The story
Our History
Building dating back to 1750, protected for its artistic and historical value.
Hotel Il Monastero stands on the same grounds as the ancient village of Geremeas, destroyed by the Moors during one of the many Barbary raids that once ravaged the coasts of Sardinia.
The lands—shaped like a beautiful horseshoe-shaped valley and bordered by the hills of Cuccuriello, Is Campanilis, Cabriolu, and Bruncu Cinus—were purchased in the second half of the 18th century by the Regent Gavino Cocco of Ozieri. Upon Gavino Cocco’s death, the property was inherited by the Jesuits, who allocated the estate to the College of Santa Teresa in Cagliari, which managed it until 1848, the year of the definitive expulsion of the Society of Jesus from the island.
In several historical documents recounting the history of the Jesuits, the estate is mentioned as follows:
“I have finally visited the great estate of Geremeas, and I confess to Your Reverence that the Sardinian saying is well founded: Geremeas is worth a bishop’s mitre.”
The enterprise founded by Cocco, later managed by the Jesuits and subsequently acquired by Benvenuto Dol, expanded all agricultural production, becoming a true agricultural colony. In the book “The Vine and Wine: History and Law (11th–19th Centuries)”, the Geremeas estate is cited among the most flourishing farms of its time, becoming one of the earliest examples of modern agriculture. In addition to the vineyards originally planted by Cocco, the estate included 260 almond trees, 239 fig trees, and around fifty plum, pear, apricot, peach, cherry, and quince trees. Some of the almond trees are still standing today, just a few hundred meters from the hotel.
This prosperous agricultural estate later came into the hands of the Marongiu family, who managed it from 1905 until the late 1950s, introducing new working methods and technological innovations.
The company’s success, as well as the personal achievements of Arrigo Marongiu, were such that in 1933 he was awarded the Gold Star for Rural Merit by King Vittorio Emanuele III. In 1995, the former Marongiu Farm was officially declared a site of cultural interest under Law 1089/39, Protection of Assets of Artistic and Historical Interest.
