Almost all of the great poets had an equally exceptional muse that inspired their best work. For Italy’s leading poet, their equivalent to Shakespeare, Dante Alighieri, his muse was Beatrice and one of the rumoured sites of their fateful first meeting is said to have been in one of Florence’s many pretty churches. For those who are great lovers of poetry and who are romance fanatics, this church could be seen as a pilgrimage site that should be added to your itinerary when you book a villa in Florence.
The church in question is the ancient Church of Santa Margherita dei Cerchi, which dates all the way back to 1032. This is where the woman thought to have been the Beatrice of whom Dante wrote, Beatrice Portinari, and her family were laid to rest and is located around the corner from their home. Interestingly, it is also thought to be where Dante was actually wed to his wife, Gemma Donati.
While the details are all somewhat uncertain and shrouded in the mists of time, the Church of Santa Margherita dei Cerchi is nonetheless a place where fans of Dante and his love story with Beatrice now come in their droves to leave messages and wishes each year. Local legend tells that Beatrice might just intercede on these visitors’ behalf and help with their love lives. A painting of an imagined fateful encounter between Dante and Beatrice by Raffaello Sorbi on her wedding day is also on display in the church.
In reality, however, Dante did marry another and in his own writings claims to have only actually crossed paths with Beatrice herself on a few occasions. What he describes for her is less like the feeling of romantic love as we know it and instead in the tradition of courtly love, a poetic expression of intense feeling almost more akin to admiration that was usually felt in secret and was rather more spiritual than earthly in nature.
Dante writes in his Vita Nuova, a collection of his poems, that he met Beatrice at a May Day party when they were both just nine years old and that he fell in love instantly. Beatrice and Dante both married others and Dante only saw her on a few more occasions. He continued to write of her in his poems, including after her death in 1290, a few short years after her marriage, when she was only in her twenties. He tells us in his works that he withdrew into an intense focus on his poems after her death and composed many pieces dedicated to her. These poems, along with the earlier works written in her praise, all came to be known as the Vita Nuova.
Beatrice also famously appears in his great fictional work and epic journey through the afterlife, his Commedia. First, the ancient poet Virgil comes to be Dante’s guide, telling him that it was Beatrice that sent him to help Dante along his way. She is then mentioned numerous time throughout the journey through Hell and Purgatory, appearing as a figure of comfort and inspiration. Beatrice shows up herself at the end of Purgatory and takes over guiding duties from Virgil directly as they travel to Paradise. While she strictly holds him to account, she also encourages and supports Dante through the spheres of heaven, until they reach Empyrean where she is at home amongst some of the glorified women of the Bible. It is in this work that the truly spiritual nature of Dante’s love of Beatrice is made clear and she is seen not as a woman but a vehicle to bring the poet closer to God.
Of course, for those who just want a bit of luck in love, it is simpler merely to pay a little pilgrimage to the charming Church of Santa Margherita dei Cerchi and make your wishes or prayers for a little extra help during a stay in one of our incredibly romantic vacation rentals in Florence.
