Part of a Series on Vincentian Heritage Places

Florence

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When Ozanam was 20 years old he visited Florence, which “profoundly influenced his life, teaching, and scholarship.” Florence, “where every corner provided an encounter with the great poet Dante, left an indelible mark on the impressionable Frédéric.”

Years later he returned to speak to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul’s conference in Florence (January 1853), and by that time Ozanam had witnessed his dream of a network of charity and justice become a reality. Ozanam exhorted the members of the conference of Florence, Italy, in 1853, “Let us help our neighbor as Jesus Christ did and let us put our faith under the protection of charity.”

Source: Antoine Frédéric Ozanam by Raymond L. Sickinger, University of Notre Dame Press

Painting by William James Muller showing a view of Florence at the time of Ozanam

All Vincentian Places in this Series

Red = Vincent de Paul, Blue = Frederic Ozanam, Teal = Elizabeth Seton, Yellow = Louise de Marillac

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