Eight hundred years ago, on the evening of October 3, 1226, Francis of Assisi died.
This year, Assisi is marking the anniversary across the places most closely connected to his life. The Basilica, San Damiano, Santa Chiara, Santa Maria degli Angeli, the Santuario della Spogliazione and other Franciscan sites have become part of an itinerant programme leading into the celebrations of October 4.
But perhaps the most interesting way to understand Francis today is not through a single monument.
It is through the places.
The stone streets of Assisi.
San Damiano, where tradition places one of the defining moments of his spiritual life.
Santa Maria degli Angeli and the Porziuncola, associated with the beginnings of the Franciscan movement.
The Basilica that now holds his tomb.
These are not simply sites connected to a historical figure.
Together, they create a geography of a life.
And maybe that is why Assisi feels different during this anniversary year.
You are not only learning about someone who lived eight centuries ago.
You are walking through the same landscape that shaped his choices, his relationships and the way he understood simplicity, nature and community.
In 2026, the Church has also declared a special Jubilee Year dedicated to Saint Francis, continuing until January 2027, inviting people to rediscover his message through Franciscan churches and places connected to him.
Eight centuries is a long time.
Long enough for a person to become history.
But in Assisi, Francis still feels strangely close.
Perhaps because some stories survive not only in books, but in places.
800 years later, you can still walk through his.