The Church of San Pietro in Banchi is one of the most fascinating and characteristic religious buildings in our city. It is located in the heart of the historic center, precisely in Piazza Banchi, near the Old Port. Its strategic location reflects the link between commerce and religiosity that characterized Genoese society during the Renaissance.
Origins of the Church of San Pietro in Banchi
Piazza Banchi, a stone’s throw from the ancient docks of the port (now the Old Port), Piazza Caricamento and Palazzo S. Giorgio, has for a very long time been Genoa’s main square, an important business center animated by the continuous and intense comings and goings of people from all over the world: shipowners, shipping agencies, charterers, sailors, businessmen, artisans, merchants, bankers, lobbyists and matchmakers, but if we go back in time it was also populated by pilgrims and crusaders on their way to the Holy Land.
In ancient times the sea lapped the road, and there was a church there called San Pietro della Porta, because it stood next to one of the gates of the Carolingian city walls. It had been erected on the ruins of an ancient pagan temple, although an ancient tradition, confirmed by Jacopo da Varagine, has it that the first evangelists of the Ligurians, Nazarius and Celsus, preached the Gospel in this very place.
The square owes its name to the activity of moneychangers who operated on “banks” or wooden crates. In fact, the word “bankruptcy” comes from the failure of the moneychanger and, therefore, the custom of breaking his bank.
At the end of the 1300s, fighting in the city between the Guelph and Ghibelline factions reached its peak, and the Church of San Pietro della Porta, which was devastated by arson, along with the adjoining square, also suffered.
The “modern” church of San Pietro in Banchi
The plan for the construction of the church, envisioned as part of the redevelopment of Banchi Square, began in 1572, and it was decided to orient the church in the south-north direction so that the main facade of the building would face the square and not the sea side as the previous one did.
Its construction was commissioned by the Senate of the Republic.
The church of San Pietro in Banchi is in fact one of three religious buildings (the others being the cathedral of San Lorenzo and San Bernardo) built in the city by the government of the Republic of Genoa.
The church became famous and very unique in its kind for achieving a less devotional and more economic purpose.
The reconstruction of the church of San Pietro in Banchi was due to an unusual form of financing that was more of an investment. It was made, in fact, for the purpose of selling or renting the workshops that were, and still are, under the church. An innovative idea reflecting the Genoese entrepreneurial spirit.
But there is also a more spiritual version…
As construction of the foundations slowly begins, the plague breaks out in Genoa in 1579, killing 28,250 people in three years. Meanwhile, as the disease rages, three Capuchin fathers from the convent of Santa Barnaba, after spending a night in penance and prayer, have a vision of the Immaculate Conception, who informs them that she would cause the plague to cease if the Senate raised a public vow to honor her in perpetuity with a solemn procession on December 8, and with the erection of a temple: this vision was described to the Senate.
All this had the capacity to accelerate the construction of the Church of San Pietro in Banchi, which was completed in 1585 by Andrea Ceresola, known as “Vannone,” and Giovanni Ponzello, successor to Bernardino Cantone as chamber architect.
On February 25, 1682 on the steps of the church, the musician Alessandro Stradella was murdered, probably for reasons of passion, stabbed by two assassins, possibly sent by a Venetian nobleman or by the Genoese nobleman Giovan Battista Lomellini, although the instigator of the murder was never identified.
On November 15, 1942, during World War II, an aerial bombardment caused large gashes in the facade and vault and destroyed the two small bell towers above the facade. Reconstruction was begun immediately after the war, restoring the previous appearance based on photographs and prints depicting the building.
At present, the Church of St. Peter in Banchi is rarely used for worship, but in the premises adjacent to the church the “Banchi Center,” which describes itself as “an open door for dialogue and research,” has been active since 1984, born from an initiative of Fr. Marco Granara and a group of lay volunteers who in that year obtained from Archbishop Giuseppe Siri the management of the building for its recovery for ecclesial, cultural and interreligious activities open to citizens.
In 2014 on the experience of the Center was born a time community life experience for young people. The Center animated by the youth community gives life over the years to hospitality, events, meetings, territorial networks, and socio-political, artistic, and spiritual initiatives of various kinds. Volunteers, in addition to keeping the church open to visits from tourists and citizens, are engaged in listening to people in need in order to put them in touch with the associations and operators best suited to their needs.
Where to stay
Just under a kilometer from the city center and a hundred meters from the Brignole train station, Urban Flora is the perfect place to stay for visiting the city and the Church of San Pietro in Banchi.
With us you will experience a Scandinavian-modern look, where fresh and pleasant plants will make you enjoy as much relaxation as possible and for an unforgettable vacation. All rooms provide a private bathroom, smart TV and free Wi-Fi that will make you feel right at home. Book your room now or contact us to ask for more information.
