The Story of Assisi

In Short

This comprehensive portrait of Assisi traces the Umbrian city’s journey through centuries of ferocious warfare, civic independence, and religious transformation. Central to its identity are Saint Francis and Saint Clare, whose radical ideals of poverty and compassion reshaped the medieval world. Gordon examines how their legacy inspired architectural and artistic marvels, most notably the great Basilica of San Francesco filled with masterpieces by Cimabue and Giotto. By blending civic history, religious lore, and detailed art criticism, the book captures how a small hill town became a lasting sanctuary for pilgrims and art lovers alike.

The Story

The narrative opens in the turbulence of the Middle Ages, portraying Assisi as a fiercely independent town locked in brutal, ongoing feuds with its neighbors, particularly Perugia. As siege, pillage, and factional strife between Guelphs and Ghibellines tear through the Umbrian valley, the city fortified its gates and watched anxiously from its palace towers. Yet from this violent soil emerges a spiritual revolution in the early thirteenth century. Francis, the son of a wealthy merchant, turns away from his early life of vanity and worldly ambitions following a period of deep internal crisis. Setting out to live in complete poverty, he attracts a devoted band of followers, including the young noblewoman Clare Scifi, who escapes her family's aristocratic demands to found her own order. Together, they establish sanctuaries across the valley, ministering to lepers, preaching to birds, and transforming the religious consciousness of Europe.

Following the death and rapid canonization of Francis, the focus shifts to the colossal effort to preserve his physical and spiritual legacy. Brother Elias, a complex and controversial leader among the early friars, orchestrates the secret burial of the saint to protect his remains from Perugian raiders, giving rise to persistent local legends of a vast, hidden subterranean church. Simultaneously, construction begins on the towering Basilica and Convent of San Francesco. The history of Assisi becomes inextricably bound up with the evolution of early Italian art. Great painters gather to adorn the walls of both the Upper and Lower churches: Cimabue paints grand, solemn angels that bridge Byzantine stiffness and human emotion, while Giotto revolutionary frescoes introduce lively human drama, everyday observation, and dramatic spatial depth through the story of Francis's life and allegories of Poverty, Chastity, and Obedience.

In its later chapters, the book guides the reader through the physical town itself, exploring the soaring fortress of the Rocca Maggiore, the ancient municipal buildings, and the delicate church of Santa Chiara. Gordon brings the narrative into the modern era, showing how the medieval past lives on through the living traditions of Umbria—culminating in the vivid, heartbreakingly intense annual pilgrimage to the Portiuncula, where penitents travel from afar to seek redemption in the very shrines Francis built with his own hands.

How It Unfolds

The valley torn by war Assisi endures brutal sieges and pillage at the hands of its fierce rival Perugia, forcing citizens to bar their doors, raise street chains, and fight desperately to defend their independence and holy relics.

The awakening of a prophet Francis, a wealthy young man, experiences a solitary, agonizing spiritual crisis among the familiar olive groves, abandoning his comfortable past to rebuild ruined chapels and embrace absolute poverty.

Tales of grace and wonder The early friars establish humble settlements, giving rise to gentle traditions like Francis taming the wolf of Gubbio, singing with nightingales, and forgiving the childish kitchen disasters of Brother Juniper.

A secret buried in stone Following the death of Francis, Brother Elias orchestrates a dramatic, chaotic burial that safeguards the saint's body from thieves and gives birth to a enduring legend of a hidden subterranean sanctuary.

Saints in light and color Master painters transform the newly built Basilica into a monument of Italian art, as Cimabue crafts majestic angels and Giotto paints vibrant scenes of human life and spiritual devotion.

Noble origins of Santa Chiara Clare Scifi defies her family’s military ambitions and wealthy marriage proposals, founding her own order in a pink-and-cream stone church that later helps protect the city from invading armies.

The modern pilgrimage In the hot days of late summer, devout pilgrims flock to the Portiuncula shrine, performing grueling, fervent acts of penance to seek atonement where the Franciscan movement first began.

The People

• Saint Francis of Assisi: Driven by a deep desire to shed his comfortable youth and serve the poor, he faces intense internal doubt and societal mockery before founding the Franciscan movement, ultimately transforming into a beloved spiritual guide whose gentle influence reaches across all of Italy.
• Saint Clare (Chiara Scifi): Seeking a life of quiet prayer and renunciation, she must overcome the fierce resistance of her noble family, who wish to marry her off to an Assisan aristocrat; she emerges as the strong, devoted founder of the Poor Clares.
• Brother Elias: A cunning and forceful leader within the early Franciscan order, he wants to secure the town's precious relics and erect a grand monument to Francis, placing him at odds with friars who favor total simplicity and sparking a public riot during the saint's burial.
• Brother Juniper: The affectionate "jester" of the brotherhood who wants only to serve his companions, though his well-meaning simplicity often results in hilarious culinary catastrophes that test the patience of his fellow friars.

In Its Own Voice

"All these towns were dear and familiar to Francis. He had watched them in spring time when the young corn was ripening near their walls and the children came out to look for the sweet scented narcissi."

Francis looks out over the Umbrian landscape shortly before realizing the emptiness of his early life.

"To Cimabue belongs the conception of such grave and strangely beautiful creations, winged messengers of strength, who come midway between the stiff Byzantine figures, and the swift-moving angels of Giotto..."

A critical appreciation of the monumental angels painted along the transept walls of the Upper Church.

"Resting her naked feet against the knees of a man kneeling behind her, she pushed herself forward with the movement of a caterpillar."

An eye-witness observation of an intense, grueling act of penance performed by a young pilgrim at the Portiuncula.

What It's Really About

Underneath its topographical and historical detail, the book explores how radical spiritual ideals leave an indelible physical imprint on the material world. It contrasts the destructive, transient nature of feudal warfare and political ambition with the enduring, quiet power of saintly devotion. By tracing how a message of radical simplicity was translated into magnificent stone basilicas and luminous frescoes, Gordon examines the delicate tension between pristine faith and the grand monuments built to contain it. Ultimately, the work asserts that the true spirit of a place resides not just in official records, but in the living traditions, folk legends, and artistic masterworks that preserve human memory across centuries.

Why Read It Today

This volume is an exceptional companion for art lovers, travelers, and history enthusiasts who want more than a standard guidebook. Gordon writes with an engaging, intimate tone that places the reader directly on the dusty roads and cold stone corridors of Umbria. Her descriptions of early Renaissance art are particularly striking, offering clear-eyed, evocative analysis of brushwork, color, and emotion without slipping into dry academic jargon.

The reader should be prepared for a detailed, slow-paced exploration that spends as much time analyzing the iconography of ruined frescoes as it does recounting dramatic medieval battles. Some readers may find the inclusion of medieval church traditions or localized legendary lore somewhat slow, but these elements reflect the genuine atmosphere of early twentieth-century travel writing. What remains with you is a deep, immersive sense of place—a vivid understanding of how landscape, faith, and artistic genius converged to make a small Italian hill town a monument of Western culture.