Couvent Saint-François de Sainte-Lucie-de-Tallano

Sainte-Lucie-de-Tallano

In 1492, Rinuccio della Rocca, last great lord of La Rocca and the final figure of the resistance of the Cinarchesi lords against the Republic of Genoa, founded a Franciscan convent on the site of his own castle, whose walls were reused for the church and the central block: an act of piety by a warrior who sensed the end of a world — a few years later, defeated by Genoa, he would lose everything. Consecrated in 1593 after the enlargements of the 16th century, the church with its single nave and six side altars housed up to twelve Franciscan friars and became one of the great spiritual centres of the island. Here, open in the floor, could be seen the arca, the collective burial pit where the people of the Tallano were laid to rest until the imperial ban of 1804 — a striking memory of Corsican funeral vigils. The convent was also a seat of power: in 1772 it housed the Junta of the Tallano, the local court, and hosted assemblies during the Corsican revolutions of the 18th century. Sold as national property in 1803, occupied for a time by the gendarmerie, then abandoned, the ensemble was listed as a monument historique in 1980. Its rebirth is very recent: restored from 2017 to 2022 by the architect Amelia Tavella — an award-winning project that brings old stone and copper into dialogue — it now houses a media library and a cultural centre of the Collectivité de Corse. Beneath the groin vaults of the gallery, five centuries of Corsican history can be walked through at a slow pace.

Getting there : Beside the D268 at the entrance to the village (Jard du Couvent), large car park opposite; free access to the exterior, media library and cultural centre open since 2025, church visible depending on opening times.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound