Santa Trinita Square

Small in scale, the square retains the irregular outline of medieval urban spaces. Its formation is closely tied to the Vallombrosans, the Benedictine order reformed by St John Gualbert. This Florentine saint opposed the bishops’ simony—the sale of church offices—and his reform also challenged imperial power and abuses by the powerful in defence of ordinary people. The early history of Santa Trinita’s monastery, founded in the second half of the eleventh century, therefore runs alongside the birth of Florence’s commune and its gradual emancipation from imperial authority. This was the time of Countess Matilda’s conflict with Emperor Henry IV. The Vallombrosans and the city supported the countess and Pope Gregory VII, beginning Florence’s Guelph allegiance. In later centuries the square and monastery remained central to religious, cultural and social life. The church’s architectural alterations and rich painted decoration testify to this, commissioned by the great families who built palaces on and around the square.