Vallombrosa

Vallombrosa, village, Firenze province, Toscana (Tuscany) region, north central Italy, in a valley on the northern slope of the Monti (mountains) Pratomagno, 21 mi (33 km) southeast of Florence (Firenze). Surrounded by a magnificent forest, it was originally the site of the hermitage of Sta. Maria d’Acquabella and later that of the Benedictine monastery founded in the 11th century by St. John Gualberto (or Gualbert). Although the monastery was plundered by the troops of the Holy Roman emperor Charles V in 1529 and those of Napoleon in 1808 and finally confiscated in 1866, its buildings (largely 17th century) and rich art works remain. The village is now a summer resort, and the monastery, which served as a school of forestry (1870–1914), is now used for summer schools of the University of Florence.