A short distance from the Duomo, along Via Maitani, there is a damaged plaque describing Piazza Febei, commonly known to the locals as Piazza San Francesco, as ‘the highest point in the city’.
The chiesa di San Francesco and the adjoining convent were built in the 13th century, next to Palazzo dei Coelli, on the site of a previous church dedicated to Santa Maria della Pulzella and a monastery inhabited by Benedictine monks. The entire complex was expanded in 1262 by order of St Bonaventura and consecrated in 1266 by Pope Clement IV. From that moment on, St Francis’ church played an important role for the city. Tradition attributes the foundation of the convent to St Francis in person, and this church in Orvieto seems to have been the second Church named after the humble man of God, after the Basilica of Assisi.
What is certain is that the building had to serve as the city’s cathedral for many years and important historical events took place within its walls, such as the funeral of King Henry of England and the canonization of Louis IX of France by Boniface VIII.
The cloister was rebuilt in the 16th century according to a design by Ippolito Scalza, while the Baroque-style interior was added during modern intervention in 1773.
From a structural point of view the church is simple in shape, with a single internal nave, a trussed roof and a brick facade punctuated by three entrance portals with pointed arches, surmounted by a central window and two side rosettes.
Since 2009, the rooms of the annexed convent house the Municipal Library L. Fumi.