The Holy Retreat or Convent of St. Francis in Bellegra, famous in the Catholic world for its apostolic activity and the goodness of the monks who spent part of their lives there, is situated approx. 2Km from the town at 815 m above sea level, in a thick chestnut wood known as Capelmo-Antera.
The foundation of the convent is closely linked to the visit of St. Francis of Assisi to the Sacro Speco of Subiaco. The visit was mentioned by the Benedictine chronologer Mirzio, a monk at Subiaco in 1592, and by Wadding, the Franciscan historian who was his contemporary. The presence of St. Francis is also suggested by the saint's transformation of the briars by the Holy Cave into roses, into which St. Benedict would throw himself to fight the temptations of the flesh.
There are two frescoes in the Chapel of St. Gregory in the Monastery of St. Benedict. The first shows St. Francis, without the stigmata, the other Cardinal Ugolino, the future Pope Gregory IX flanked by St. Francis during the consacrazione of the altar of the chapel.
The saint's visit took place between 1218 and 1224. 1223 is the date indicated by Mirzio, confirmed by Father Casimiro, historian of the Province of Rome, while Wadding refers to 1222 and Sabatier to 1218.
Father Casimiro and Father Candido Mariotti also confirm the role of St. Francis in the foundation of the Bellegra convent.
The date of its building is unknown. The Franciscan Order maintains that the first building was a gift from the Benedictines of Subiaco to St. Francis.
The Church adjacent to the convent has its origins in the first Franciscan Hermitage. The first church was building in the second half of 15th century and consacrated on 23rd August 1489 by Mons. Cesare Nacci.
Two chapels were added in the 17th century, dedicated to St. Francis and to the Madonna (also known as St. Rosa) which face each other.
The choir probably predates the two chapels and could be contemporary to the building of the church, from which it has now been separated.
Two more chapels were added, in 1825 and 1915, dedicated to St. Thomas of Cori and St. Theophilus of Corte.
The Church was extended in the 20th century to give it more importance over the rest of the convent complex.
The present brick facade was erected in 1926 to mark the 7th centenary of the death of St. Francis. As the entire project (prepared by Tullio di Fausto) was not completed, this new body appears detached from the rest of the building and in contrast to the simplicity of the convent complex. Before this date, the facade had been extremely simple, following the Franciscan spirit, with only a few elements that indicated the church on the exterior.
The numerous ecclesiastical personages who have spent part of their lives here include: St. Thomas of Cori, St. Theophilus of Corte, the Venerable Father Filippo Visi of Velletri, Fra' Diego Oddi da Vallinfreda.

Galleria fotografica