Chiesa di S.Maria Maggiore

Built during the Carolingian renaissance, with the entrance on the opposite side of the present, it was owned by the monks of the Farfa abbey until it was entrusted to the observant minor friars who renamed it the church of St. Francis, with little success given that the people continued to call it by its current name

The church of Santa Maria Maggiore, in Piazza Trento, better known in Tivoli as the Church of San Francesco, is believed to have been built by Pope S. Simplicio. Erected on the ruins of a Roman villa, it is one of the oldest churches in Tiburtina. The church was initially entrusted to the Benedictines, then to the conventual friars, and subsequently to the observant minor friars. In 1963, the monument to San Francesco was erected beside the entrance. On the façade, set in a small temple, is the marble that recalls the indulgence granted in 1392 by Bonifacio IX. According to some historians, the church was built on the villa of Crispo Sallustio, a Roman historian. The church has three naves supported by pillars. According to tradition, San Simplicio Papa gave this church an image of the Virgin while the cathedral church gave that of the Most Holy Savior. On the side of the church is the entrance to the famous Villa d'Este. In May 1944 the palace of the villa and the garden were damaged by the Allied bombing of the city. The north-east wing of the building was heavily damaged, the garden suffered the loss of many ancient trees and the system of pipes and fountains was damaged. The then Director of the Villa, De Angelis d'Ossat, reported that the north-east part of the building was hit by a shattering bomb, with the destruction of the roofs, of the two upper floors that housed the museum area, the ticket office and the library. : a gash in the wall left the building exposed to bad weather and atmospheric agents ".

Externally beautiful practically adjacent to the entrance of Villa D’este. Outside there is the statue dedicated to the patron saint of the church and inside the red drapes are very beautiful. A church full of history, recommended