Crispin of Viterbo

Saint Crispin of Viterbo, O.F.M. Cap., (13 November 1668 – 19 May 1750) was an Italian member of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin who is now venerated as a saint for his decades of devoted service, and the spiritual wisdom he developed in the course of his life.

Biography

Crispin was born Pietro Fioretti in Viterbo, Italy. When he was five years old, his mother took him to a shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary that lay a short distance from Viterbo, where she consecrated him to the Mother of God and placed her son under Mary's special protection. The child was known for his piety and knowledge of the saints; so that the townsfolk of Viterbo were wont to call him il santarello (the little saint). He received his education from the Jesuits, before being apprenticed to his uncle, who was a shoemaker.

At the age of twenty-five he applied for admission as a lay brother, to the Capuchin house in Viterbo. Upon being accepted, he took the name Crispin. After having served for some time as a gardener and cook in the friary at Viterbo, he was sent to Tolfa, a town not far distant from Civitavecchia, to become the infirmarian. During an epidemic, he is said to have effected a number of cures, by his prayers. From tolf he was sent to Rome and later to Albano and Bracciano. Crispin was visited by illustrious men of the world, by bishops and cardinals, and even by the pope himself, who always took delight in conversing with the humble lay brother. It was Crispin's constant endeavor to imitate the virtues of his patron, St. Felix of Cantalice, whom he had chosen as his model of perfection at the beginning of his religious life.

Viterbo

See also Viterbo, Texas and Viterbo University. For ancient Ferento, see Ferentium.

Viterbo [viˈtɛrbo]  listen  is an ancient city and comune in the Lazio region of central Italy, the capital of the province of Viterbo.

It conquered and absorbed the neighboring town of Ferento in its early history. It is approximately 80 kilometres (50 miles) north of GRA (Rome) on the Via Cassia, and it is surrounded by the Monti Cimini and Monti Volsini. The historic center of the city is surrounded by medieval walls, still intact, built during the 11th and 12th centuries. Entrance to the walled center of the city is through ancient gates.

Apart from agriculture, the main resources of Viterbo's area are pottery, marble, and wood. The town is home to the Italian gold reserves, an important Academy of Fine Arts, the University of Tuscia, and the Italian Army's Aviation Command headquarters and training centre. It is located in a wide thermal area, attracting many tourists from the whole of central Italy.

Province of Viterbo

The province of Viterbo (Italian: provincia di Viterbo) is a province in the region of Lazio in Italy. Its provincial capital is the city of Viterbo. In the north, the province is bordered by the provinces of Grosseto and Siena, in the north-east with the provinces of Rieti and Terni, in the west with the Tyrrhenian Sea, and to the south by the province of Rome.

As of 2015, the province has a total population of 321,955 inhabitants over an area of 3,615.24 square kilometres (1,395.85 sq mi), giving it a population density of 89.05 inhabitants per square kilometre. The provincial president is Marcello Meroi and the province contains 60 comuni.

History

The area of the province of Viterbo contained a number of Etruscan cities including Tuscina, Vetralla, Tarquinia, and Viterbo. Viterbo was conquered by the Roman Empire in 310 BCE; despite this, minimal information is known of Viterbo until it was utilised in 773 CE by King of the Lombard Kingdom Desiderius as a base against the Holy Roman Empire. Matilda of Tuscany gifted the city to the papacy in the eleventh century. Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor was based in Viterbo as he planned to invade Rome in 1153, and Frederick I conquered the city in 1160 while preparing to attack Rome.