Although the Duomo is Milan's central cathedral and is surely the city's most beautiful artistic, architectural and sculptural achievement, the Church of St Ambrose is dearer for the Milanese, for it gives shelter to the remains of the city's patron and most beloved saint.
Aurelius Ambrosius was one of the most important figures in Western Christianity and is one of the first four Doctors of the Church, along with St Gregory the Great, St Augustine and St Jerome. He was born into a Roman Christian family in 340 A.D. in Trier, in today's westernmost part of Germany, where his father was the praetorian prefect of Gaul. Legend has it that when Ambrose was still a child a swarm of bees landed on his face and left a drop of honey. His father interpreted this as a sign of his future eloquence, and to this day bees make up an important part of the saint's symbology. After studying law, literature and rhetoric in Rome, Ambrose assumed the position of Governor of Liguria and Emilia based in Milan, which had been the capital of the Western Roman Empire since 286 A.D.
In 374 Auxentius, the Bishop of Milan died and left the throne up for grabs between Catholics and Arians, the denomination to which Auxentius belonged. The Arians, who followed the teachings of Arius, a priest from Alexandria, Egypt, believed that Christ, the Son of God, was inferior to God the Father because He did not always exist, but was created. The fight for the bishopric of Milan was not a violent one and in the end Ambrose, who had always been popular among the citizens, was elected by both factions thanks to his gifts of diplomacy, understanding, persuasion and, as his father had foreseen, honey-tongued oratory skills. However, after his election, Ambrose did everything in his power to stop the spread of Arianism, even if it meant going against councils, synods and Emperor Valentinian II himself, who was an Arian. Even when he was threatened with imprisonment if he did not give one Milanese church to the Arians, Ambrose stood his ground with unflinching conviction, barricading himself inside that church until the imperial forces backed down.
Ambrose was also known for his firm anti-Semitic stance. Once in 388, eight years after Christianity had become the official religion of the Roman Empire, the local bishop and a group of monks destroyed a synagogue in Mesopotamia. When Emperor Theodosius the Great ordered them to pay for the rebuilding of a new church, Ambrose wrote to the emperor defending the Christians, saying, "Shall the bishop be compelled to re-erect a synagogue? What real wrong is there, after all, in destroying a synagogue, a 'home of perfidy, a home of impiety,' in which Christ is daily blasphemed? All synagogues should be destroyed, and no such places of blasphemy should further be allowed to exist." In the end, the emperor withdrew his order. Ambrose also taught young Christians never to marry Jews, for he considered them impure and parasitic.
So influential had Ambrose become that once he even excommunicated Emperor Theodosius after he massacred 7,000 people who rioted and murdered a military governor. The emperor had to repent for several months before being readmitted to the Eucharist, that is, being allowed to practice Christianity. Ambrose also persuaded Theodosius to issue the "Theodosian decrees," which completely banned pagan ritual and practices.
Ambrose died in Milan in 395, two years after Theodosius. Thanks to him, Milan had become the undisputable religious capital of the Roman Empire. His forceful, yet compassionate character had made him extremely popular with the people, and it is said that he had been the most remarkable figure in Christianity since the Apostles Peter and Paul. Although he was not trained in Theology, his theological teachings and sermons were held in high esteem and inspired the conversions of many notable pagans, including Augustine of Hippo, who mentions Ambrose in his Confessions. Ambrose always taught that it is normal for liturgy to vary from place to place, because its main aim is to help people worship God, not be a dominant, invariable ideology.
Ambrose's remains lie in the crypt of the Sant'Ambrogio Basilica, where they are covered with white vestments. He is venerated in all the world's major churches: the Roman Catholic, the Eastern Orthodox, the Oriental Orthodox, the Anglican and the Lutheran. His Feast Day is December 7.
The first basilica that stood on the site of the present one was consecrated in 379, with construction supervised by Ambrose himself. He had chosen this location because a significant number of Christians were martyred in the area. In fact, he named that first church Basilica Martyrum. At the end of the 8th century a monastery was added to the basilica, providing more space for the order of canons that had established itself there. There were now two separate religious communities sharing the shrine: the secular clergy, which consisted of deacons and priests who did not take vows and lived in the world; and the Canons regular, who lived only in the monastery according to the rules of St. Augustine. The two towers - one from the 9th century, the other from the 12th - symbolized this division.
The structure that we see today was completed in 1099, or better, today's structure is the restored version of the church completed in 1099. The American bombing of 1943 did serious damage to St Ambrogio's, destroying at least half of the building. Towards the end of the 15th century, when the basilica's religious community was one of the largest landholders in Northern Italy, Donato Bramante was commissioned to renovate the rectory.
The brick basilica consists of an arcaded atrium, a central nave with two side aisles and an apse. Looking up we see a groin vaulted ceiling with ogives that are supported by semi-columns that in the lower part become single pillars. What is interesting about the interior is that there is no transept, the part running perpendicular to the nave before the presbyter. The main altar is dated from the middle of the 9th century. It is covered by a golden antependium with precious stones on both sides and is positioned exactly on the same place that St Ambrose's altar stood in the 4th century. The red porphyry-columned ciborium, or canopy stretching over the altar, was also left unscathed by the bombing. On each side of the ciborium we find a bar-relief: the front side features Christ with Saints Peter and Paul; the rear side - St Ambrose Receives the Homage from Two Monks at the Presence of Sts Gervasius and Protasus; the left side - St Benedict Receives the Homage from Two monks; and the right side - St Scholastica Receives the Homage from Two Nuns. The apse presents a 13th century mosaic depicting Christ Pantokrator with Saints Gervasus and Protasus and, at the sides, Scenes from the Life of St Ambrose. The crypt, containing the remains of St Ambrose and those of two 2nd-century martyrs, Gervasius and Protasius, is located directly under the main altar.
The Basilica of St Ambrose also contains the remains of Holy Roman Emperor Louis II, who died in Milan in 875. However, his personality and history are eclipsed by the cult of St Ambrose, who stills remains the spiritual, and political, reference point for the Milanese.