Chiesa di San Francesco vecchio (dentro le mura)

The Church of San Francesco Vecchio stands within the historic walls of Chioggia. Built in 1385, it preserves a Rococo interior and artworks associated with the city's Franciscan and later Cistercian communities.

Why it matters

Franciscans were present at the site from the mid-thirteenth century. The church was built in 1385, after conflict led the Senate to prohibit construction beyond the city walls. In 1512 the convent became a Cistercian monastery. Its changing institutional history, from friars to nuns and later civic and religious uses, reflects the city's response to war and political change.

What to notice

The church is a single rectangular hall decorated with stucco and painted vaults. Renovation beginning in 1743 brought a Rococo scheme by Domenico Cestari, with stucco by Giacomo Gaspari and paintings by Michelangelo Schiavoni depicting the lives of Saints Francis and Benedict. A Schiavoni fresco of the Trinity and theological virtues completes the vault decoration. The Immacolata altar has a marble statue by Pietro Baratta. Tomb slabs in the floor include that of Bishop Pasquale Grassi. The low brick bell tower combines a pointed Gothic base with a dome added in 1743.

Context and history

After the War of Chioggia, the Franciscans remained at their within-the-walls convent while construction beyond the fortifications was restricted. The prohibition was lifted around the 1430s, and the friars later transferred to a new complex outside the walls. On 10 October 1512 the original convent became a Cistercian monastery. Austrian authorities moved the nuns to Santa Caterina in 1805 and converted the buildings into barracks. The church subsequently came under the cathedral's care.