The Wolf of Gubbio was a wolf who, according to the Little Flowers of St. Francis, terrorized the Umbrian city of Gubbio until he was tamed by Francis of Assisi acting on behalf of God. The story is one of many in Christian narrative that depicts saints exerting influence over animals and nature, a motif common to hagiography.
I like the history following the legend.
Thereafter, Gubbio venerated Francis and he received great praise from its citizens. Many of them were convinced by the miracle and offered their thanks to God, going on to be converted. This episode in the Fioretti is concluded with a note that the wolf lived for a further two years at Gubbio, going from home to home for sustenance and honoring the provisions of his agreement with Francis. At the wolf's death the city was saddened, for though he had slain so many, he was a symbol of the sanctity of Francis and the power of God.According to tradition, Gubbio gave the wolf an honorable burial and later built the Church of Saint Francis of the Peace at the site. During renovations in 1872, the skeleton of a large wolf, apparently several centuries old, was found under a slab near the church wall and reburied inside. Legend holds that the church of the Vittorina was built on the spot where Francis met the wolf.
The Wolf of Gubbio, 1877 by Luc-Olivier Merson (1846–1920).
Click to enlarge.
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