The Basilica of San Francesco alla Rocca was built starting in 1237 on land that Pope Gregory IX had donated to the Franciscans, and the pre-existing Palazzo known as the Alemanni, dating back to 1208, was incorporated into the convent complex adjacent to the church.
The building was restored during the 16th century and again in the 17th century. These renovations added Baroque touches that covered the original Romanesque elements. A plaque set in the facade notes that the church, half-destroyed by Allied bombings on January 17, 1944, was rebuilt by the Lazio Monuments Authority and reopened to the public in April 1953: the reconstruction works led to the complete removal of Baroque elements and the restoration of the ancient Romanesque structure.
Of particular historical interest is the adjoining convent, now home to the military district of Viterbo, which throughout its history has hosted various saints, popes, and emperors; until its expropriation in 1873, it housed the Franciscan theological university.
The Basilica of San Francesco alla Rocca has been administered for many decades by the Conventual Friars Minor (O.F.M.Conv.). The facade features a Romanesque portal with twisted columns; above the portal are the insignia of Pope Pius XII, who granted the church the title of “minor basilica” (1949); further above are three single-light windows and an oculus.
The original Romanesque facade also had a portico and was decorated with various frescoes. At the right corner, there is a hexagonal pulpit, erected in 1428 to commemorate the preaching in Viterbo of Saint Bernardino of Siena. The church is flanked by a bell-gable with a bell dated 1259.
