A place among the rice fields: the Abbey of Lucedio

Let’s travel to the Vercelli area, where we discover this abbey that once served as a landmark in the "land of rice".

The Abbey of Santa Maria di Lucedio is located in Lucedio, one of the hamlets of the municipality of Trino, in the province of Vercelli, Piedmont.

It was founded in the early 12th century by a group of monks from the Cistercian Order, who came from the monastery of La Ferté in Burgundy. The land they settled on—partly marshy and partly wooded—had been donated to them by Marquis Ranieri I of Montferrat.

These monks were the first to introduce rice cultivation to Italy, making Lucedio the birthplace of Italian rice. From this location, the system of "grange" farms spread—agricultural enterprises developed through deforestation and land leveling.

After reclaiming the area, the abbey was likely built around 1123. From that moment, under the careful leadership of its abbots, it began to expand both spiritually and temporally.

One abbot who particularly stood out was Oglerio of Lucedio, beatified by Pope Pius IX on April 8, 1875. During the Middle Ages, the abbey played a key role in the history of the Marquisate of Montferrat, with its land holdings stretching across the entire Montferrat region and even into the Canavese area.

Its strategic location along the Via Francigena was crucial, as it significantly contributed to the abbey’s economic development and, consequently, to its political influence.

The nearby Cistercian abbey of Santa Maria di Rivalta, built in Rivalta Scrivia, a hamlet of the municipality of Tortona in the province of Alessandria, was established as a daughter house of Lucedio.

In the mid-15th century, through a Papal Brief issued by Pope Callixtus III, the monastery ceased to belong to the Cistercian Order and became a commendatory abbey, placed under the patronage of the Paleologi family—Marquises of Montferrat—who were granted the rights to collect its revenues and appoint its abbot.

Later, the estate was held by the Gonzaga family until the early 18th century, when it came under the control of the House of Savoy and followed its fortunes.

Today, the remnants of the ancient monastery include: the octagonal bell tower, the cloister, the chapter house with stone columns, and the Hall of the Lay Brothers.

The original abbey church was demolished to make way for a new Baroque-style one, which now stands in urgent need of restoration.

Within the fortified walls, there is another church known as the “people’s church,” which was used for religious services for the local common folk. This sacred building, designed in the late Baroque style by architect Giovanni Tommaso Prunotto, now serves as an agricultural storage facility.

There are many legends—some of them quite eerie—associated with the interior of the abbey and the surrounding grounds.

This site continues to exude a powerful medieval atmosphere.

Photo: The Abbey of Lucedio amid the flooded rice fields (from piemonteitalia.eu)