Sanctuary of Montevergine, Marian shrine in Mercogliano, Italy.
The Sanctuary of Montevergine is a Marian shrine in Mercogliano, Italy, located at 1270 meters (4167 feet) on Monte Partenio. The complex includes a new basilica completed in 1961 and an older church with Gothic features from the medieval period.
William of Vercelli settled on Monte Partenio after bandits attacked him on his way to Jerusalem, and a church dedicated to the Madonna was consecrated in 1126; the sources record no apparition. After his death in 1142 the sanctuary grew between the 12th and 14th centuries through gifts from feudal lords, popes and kings, including the Madonna painting and the bones of San Gennaro, moved to Naples in 1497.
The venerated image is the painting of the Madonna di Montevergine, kept in the cathedral basilica; sources record no apparition, only William's devotion to the Virgin. The monks formed the Verginiana congregation, recognized by Pope Leo XIII on 8 August 1879, which used the local dialect to evangelize the lower classes and built hospitals across Campania and southern Italy.
A funicular opened in 1956 links the centre of Mercogliano to the sanctuary in about seven minutes, replacing the narrow, winding road once travelled by mules and on foot. The complex stands on Monte Partenio above 1,000 metres; the new basilica, the old basilica, the crypt with William's remains and the museum are all within the same group of buildings.
From 1939 to 1946 the sanctuary secretly sheltered the Shroud of Turin, hidden there to keep it from bombing raids and from Adolf Hitler. On 8 April 1944 King Victor Emmanuel III, then staying at Ravello, came to thank the prior for guarding the Shroud and other treasures of the House of Savoy.
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