Where It All Began
In the harsh winter that enveloped Umbria between 1181 and 1182, a child named Giovanni was born in Assisi. As the infant uttered his first cries, his father, Pietro di Bernardone, was not there: he was travelling along the roads of Europe, for he was a cloth merchant.
The Family of Saint Francis and Pietro di Bernardone
The Legend of the Three Companions, the most important unofficial biography of the Saint, recounts that when Pietro returned home and saw his newborn son, he decided to change his name to Francesco, meaning “the Frenchman”. This may have been in celebration of the panni franceschi, the precious French fabrics he traded; or, according to a later account, because his wife, named Pica or Giovanna, was Provençal, and he wished to honour her origins. Francis knew the French language and loved to speak it, perhaps because it had been the language of his childhood, his mother’s tongue.
The Places of Saint Francis’s Youth in Assisi
Stones That Speak of History
Time has left silent yet powerful traces. An ancient document dated 1309 reveals that Francis was born in the bustling, noisy heart of the city, near the communal slaughterhouse, where daily life unfolded in all its raw authenticity beneath the arcades of the Palazzo del Popolo.
Today, in that pleasant corner behind Piazza del Comune, where once echoed the footsteps of merchants and the rustle of velvet, stands the Chiesa Nuova. Built in the seventeenth century with financial support from King Philip III of Spain, this church rises on what, according to some historians, was the paternal home: the place where the stones still seem to guard the dreams of that wealthy and fortunate young man who chose to renounce everything for the love of God.
Legends Surrounding the Birth of Saint Francis
The Humility of a Stable
A short distance from the vibrant centre of the city, the noise of the square fades into the contemplative silence of the Oratorio di San Francesco Piccolino. A medieval legend, rich in charm, tells that this place was once a stable. Here, amid the scent of hay and the warmth of animals, Francis’s mother is said to have given birth to her child, just as Mary gave birth to Jesus in a stable in Bethlehem. In the Umbrian town of Montefalco, in the Church of San Francesco, there is a striking fresco depicting the birth of the Saint, painted by Benozzo Gozzoli between 1450 and 1452.
The Young Francis: Feasts, Dreams and Ambitions
In these corners of Assisi, history blends with legend. Let us imagine for a moment the young Francis: not yet the saint, but a bright, educated young man eager for adventure and success. He was the “king of festivities”, the charismatic leader of lively groups that animated the nights of Assisi.
His future seemed already mapped out: he might have followed in his father’s footsteps and expanded the family business or donned armour and pursued his burning desire to depart for the Crusades, to become a knight and win honour. Yet the fire that burned within him, as a leader and a dreamer, would not be extinguished; it would simply change direction. Gradually, Francis would learn to place his charisma at the service of a mission that, centuries later, is still alive.
Saint Francis the Knight: War and the Battle of Collestrada
From the Sword to Silence
In 1203 tensions between Assisi and neighbouring Perugia erupted into bloodshed. Francis, filled with fervour, finally saw his opportunity to prove himself by taking part in the Battle of Collestrada, on the plain dividing the two rival cities. But the dream was shattered in the dust of the battlefield: Perugia prevailed, and for Francis there was no glory, only the mire of defeat and the weight of chains.
The Imprisonment of Saint Francis in Perugia
Together with his fellow soldiers, he was captured and taken as a prisoner beyond the walls of Perugia. Tradition holds that he was confined in the city’s dungeons, in the area known as Sopramuro, where today stand the Palazzo del Capitano del Popolo and the former University building.
The Crisis and the Beginning of Saint Francis’s Conversion
In the darkness of the prison, illness began to consume his body while, at the same time, nourishing his soul. When at last his father Pietro paid the ransom to secure his release, what emerged from that darkness was no longer the carefree reveller of former days: beneath the worn garments beat the heart of a man beginning to see the world with new eyes.