On August 20, 1854, the residents of Procida gathered at dawn in the Church of San Leonardo to pray for deliverance from a cholera epidemic; when the contagion ceased, widespread devotion led to the major expansion of this site on Via Vittorio Emanuele 47. The local cult dates to the 16th century, when funds were raised here to ransom Procidan sailors captured by North African pirates.
What to see
Set above street level and reached via a flight of steps, the church features an 1886 facade with Corinthian pilasters and a triangular pediment, flanked by an 1889 octagonal exposed-tufa bell tower. Inside, the Latin-cross layout is covered by a barrel vault and capped by a neo-Gothic dome with gilded stucco work. The 1882 high altar in Carrara marble holds a wooden statue of Saint Leonard accompanied by a miniature sailing ship, a tower, a figure with broken chains, and a silver ex-voto chain dated 1850, marking the island's final ransomed captive. The central apse is flanked by chapels dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Heart of Mary. The interior also features a 16th-century marble baptismal font, a polychrome marble pulpit, and the Chapel of the Rosary added around 1940. Statues in the side aisles depict Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Saint Cyrus over the figure of Saint Tarcisius, Saint Rita, Saint Mary Frances of the Five Wounds, Saint Jude Thaddeus containing relics of Saint Theodore, an 18th-century Our Lady of Sorrows in gold-embroidered black robes, Saint Joachim with the infant Mary, and a bust of the Ecce Homo.
Visiting
Designated a parish church in 1925, San Leonardo has housed the Confraternity of the Addolorata (known as "I Rossi" for their red cloaks) since 1966. Every year around August 20, the local community holds religious services and events to mark the 1854 cessation of the plague.
Our editors' tip
Examine the silver chain beside the main statue of Saint Leonard: the engraved name and date of 1850 provide a direct physical record of the last Procidan sailor freed from captivity.