Giovanni of Capestrano's Liturgical Office for the Feast of Saint Bernardino of Siena

In the years following the death of Bernardino of Siena (1444) Giovanni of Capestrano was intensely involved with the tasks of his role as the main supporter of the cause of canonization. This project, which finally came to be realized in the Jubilee year of 1450, was close to his heart for both personal reasons and for the legitimating power that a Bernardino who had been proclaimed a saint would have for advancing the interests of the Observant movement. Along with a feverish diplomatic activity carried out by Giovanni in the triangle of Siena-Aquila-Rome, he developed a role in the construction of the written memory of his Franciscan brother.1 He promoted the registration of miracles both before and after the canonization, and assigned to Leonardo Benvoglienti of Siena the task of writing a Vita to document the early life that is, the story not well known to the wider public of the candidate for sainthood. Giovanni in turn also dedicated himself to the writing of a Vita, which incorporated Benvoglienti’s material and then carried the story to Bernardino’s death.2 Capestrano also composed