around 1685-1690 by Carlo Maratta
.
In the ambulatory behind the sanctuary, is a niche where a reliquary containing the heart of St Charles is kept. It was donated to the church in 1614 by Cardinal Federico Borromeo
, a cousin of the saint.
The 16th century oratory of St. Ambrose is beyond the left transept.
The second chapel on the right is dedicated to Mary, Aid of Christians (Maria Auxilium Christianorum) has an image of the Virgin donated by St Vincent Pallotti in the 19th century.
The third chapel on the right is dedicated to the Holy Family. On the left side of it is a depiction of The Redemptor and Sts Ambrose and Charles as well as the sepulchral monument of Federico Borromeo.
On the exterior, to the sides of the apse and facing the ancient Mausoleum of Augustus
, are two giant statues of the titular saints, amongst the largest in Rome.
, to the left of the nave, is dedicated to the martyr king who converted to Christianity and was slain in the Battle of Stiklestad
in 1030. The chapel was inaugurated by Cardinal Lucido Maria Parocchi on 9 April 1893, on the 50th anniversary of the first Mass celebrated legally in Norway since the Reformation.
The painting, by the Polish artist Pius Wleonski, depicts the Viking king's victory over his own pagan past which is represented by a dragon. It was a gift, presented on March 3, 1893, to Pope Leo XIII for the 50th anniversary of his episcopal ordination. Bishop Fallize of Norway asked that it be placed in this chapel, and was unveiled by Baron Wedel Jarlsberg. The Holy Father supported the idea of a Norwegian chapel in Rome.
A smaller picture on the altar shows St. Anne and her daughter, the Blessed Virgin. St Anne was a very popular saint in pre-Reformation Norway.
The relics of a Roman martyr, St. Saturninus, are interred in the altar. Nothing is known about him except his name.
The chapel was restored, and it was reinaugurated by Bishop Gran of Oslo
in 1980. The initiative for this restoration came from Cecilie "Ciss" Riber-Mohn (who was not herself a Catholic, and who died in 1978, before the restoration was complete), Olga Térése "Olgese" Mowinckel Ringler and her Italian husband Andrea Ringler. Rieber-Mohn had also preserved the chapel in the 1960s, when there was talk about using it for other purposes.
Mass is celebrated in Norwegian at Christmas and on May 17 (Constitution Day), and many Norwegian ex-patriates, including non-Catholic, take part. Requiem masses are celebrated for Norwegians with connections to Rome. Norwegian pilgrim groups can make an appointment to celebrate Mass here, and at times tourist groups come here for ecumenical services.
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
church in
Churches of Rome
There are more than 900 churches in Rome. Most, but not all, of these are Roman Catholic, with some notable Roman Catholic Marian churches.The first churches of Rome originated in places where Christians met. They were divided into three categories:...
Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Italy, facing onto the central part of the Via del Corso
Via del Corso
The Via del Corso , commonly known as the Corso, is a main street in the historical centre of Rome. It is remarkable for being absolutely straight in an area characterized by narrow meandering alleys and small piazzas...
. It is dedicated to Saint Ambrose
Ambrose
Aurelius Ambrosius, better known in English as Saint Ambrose , was a bishop of Milan who became one of the most influential ecclesiastical figures of the 4th century. He was one of the four original doctors of the Church.-Political career:Ambrose was born into a Roman Christian family between about...
of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
and Saint Charles Borromeo, also a native of that city. It is one of at least three churches in Rome dedicated to Borromeo, others include San Carlo ai Catinari
San Carlo ai Catinari
San Carlo ai Catinari, also called Santi Biagio e Carlo ai Catinari is an early-Baroque style church in Rome, Italy....
and San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane
San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane
The Church of Saint Charles at the Four Fountains is a Roman Catholic church in Rome, Italy. Designed by the architect Francesco Borromini, it was his first independent commission. It is an iconic masterpiece of Baroque architecture, built as part of a complex of monastic buildings on the Quirinal...
.
Its construction was begun in honour of the canonization of St. Charles Borromeo in 1610, under the direction of Onorio Longhi
Onorio Longhi
Onorio Longhi was an Italian architect, the father of Martino Longhi the Younger and the son of Martino Longhi the Elder.Born in Viggiù, Lombardy, Longhi began as assistant for his father, and inherited the latter's commission at his death in 1591...
and, after his death, of his son Martino Longhi the Younger
Martino Longhi the Younger
thumb|300px|Detail of the façade of [[Sant'Antonio dei Portoghesi]] in [[Rome]].Martino Longhi the Younger was an Italian architect of the Baroque period active in Rome, in a milieu when the most prominent competition for commissions came from no less than Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Francesco...
. The site was that of the former church of San Nicola de Tofo. The ground plan is based on the Latin cross. The dome, resembling that of Santi Luca e Martina
Santi Luca e Martina
Santi Luca e Martina is a church in Rome, Italy, situated between the Roman Forum and the Forum of Caesar and close to the Arch of Septimus Severus.-History:...
, was designed by Pietro da Cortona
Pietro da Cortona
Pietro da Cortona, by the name of Pietro Berrettini, born Pietro Berrettini da Cortona, was the leading Italian Baroque painter of his time and also one of the key architects in the emergence of Roman Baroque architecture. He was also an important decorator...
(1668), who was also responsible for the apse and rich internal decorations. The façade was designed by Cardinal Luigi Alessandro Omodei, who did not like the project prepared by Carlo Rainaldi
Carlo Rainaldi
Carlo Rainaldi was an Italian architect of the Baroque period.Born in Rome, Rainaldi was one of the leading architects of 17th century Rome, known for a certain grandeur in his designs. He worked at first with his father, Girolamo Rainaldi, a late Mannerist architect in Rome. After his father's...
.
The central vault is frescoed with a Fall of the Rebel Angels (1677–1679) by Giacinto Brandi
Giacinto Brandi
Giacinto Brandi was an Italian painter of the Baroque era, active mainly in Rome and Naples.Born in Poli, in the Lazio, he was trained in Rome in the studio of Alessandro Algardi, a noted sculptor, who noted that Brandi was more suited to painting. He joined the studio of Giovanni Giacomo Sementi...
. The altarpiece, depicting the Saints Ambrose and Charles, was painted around 1685-1690 by Carlo Maratta
Carlo Maratta
Carlo Maratta or Maratti was an Italian painter, active mostly in Rome, and known principally for his classicizing paintings executed in a Late Baroque Classical manner. Although he is part of the classical tradition stemming from Raphael, he was not exempt from the influence of Baroque painting...
.
In the ambulatory behind the sanctuary, is a niche where a reliquary containing the heart of St Charles is kept. It was donated to the church in 1614 by Cardinal Federico Borromeo
Federico Borromeo
Federico Borromeo was an Italian ecclesiastic, cardinal and archbishop of Milan.-Biography:Federico Borromeo was born in Milan as the second son of Giulio Cesare Borromeo, Count of Arona, and Margherita Trivulzio...
, a cousin of the saint.
The 16th century oratory of St. Ambrose is beyond the left transept.
The second chapel on the right is dedicated to Mary, Aid of Christians (Maria Auxilium Christianorum) has an image of the Virgin donated by St Vincent Pallotti in the 19th century.
The third chapel on the right is dedicated to the Holy Family. On the left side of it is a depiction of The Redemptor and Sts Ambrose and Charles as well as the sepulchral monument of Federico Borromeo.
On the exterior, to the sides of the apse and facing the ancient Mausoleum of Augustus
Mausoleum of Augustus
The Mausoleum of Augustus is a large tomb built by the Roman Emperor Augustus in 28 BC on the Campus Martius in Rome, Italy. The Mausoleum, now located on the Piazza Augusto Imperatore, is no longer open to tourists, and the ravages of time and carelessness have stripped the ruins bare...
, are two giant statues of the titular saints, amongst the largest in Rome.
Chapel of St. Olav
The Chapel of St. Olav of NorwayNorway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, to the left of the nave, is dedicated to the martyr king who converted to Christianity and was slain in the Battle of Stiklestad
Battle of Stiklestad
The Battle of Stiklestad in 1030 is one of the most famous battles in the history of Norway. In this battle, King Olaf II of Norway was killed. He was later canonized...
in 1030. The chapel was inaugurated by Cardinal Lucido Maria Parocchi on 9 April 1893, on the 50th anniversary of the first Mass celebrated legally in Norway since the Reformation.
The painting, by the Polish artist Pius Wleonski, depicts the Viking king's victory over his own pagan past which is represented by a dragon. It was a gift, presented on March 3, 1893, to Pope Leo XIII for the 50th anniversary of his episcopal ordination. Bishop Fallize of Norway asked that it be placed in this chapel, and was unveiled by Baron Wedel Jarlsberg. The Holy Father supported the idea of a Norwegian chapel in Rome.
A smaller picture on the altar shows St. Anne and her daughter, the Blessed Virgin. St Anne was a very popular saint in pre-Reformation Norway.
The relics of a Roman martyr, St. Saturninus, are interred in the altar. Nothing is known about him except his name.
The chapel was restored, and it was reinaugurated by Bishop Gran of Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
in 1980. The initiative for this restoration came from Cecilie "Ciss" Riber-Mohn (who was not herself a Catholic, and who died in 1978, before the restoration was complete), Olga Térése "Olgese" Mowinckel Ringler and her Italian husband Andrea Ringler. Rieber-Mohn had also preserved the chapel in the 1960s, when there was talk about using it for other purposes.
Mass is celebrated in Norwegian at Christmas and on May 17 (Constitution Day), and many Norwegian ex-patriates, including non-Catholic, take part. Requiem masses are celebrated for Norwegians with connections to Rome. Norwegian pilgrim groups can make an appointment to celebrate Mass here, and at times tourist groups come here for ecumenical services.
See also
- San Carlo al Corso (Milan)San Carlo al Corso (Milan)San Carlo al Corso is a neo-classic church in the center of Milan.The church is managed by the Servite Order.This church, finished in 1847, also served as a model for the Chiesa Rotonda in San Bernardino, Switzerland, 1867, which has a great acoustics....