The Augustinians are a religious order that follows the Rule of Saint Augustine, inspired by the rules that the Saint wrote for the nuns of Hippo.
They were formally organised in order in 1256, when Pope Alexander IV, with the Papal Bull Licet Ecclesiae Catholicae, brought together various congregations, including the Hermits of St. Augustine, who professed and followed Augustine’s rule. During the Middle Ages, they were widely present on the island and became the closest monastic order to Roger II, as well as the most powerful. Even before his coronation, Roger had entrusted the Diocese of Cefalù to the Augustinians of Bagnara.
