The history of Badia di Campoleone is deeply rooted in ancient times, when legend is intertwined with historical reality. It is said that the foundation of the abbey dates back to 972 by the order of Hugh, Margrave of Tuscany, who wanted it as an act of penance for a life marked by excess and lust. Legend has it that the margrave had a prophetic dream. Being terrified by images of eternal damnation, he found redemption in the construction of abbeys and holy places.
Campoleone, set in a beautiful location, not far from the banks of river Arno, became thus one of the fulcra of spiritual and political power of the region. The name itself derives from Latin (“campus leonis”, the lion’s field) and shows its impregnable and strategic nature.
After its foundation, the Abbey of Campoleone became a point of reference for faith and territorial organization. Bishop Elemperto gave custody of the monastery to the Benedictine monks, who named it after Saint Gennaro, a saint worshipped in Campania, bringing probably one of his relics to Arezzo. Hugh the Margrave did not skimp on donations, providing the abbey with castles, courts, villas and mills, making it one of the most powerful centers of medieval Tuscany.
Priceless treasures, such as works of art and relics, were preserved inside the abbey, contributing to strengthen its prestige. Imperial privileges granted to the abbey by Frederick Barbarossa in 1161 confirmed its central role, not only religious but also political, as one of the most influential feudatory powers in the region.
Campoleone’s decline started towards the late 1100s. Despite its old splendor, the abbey started losing its power progressively and in 1214 the castle was destroyed by the militias from Arezzo. This event marked the beginning of a period of serious decline in which the monastery lost many estates and its political influence diminished.
After years of conflicts and negotiations, the abbot of Campoleone was forced to surrender the lands and castles to the Commune of Arezzo. The agreement left the abbot with just the monastery and the cemetery, whereas the lands and revenues were owned by the podestà. Even if compensation was granted to the monks in 1236, the monastic power was no longer as it was in the past.
After centuries of splendor and decline, in the 1400s the abbey of Campoleone was turned into a Commendam, a juridical institution that assigned the remains of the property to different noble families.
In 1527 the army of Charles, Duke of Bourbon, destroyed what remained of the castle and convent, but the history of Campoleone did not end. Giovanni Della Stufa, together with his brothers, undertook to rebuild the church and part of the facilities, but it was only with the Bacci family that the place took a new form.
On the remains of the old abbey the Baccis, a noble family from Arezzo, decided to build a magnificent manor house that still preserves the name of Badia.
Despite the devastations suffered over the centuries, Badia di Campoleone shows the traces of its past, which are clearly visible in the chapel, in the gardens and in the ruins of the monastic cemetery, keeping alive the memory of a place that has survived the centuries as a silent witness of Tuscan history.
