The abbey of San Zeno was erected in the 9th century on the remains of a preexisting monastery, whose origins date back to the 4th century. Of the abbey, the abbey tower of San Zeno and several cloisters that are now part of the basilica of San Zeno survive. It was very important both for the history of Verona and for the relations the German emperors had with Italy.
Historians have ascertained the presence of an early Christian sacellum from the 4th century in the cloisters, now called the sacellum of St. Benedict, however, the construction of the abbey proper was given impetus in the 9th century in the Carolingian era and developed at the behest of the Veronese archdeacon Pacifico, Bishop Rotaldo and the Frankish king Pepin, son of Charlemagne. According to images from the period and recent findings, there was a second tower located to the northeast and the Abbot's palace, adjacent to the abbey tower. Before the extension of the city walls by the Scaligeris, the area of San Zeno was outside the walls and therefore the buildings in the ward were often located so as to be safe and to obtain defense even though they were located outside the city: in that historical phase the ward was thus developed, protected precisely by the presence of the abbey itself.
It was destroyed in the Napoleonic era and therefore did not follow the fate of Verona's abbey properties, which upon the replacement of the French by the Austrians became part of the Austrian state property, sometimes redeemed as in the case of Santa Maria in Organo. From the beginning of the nineteenth century began a period of divestment of the ancient Benedictine abbey that ended in the mid-twentieth century. From the post-war period onward, numerous restoration works were carried out on the tower and part of the original abbey, which can currently be visited and are well maintained.
History
Early Christian and Carolingian origins
There are no sources to trace the foundation of the monastery of St. Zeno in Verona, but it has been speculated that its origin may date as far back as the fourth century, when the saint himself was alive. According to what is recounted in the "Chronicle" of the Veronese notary Coronato, upon the death of St. Zeno (371), an initial church was erected on the site of his tomb, from which the present basilica later developed. According to reports by Giovanni Battista Biancolini beginning in 750 the complex served as an episcopal see for the diocese of Verona until 804, when church and monastery were destroyed "ab infidelibus hominibus," perhaps Huns or Avars but more likely Frankish insubordinates or Arian survivors.
Two years later, King Pepin of Italy and Bishop Ratoldo decided that a new, larger and more worthy building should be built on the site to house the saint's remains. According to what can be read on an inscription placed inside the Verona cathedral, this building was to be overseen, at least in part, by the Archdeacon Pacifico. In the Codice Diplomatico Veronese it is stated that it was Charlemagne himself who confirmed the work. The monastery of San Zeno had in its possession: the monastery of S. Pietro di Mauriatica, the churches of S. Lorenzo di Ostiglia and SS. Firmus and Rusticus.
Once the works were finished, between the end of the 9th century and the beginning of the 10th century, during Carolingian rule, the Benedictine monastery grew in importance, gaining substantial social and economic recognition to the extent that it managed to emancipate itself from the power of the bishop. At this time, and most likely even earlier, the monastery must have been provided with a scriptorium, as was moreover customary in Benedictine monasteries, where the monks were busy copying manuscripts; however, there is no certainty of this until at least 1315, the year in which there is definite evidence of its presence; the debate is still open among historians. Not much is known about the books kept there but it is certain that the monks received from Pepin as gifts, in addition to land and objects of worship, "Gospels written in pen all adorned with gold and with precious gems." In addition, in 1940, two manuscripts were found that were certainly part of the monastery's library, Justinian's Institutiones and St. Augustine's Tractatus in Ioannis evangelium, with the latter being annotated "Liber monasterii Sancti Zenonis Maioris de Verona." It is likely that it was there, between the 11th and 12th centuries, that an anonymous monk wrote Vita S. Zenonis and Historia translationis S. Zenonis.