Church of Saint Francis of Assisi and the Sestiere Square

Located just a short walk from the city centre, the Church of Saint Francis of Assisi, built in 1603, is a small historical gem preserved within Piazza Garibaldi, the only surviving intact Sestiere square in Palmanova. Its octagonal structure tells centuries of history marked by worship, military occupations and cultural restoration.
Inside, the harmony of the spaces invites visitors into an atmosphere of quiet reflection, revealing a story of faith deeply rooted in time. Visiting the church means discovering both the religious soul and the historical memory of the star-shaped city.

In Piazza Garibaldi, the only remaining intact Sestiere square, stands the Church of Saint Francesco, built in 1603, the same year in which the foundation stone of the Doge’s Cathedral was laid.
The small octagonal church was constructed beside the adjoining convent of the Friars Minor Conventual, whose construction had begun a few years earlier, in 1598.
During the French domination in 1807, the church was converted to military use and transformed into a powder magazine, while the convent buildings were used as food storage facilities. The altars and tombs were dismantled, and many furnishings and works of art were permanently lost.
Only in 1918 was the church reopened for worship, while the former convent was sold to private owners.

Accessible for visitors with motor, sensory, intellectual and psychological disabilities.