Convent of the Poor Clares and Church of Corpus Domini (Convento delle Clarisse e Chiesa del Corpus Domini)

The historical sources – a bull of Gregory XII and a blessing by Nicolò III d’Este – agree that 1406 was the year of the foundation of the monastery of Corpus Domini. The monastery adhered to the rule of the Observant Poor Clares in 1431 through the work of Saint Catherine of Bologna.

In the following decades, the church and monastery underwent significant renovations, thanks to donations and bequests. In 1483 – probably under pressure from Eleonora d’Aragona, wife of Ercole I – the wealthy parvenu Giovanni Romei bequeathed his sumptuous house to the adjacent monastery, which thus occupied the entire block. The building was only completely appropriated by the nuns in 1491, and after a series of long setbacks, the building works began immediately, financed by Ercole and supervised by Biagio Rossetti.

The convent enjoyed the continuous protection of the Este family. A frequent visitor was Lucrezia Borgia, who is buried here with her husband Alfonso I d’Este and their children; Cardinal Ippolito II d’Este commissioned pictorial decorations, while during the 16th century, two Este abbesses succeeded each other at the helm of the monastery.