The Island of San Giorgio Maggiore (San Zorzi Mazór in Venetian) is a small island, located in front of St. Mark's Square in Venice.
Separated from the Giudecca island by the small Grazia canal, it is also bathed by the Giudecca canal, the San Marco basin, the San Marco canal and, to the south, the lagoon; it is part of the San Marco district.
From the foundation of the city, the island was owned by the patrician Memmo family; hence the name Isola Memmia. As a small wooden church dedicated to San Giorgio was founded there in the 8th-9th century, the island took the name of "Maggiore" to distinguish it from the island of San Giorgio in Alga. It was donated in 982 by Doge Tribuno Memmo to a Benedictine monk, Giovanni Morosini.
He decided to reclaim the area adjacent to the church to build a monastery (the monastery of San Giorgio Maggiore), of which he was the first abbot. As evidence of the cultural importance achieved by the monastery over the centuries, the façade of the Basilica of San Giorgio Maggiore stands majestically, designed by Andrea Palladio, an essential element of the panorama observable from the square.
During the Napoleonic period the monastery was almost completely suppressed; the island became a military garrison, and remained so also with the governments of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Kingdom of Italy. On the north side of the island the dock was created, separated from the San Marco basin by a quay equipped with two turrets, and the service warehouses. In this way the island could be identified as a free port.
In 1951 the Italian government granted the use of the monastery and the areas adjacent to the Giorgio Cini Foundation, creating the conditions for the restoration and redevelopment process. By reclaiming another area, it was possible to build an outdoor amphitheater, the Green Theater, inaugurated in 1954; the work recalls both the ancient theaters and the green theaters of the Venetian villas.
Also on the island, the "Giorgio Cini" Professional Institute for Maritime Activities has no longer been active for some time: currently, in part of the complex that housed the nautical school and after an elegant restoration, the Sports Center of Excellence of the Compagnia della Vela di Venezia, with its sailing school and related events.
Island of San Giorgio Maggiore
Address: San Giorgio Maggiore 30100
Phone: 041 522 7827
Site:
http://www.abbaziasangiorgio.it/Location inserted by
Stefano Vigolo