Abbey in Rizinice

The first Benedictine monastery which was founded on the territory of Croatia, that we can confirm with certainty, was the monastery that was built in 852 by Duke Trpimir in Rižinice in Solin, not far from his court in Klis at the location of Rupotina, on the slope of the Kozjak hill. A fragment of an altar rail with the inscription pro duce Trepim[ero] serves as a witness for this event. The rootedness of the Benedictines and Benedictine culture in these areas is also evidenced by the inscription on the bronze door of the Montecassino Abbey church. The inscription lists the areas where the Benedictines left a deep mark, and Dalmatia is listed among them. The titular of the monastery was probably St. Peter.

One of the main researchers of the Benedictine tradition in Croatia, dr. Don Ivan Ostojić, states: «It could easily be that Trpimir dedicated the endowment near his court in Klis to St. Peter, because St. Peter was the patron saint of Croatia, because Peter was the name of his godfather, the archbishop of Split, and Trpimir’s son was called Peter, and perhaps a second, Christian name for Trpimir himself.» Trpimir was probably encouraged to build this monastery by a Benedictine called Gottschalk, who stayed at his court around 846.

Historian Don Lovre Katić writes about the founding of this monastery: «Probably under the influence of Gottschalk, Trpimir invited the Benedictines to his land, because in 852, in the charter donating Putalj (Sućurac) to the Split diocese, he boasts that he built a monastery and brought over a company of brothers (catervam fratrorum). In that charter, our national name (Terpimirus … dux Croatorum) is mentioned for the first time in history. Lo, a close connection between Croatian history and the Benedictines!» According to the customs of that time, it is very likely that Duke Trpimir himself, as well as the heirs from his line, was buried in this endowment of his.

FORMAL ANALYSIS