The old church hosted the priests belonging to the Order of the Canons Regular of S. Maria di Reno from the 12th century. In the 15th century they had it rebuilt and enlarged thus making it more respectable. The building that can be seen today differs a lot from the original one. As a matter of fact, the original church was almost totally destroyed between 1606 and 1623 when it was replaced by a monumental building designed by father Ambrogio Mazenta and the architect Tommaso Martelli.

Three big copper statues by Orazio Provaglia stand out over the imposing façade. Inside the building (Baroque style) there is only one wide and bright nave built on tall Corinthian columns, next to which there are the chapels. In the church some important woks of art may be found: several paintings dating back to the 16th, 17th and 18th century; the polyptych representing S. Vitale from Bologna including the Incoronazione della Vergine, San Giovanni Battista by Giuseppe Maria Crespi, the 14th century board portraying Madonna della Vittoria by Lippo di Dalmasio, and a painting portraying the Beata Vergine al Tempio with Sir Thomas from Canterbury (who lived in Bologna as a student), originally located on the English students' altar.

Inside the building a famous bolognese painter was buried: Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, also known as il Guercino.