Italy
May 9, 2026 under construction On the way to Rome with a stop at an Abbey The Abbey of Monte Cassino has quite the volatile past. The Abbey of Monte Cassino was founded in 529 AD by St. Benedict on a rocky hill about 130 km southeast of Rome. This Benedictine monastery is the oldest in Italy. The first monastery was sacked by the invading Lombards around 570 and abandoned. Of the first monastery almost nothing is know. The second monastery was established around 718. In 883, the monastery was sacked by Saracens and abandoned again. The monastery was rebuilt in 949. The buildings were destroyed by an earthquake in 1349 and 1369 Pope Urban V demanded a contribution from all Benedictine monasteries to fund the rebuilding. In 1799, Monte Cassino was sacked again by French troops during the French Revolutionary Wars. The abbey was dissolved by the Italian government in 1866. The building became a national monument with the monks as custodians of its treasures. In 1944, during World War...