In 1796, During Napoleon’s Campaign, the Image of Our Lady of Good Counsel Was Said to Come Alive
Abstract: In the eighteenth century, at the very beginning of Napoleon Bonaparte’s Italian Campaign, numerous extraordinary events and reported miracles occurred throughout Italy. Frosinone, then the seat of the Governor of the provinces of Campagna and Marittima—the southernmost territories of the Papal States—became widely known for the image of Our Lady of Good Counsel, which was said to come to life before worshippers gathered in prayer on 10 July 1796. The event became one of the most celebrated Marian prodigies associated with the period of the Napoleonic wars and contributed significantly to the religious and historical identity of the city.
Keywords: #ModernHistory #OurLadyOfGoodCounsel #Frosinone #NapoleonicCampaign #ItalianCampaign #NapoleonBonaparte #Miracles #GiuseppePettenati #EthicaSocietas #EthicaSocietasReview #ScientificJournal #HumanSciences #SocialSciences #ethicasocietasupli
Giuseppe Pettenati: jurist, essayist and independent historical researcher.
The Italian Campaign: the military operations conducted between 24 March 1796 and 17 October 1797 against the monarchic powers of the Ancien Régime, specifically the Kingdom of Sardinia, the Holy Roman Empire, and the Papal States. The campaign was successfully concluded by Napoleon Bonaparte, commanding the Army of Italy, with the Treaty of Campo Formio, which established French predominance in Italy.
A MARIAN MIRACLE IN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY FROSINONE
In the early modern period, the Papal States were still organized according to the Aegidian Constitutions (Constitutiones Aegidianae) of 1357 into five provinces: the Patrimony of Saint Peter, Campagna e Marittima, the Duchy of Spoleto, the March of Ancona, and the Provincia Romandiolae.
The quiet town of Frosinone, modest in both size and population, nevertheless held considerable political importance, as it served as the seat of the governor of the southernmost province of the Papal States. This province, known as Campagna e Marittima, encompassed much of present-day southern Lazio, bordering the Kingdom of Naples. Its territory extended from Rome to Ostia Antica, from the Alban Hills to the Liri Valley, and as far south as Terracina, including the exclaves of Pontecorvo and Benevento.¹
At the end of the eighteenth century, this little-known land of farmers and papal officials—where an established Masonic presence had long existed, and whose members would later play significant roles in the two Roman Republics and in the movement for Italian unification—suddenly attracted national attention because of a miraculous event that drew large numbers of pilgrims.
THE ANCIENT ABBATIAL CHURCH OF SAINT BENEDICT AND OUR LADY OF GOOD COUNSEL
In Piazza della Libertà, directly opposite the present-day Government Palace, which once served as the seat of the Papal Governor of the provinces of Campagna e Marittima, stands a church that formed part of an abbey destroyed during the bombings of the Second World War, which began on 11 September 1943.² The church itself survived, despite the near-total destruction of the surrounding buildings.
Traditionally known as the Abbatial Church of Saint Benedict, its dedication bears witness to the presence of the Benedictine Fathers in Frosinone, whose activity in the city is documented before 1153. Indeed, according to some sources, the church itself was built by the Cassinese Order before 1134.³ The medieval structure remained the property of the regular clergy until approximately 1250, when a parish was established there. Remarkably, this parish still exists today, nearly 750 years later. The secular clergy subsequently assumed responsibility for the church, inheriting not only its properties and parish duties but also the title of Father Abbot for its rector—a title that remains in use to this day.
On 25 April 1467, the Feast of Saint Mark, a painting depicting the Virgin Mary with the Child Jesus was discovered on one of the church walls. It is believed that the image had previously been covered with a layer of lime plaster. The painting quickly became the object of widespread popular devotion, and various legends emerged. According to one tradition, the image had been miraculously transported by angels from Shkodër (Scutari) to save it from the advancing Ottoman Turks during their invasion of Albania. Another legend claimed that the painting remained suspended on an extraordinarily thin layer of plaster.
Because of its association with the church, the image became known as Our Lady of Good Counsel (Madonna del Buon Consiglio), while the church itself later came to be dedicated to Saint Benedict.
ON 10 JULY 1796, THE IMAGE OF OUR LADY OF GOOD COUNSEL CAME TO LIFE
On 10 July 1796, during the early stages of Napoleon Bonaparte’s Italian Campaign, an extraordinary event was reported in Frosinone. According to numerous contemporary testimonies, the image of Our Lady of Good Counsel appeared to move and come to life before the faithful gathered in prayer inside the Church of Saint Benedict.
The phenomenon quickly attracted enormous attention and became one of the most renowned Marian prodigies of the late eighteenth century. News of the event spread rapidly throughout the Papal States, drawing pilgrims, clergy, civil authorities, and curious observers to Frosinone. The town, until then little known beyond the administrative importance of its role within the province of Campagna e Marittima, suddenly found itself at the center of religious and public interest.
The reported prodigy occurred in a historical context marked by deep uncertainty. Napoleon’s military victories in northern Italy were shaking the political foundations of the Italian peninsula and threatening the stability of the Papal States. In this climate of anxiety and expectation, the movement of sacred images reported in various parts of Italy was often interpreted by believers as a supernatural sign connected to the dramatic events unfolding across Europe.
Among these occurrences, the miracle attributed to the image of Our Lady of Good Counsel in Frosinone became one of the most celebrated and enduring, leaving a profound mark on the religious memory of the city and contributing significantly to its historical fame.
ON 10 JULY 1796, THE IMAGE OF OUR LADY OF GOOD COUNSEL CAME TO LIFE
On 10 July 1796, as contemporary chronicles report,⁴ the painting—attributed to the school of Giulio Romano and depicting Our Lady of Good Counsel—began to manifest extraordinary phenomena. Today, the image is housed in the ancient Abbatial Church of Saint Benedict, located opposite the present Government Palace in Piazza della Libertà, where the seat of the Papal Governor of the provinces of Campagna e Marittima once stood.
The account of the event is preserved by the Discalced Augustinian Father Ignazio Barbagallo,⁵ a member of the Augustinian community of Frosinone, whose friars are still custodians of the Sanctuary of Madonna della Neve, itself associated with an earlier miracle, the Sweating of the Virgin, reported on 10 May 1675.
The painting had been purchased by the noble Ciceroni family and placed in their palace, of which only a few portals and windows survive today opposite the Archaeological Museum of Frosinone.
As restoration work was being carried out on the palace, the painting was temporarily entrusted to a servant of the household and moved to the Guglielmi residence, located in the Civita district at number 97.
Every evening, Maria Salome Ronca, servant of the Ciceroni family, together with two young women of the family, recited the Rosary before the image. On 10 July 1796, they noticed that the Virgin’s eyelids appeared to move. According to witnesses, this phenomenon continued for approximately six months.
Several women were praying before the painting when they saw the image of the Virgin open her eyes and gaze upon the faithful. The prodigy reportedly continued throughout the night and was witnessed by the crowds that quickly gathered.
Accounts state that the Madonna opened her eyes while looking toward the worshippers and that her face took on a reddish hue. At times, the left eye, directed toward the Christ Child, appeared veiled with tears.
A solemn triduum was subsequently celebrated, and the faithful were encouraged to practice penance and devotion to the Virgin Mary. The phenomenon reportedly continued for six months, during which numerous spontaneous offerings were received. The Bishop of Veroli at the time, Monsignor Antonio Rossi, ordered the opening of a formal ecclesiastical investigation.
Domenico Antonio Guglielmi donated 300 scudi, while many other contributions followed. These donations made it possible to restore the central nave of the Church of Saint Benedict and to commission a crown for both the Madonna and the Child she holds in her arms.
Thanks to these generous offerings, restoration works that had been underway for decades (1750–1797) were finally completed in the Baroque-Rococo style. Yet, in 1798, only one year after the church’s completion, it was plundered by Napoleon’s Polish cavalry under the command of Vautrin and MacDonald. Fortunately, the most important relics were preserved, having been hidden beneath the floors among the burials of the crypt cemetery or entrusted to parishioners, as occurred with the painting of Our Lady of Good Counsel.
IN THE TURBULENT YEAR OF 1796, NUMEROUS MARIAN IMAGES DISPLAYED MIRACULOUS PHENOMENA
In 1796, while Napoleon’s Italian Campaign was in full progress, numerous extraordinary events were reported throughout the Papal States. The first widely documented case occurred on 25 June 1796 before an image of the Virgin in the Cathedral of Saint Cyriacus in Ancona.⁶
Within a short period, many Marian images were said to display miraculous manifestations before every kind of observer—ordinary people and scholars, believers and skeptics alike. The alleged prodigies often lasted for months. Paintings were carefully examined, testimonies were collected before notaries, and formal ecclesiastical investigations were initiated, many of which later resulted in official recognition by Church authorities.⁷
At least 122 cases were reportedly documented involving images that moved their eyes, repeatedly opening and closing them, and sometimes even changing colour or facial expression.
According to contemporary estimates, approximately half a million people witnessed these phenomena over the course of several months.
SACRILEGIOUS DEVASTATION AND THE REPEATED THEFTS OF THE CROWN OF THE MIRACULOUS IMAGE
In 1797, Napoleonic troops devastated the church and stole the crown of the Virgin Mary. Shortly thereafter, a new crown was purchased and placed upon the image during a solemn public coronation ceremony.
The following year, in 1798, French forces again plundered the city, taking the miraculous painting as well. The image was later recovered and safeguarded by a parishioner before being solemnly returned to the Church of Saint Benedict on 5 October 1863.
Even in recent times, the silver crown of the image was stolen. Although the thief was captured on surveillance cameras, the crown could not be recovered from those who received the stolen goods. Today, it has been replaced with a steel crown, which remains on the image.
ESSENTIAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
Mancini, M. (2014). The Volsci and Their Territory. Frosinone: Mancini Editore.
Stroppa, F. Historical Notes on the City of Frosinone. Edited by Marcello Cervini, Maria Teresa Onorati, and Gianmarco Spaziani, in Terra dei Volsci: Annals of the Archaeological Museum of Frosinone. Frosinone: Tipografia Editrice Frusinate.
Mancini, M. (2017). The Other Side of the Moon. Frosinone: Mancini Editore.
De Vincentis, G. Architecture of Frosinone. Available at: http://www.frusino.it/p/architettura.html
Barbagallo, I. (1975). Frosinone: Historical Outline of the City from Its Origins to the Present Day. Frosinone: Tipografia Editrice Frusinate.
Battaglini, C. (1996). The Prodigy of the Madonna of the Cathedral. Ancona.
De Felice, R. (1965). “Fear and Popular Religiosity in the Papal States at the End of the Eighteenth Century.” In Jacobin Italy. Naples.
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