The History
The Educandato Maria Adelaide, founded in the 17th century by the Sisters of the Congregation of San Francesco di Sales in Palermo, has undergone various transformations, including the construction of a convent in 1735 designed by Don Casimiro Agnetta. In 1779, Ferdinand III of Bourbon transformed the monastery into an institute for noble girls, requiring an expansion designed by G.V. Marvuglia. After conflicts between the nuns and authorities, in 1840 the institute was separated from the monastery and managed by a lay director. Having become state property in 1888, it stands today as a monument to Palermo’s architectural and social history.
The History
The boarding school, Educandato Maria Adelaide has roots that go back to the XVII century, when, in 1697, the nuns of the congregation of San Francesco de Sales settled in Palermo.
After having changed residency twice under the guidance of a French Mother Superior from Annecy, they decided to build a convent on a plot of land rented from the Padri Minimi of the monastery of “Vittoria”, along the road going to Monreale. The first stone of the complex was placed with a solemn ceremony on August 25th 1735.
The blueprint of the building and the management of the works were entrusted to Don Casimiro Agnetta, a religious Dominican, mathematician and architect, active in the XVII century. He was not only responsible for the construction of the monastery of San Francesco de Sales and of a small chapel, which today serves as a sacristy, but also of other important works in Palermo, like the Chapel of the Madonna del Rosario in the Church of San Domenico. The monastery, completed in just three years, was finally inhabited by nuns on August 25th 1738.
The original façade of the monastery was sober and harsh, with three orders of windows that allowed the view of the sky from the inside. The main door, framed by a porch of arches, represented another architectural element of great honor, which expressed a moderate and airy baroque style, typical of the era.
In 1779, Ferdinando III de Bourbon declared that the monastery had to host twenty noble but poor young girls, so that they received a moral and practical education. To adjust the building to this function, it was necessary to expand it. The works were entrusted to Giuseppe Venanzio Marvuglia, who designed a new wing above the church, preserving the stylistic consistency with Agnetta’s original building.
When the works were completed in 1782, the architectural complex presented itself as a harmonious set of two symmetrical wings, in the upper and the lower part of the church.
Over time, the management of the monastery was marked by the nuns and the lay authorities, who would have preferred a less religious education. In 1840 this dissent led to the decision of the Bourbons to separate the monastery from the boarding school. The monastery remained in the oldest part of the building, while the boarding school was transferred to the new wing and entrusted to a lay director.
After the Unification of Italy, in 1863, the boarding school underwent further transformation.
The Minister of Public Education, Michele Amari, gave the institute a new set of rules and entrusted it to a council of vigilance. Finally, the boarding school was named after Maria Adelaide of Savoia, wife of Vittorio Emanuele II. In 1888 the entire building became state property and renovations marked the beginning of a new era for the institute.
The “Educandato Statale Maria Adelaide” is not only a place of education, but an architectural and social monument of Palermo. Every stone, every yard, every arch tells a story of devotion, transformation and renewal.
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Audioguides curated by the students of Educandato Statale Maria Adelaide
School Year 2024/2025
School Year 2024/2025
