Roman Catholic Diocese of Fossombrone

The Catholic diocese of Fossombrone (Latin Name: Forosemproniensis) existed in the Italian province of Pesaro and Urbino, in the comune of Fossombrone, in the valley of the Metaurus River, 25 km (15 mi) southwest of the Adriatic seaport of Fano. In 1986, the diocese was suppressed and its territory incorporated into the diocese of Fano-Fossombrone-Cagli-Pergola. Up to 1563, the diocese had been directly subject to the papacy. It then became a suffragan of the archdiocese of Urbino.[1] In 2000, Urbino lost its metropolitan status, and Fossombrone became part of the ecclesiastical province of Pesaro.[2][3]

Co-cathedral, Fossombrone

History
Map of diocese of Fano-Fossombrone-Cagli-Pergola

Christianity was introduced there, according to Ferdinando Ughelli, by Felicianus of Foligno, though not until after the baptism of Constantine the Great (337).[4] The martyrologies mention several martyrs: Aquilinus, Geminus, Gelasius, Magnus and Donata, also a bishop, Timothy, and his daughter (4 February), but these persons belong elsewhere,[5] and were not honored in Fossombrone until the late 16th century.[6] The first bishop of certain date is Innocent, who was present at the synods of Pope Symmachus (504).[7]

In 558, there was trouble with the papacy, due to the intrusion of a person called Paulinus. Pope Pelagius I wrote to the Magister Militum Joannes to have the pseudoepiscopus Paulinus taken into custody. In another letter to the Illustri Viator and Pancratius, he ordered that Paulinus be taken to a monastery, to which he had been relegated, as soon as possible. In a third letter, he ordered Basilius and Ocleantinus, who were defenders of Paulinus, to cease and desist from his cause. In a fourth letter, the pope requested Magister Joannes to bring Paulinus to him.[8]

Fossombrone was included in the Donation of Pepin, but remained subject to the Duchy of Spoleto[9] until 1198, when it passed under papal rule. Pope Alexander II, in the bull "Cum in Dei" of 15 May 1054, defined the boundaries of the diocese.[10] Pope Victor II (1055–1057) noticed the impoverished state of the diocese of Fossombrone, and gave the bishops the church of S. Giovanni in Sorbitulo with its income.[11] Some of the property belonging to the church of Sorbitulo, the castle of Laureto, was subject to an attempt in 1182 by the Prior of Fons Avellana to acquire it; Pope Lucius III appointed three cardinals to investigate the claims, and then took the church under his protection.[12]

The diocese was then held in fief of the Holy See by different families: by the house of Este (1210–28), the Malatesta (1340-1445), the Montefeltro of Urbino, 1445-1631); from 1500 to 1503 it acknowledged the rule of Cesare Borgia.[13]

On 4 June 1563, Pope Pius IV signed the bull "Super Universas", by which he elevated the diocese of Urbino to the status of metropolitan archdiocese. He assigned as suffragan dioceses of the new ecclesiastical province Cagli, Sinigaglia, Pesaro, Fossombrone, Montefeltro, and Gubbio. Fossombrone was no longer directly dependent upon the papacy.[14]

The cathedral of Fossombrone is dedicated to the martyr Saint Maurentius[15] and to Bishop Aldobrandus. The cathedral had a Provost, a Theologus, a Penitentiarius and eleven canons.[16]

Bishop Lorenzo Landi (1612–1627) presided over a diocesan synod on 28 July 1619.[17] Bishop Benedetto Landi (1628–1632) held a diocesan synod in 1629.[18]

Diocesan Reorganizations

Following the Second Vatican Council, and in accordance with the norms laid out in the council's decree, Christus Dominus chapter 40,[19] Pope Paul VI ordered a reorganization of the ecclesiastical provinces in Italy. He ordered consultations among the members of the Congregation of Bishops in the Vatican Curia, the Italian Bishops Conference, and the various dioceses concerned.[20]

On 18 February 1984, the Vatican and the Italian State signed a new and revised concordat. Based on the revisions, a set of Normae was issued on 15 November 1984, which was accompanied in the next year, on 3 June 1985, by enabling legislation. According to the agreement, the practice of having one bishop govern two separate dioceses at the same time, aeque personaliter, was abolished. The Vatican continued consultations which had begun under Pope John XXIII for the merging of small dioceses, especially those with personnel and financial problems, into one combined diocese.

On 30 September 1986, Pope John Paul II ordered that the dioceses of Fano, Fossombrone, Cagli, and Pergola be merged into one diocese with one bishop, with the Latin title Dioecesis Fanensis-Forosemproniensis-Calliensis-Pergulana. The seat of the diocese was to be in Fano, whose cathedral was to serve as the cathedral of the merged diocese. The cathedrals in Fossombrone, Cagli and Pergola were to have the honorary titles of "co-cathedral"; the Chapters were each to be a Capitulum Concathedralis. There was to be only one diocesan Tribunal, in Fano, and likewise one seminary, one College of Consultors, and one Priests' Council. The territory of the new diocese was to include the territory of the suppressed dioceses. The new diocese was a suffragan of the archdiocese of Urbino.[21]

In 2000, Urbino lost its metropolitan status, and became, along with its former suffragans, part of the ecclesiastical province of Pesaro.[22]

Bishops of Fossombrone

Erected: 5th Century
Metropolitan (1563–2000): Archdiocese of Urbino–Urbania–Sant’Angelo in Vado; from 2000: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Pesaro

to 1370
  • Innocent (attested 504)
...
  • Petrus (attested 876–877)[23]
...
  • Reginhardus (attested 967)[24]
...
  • Adam (attested 1036–1044)[25]
  • Benedictus (attested 1049–1070)[26]
  • Fulcuinus (Fulcinus) (attested 1076),[27]
...
...
  • Gualfredus (attested 1140)[29]
...
  • Nicolaus (1179–1197)[30]
  • [Anonymous] (1201– ? )[31]
  • Ubertinellus (1217)[32]
  • Monaldus (attested 1219–1228)[33]
  • Ricardus (attested in 1243)[34]
  • Gentilis
  • Jacobus de Cluzano (1286– ? )
  • Monaldus (1296–1303)
  • Joannes (1304–1317)
  • Petrus (Gabrielli) (1317–1327)
  • Philippus (1327–1334?)
  • Arnaldus (1334–1342)[35]
  • Hugolinus (1342–1363)
  • Galvanus (1363–1372)

1370 to 1800

1800 to 1986
  • Stefano Bellini (1800–1807 Appointed, Bishop of Recanati e Loreto)
  • Giulio Maria Alvisini (1808–1823)[53]
  • Luigi Ugolini (1824–1850 Died)
  • Filippo Fratellini (1851–1884 Died)
  • Alessio Maria Biffoli, O.S.M. (1884–1892 Died)
  • Vincenzo Franceschini (1892–1896 Appointed, Bishop of Fano)
  • Dionisio Alessandri (1896–1904 Died)
  • Achille Quadrozzi (1904–1913 Died)
  • Pasquale Righetti (1914–1926 Appointed, Bishop of Savona e Noli)
  • Amedeo Polidori (1931–1961 Retired)
  • Vittorio Cecchi (1961–1973 Resigned)
  • Costanzo Micci (1973–1985 Died)
  • Mario Cecchini (1986–1986 Appointed, Bishop of Fano-Fossombrone-Cagli-Pergola)
30 September 1986: United with the Diocese of Cagli e Pergola and the Diocese of Fano to form the Diocese of Fano-Fossombrone-Cagli-Pergola

Notes
  1. Kehr IV, p. 214.
  2. "Diocese of Fossombrone" Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. Retrieved February 29, 2016
  3. "Diocese of Fossombrone" GCatholic.org. Gabriel Chow. Retrieved February 29, 2016
  4. Ughelli, Italia sacra II, p. 826: "Ego in ea sententia sum, SS. Britio atque Feliciano Umbriae Apostolis praedicantibus cum caeteris ejus provinciae civitatibus Christiana suscepisse sacra, tametsi hoc ipsum haud palam ausa sit profiteri, nisi post Magnum Constantinum sacro Baptismatis fonte lustratum."
  5. H. Delahaye, Analecta Bollandiana Vol. 29 (Bruxelles 1910), p. 469.
  6. Lanzoni, p. 496: "In tempi recenti si è creduto che questi martiri morissero nell'antica Forosempronii, e nel 1584 se ne cominciò a celebrare la festa: ma le antiche tradizioni fossombronesi non ne sapevano nulla. Infatti, Come gli Ànalecta Bollandiana hanno dimostrato, quei nomi appartengono a tutt'altro luogo."
  7. Gams, p. 698. Lanzoni, p. 497. Kehr IV, p. 214: "De primo antistite Viri docti inter se discordant; A. Yernarecci (Fossombrone p. 114) Timothemn s. III ex. aut s. IV in., alii tamen Innocentium ep., qui actis conciliorum a. 499 et 501 subscripsit, primum Forosemproniensem episcopum nominant."
  8. Kehr IV, pp. 215-216, nos. 1-4.
  9. Fossombrone is not specifically named either in the donation of Pepin, or the confirmation of Charlemagne (774); it is specifically named in the Privilege of Louis the Pious (817). Augustin Theiner (ed.), Codex diplomaticus dominii temporalis S. Sedis, Volume 1 (Rome: Imprimerie Vaticana 1861), pp. 1-4.
  10. Ughelli II, p. 829.
  11. Kehr IV, p. 216, no. 5. Ughelli II, p. 829.
  12. Kehr IV, p. 217.
  13. Benigni, p. 154.
  14. Cappelletti III, pp. 206-209, who gives the date of the bull as 7 July, though the text of the bull, which he prints, says "pridie nonas junii" (4 June); if the text were to read "pridie nonas julii" the date would be 6 July, not 7 July. The Bullarium Romanum also prints 4 June 1563: Bullarum diplomatum et privilegiorum sanctorum Romanorum Pontificum, Taurinensis editio, Volume 7 (Turin: Dalmazzo 1862), pp. 252-254.
  15. Maurentius was a local monk, whose tombstone was said to have been discovered in the ruins of the ancient cathedral, once his monastery church, between Fossombrone and Fano in 1781; tragically, it was lost. Celestino Masetti, Memorie di San Paterniano ... Raccolte ed illustrate con documenti e note (Fano: Lana 1875), pp. 15-18. Maurentius died in 302, during the persecution of Diocletian, when Christianity was an illegal cult and they could build no churches or monasteries.
  16. Ughelli II, p. 826.
  17. Vernarecci II. 2, p. 855.
  18. Vernarecci II. 2, p. 859.
  19. Christus Dominus 40. Therefore, in order to accomplish these aims this sacred synod decrees as follows: 1) The boundaries of ecclesiastical provinces are to be submitted to an early review and the rights and privileges of metropolitans are to be defined by new and suitable norms. 2) As a general rule all dioceses and other territorial divisions that are by law equivalent to dioceses should be attached to an ecclesiastical province. Therefore dioceses which are now directly subject to the Apostolic See and which are not united to any other are either to be brought together to form a new ecclesiastical province, if that be possible, or else attached to that province which is nearer or more convenient. They are to be made subject to the metropolitan jurisdiction of the bishop, in keeping with the norms of the common law. 3) Wherever advantageous, ecclesiastical provinces should be grouped into ecclesiastical regions for the structure of which juridical provision is to be made.
  20. G. Feliciani (2005), "Il riordinamento delle diocesi in Italia da Pio XI a Giovanni Paolo II," in: L. Vaccaro (ed.), Storia della Chiesa in Europa tra ordinamento politico-amministrativo e strutture ecclesiastiche," Brescia 2005, pp. 283-300.
  21. Acta Apostolicae Sedis 79 (Città del Vaticano 1987), pp. 701-704.
  22. Acta Apostolicae Sedis 92 (Città del Vaticano 2000), pp. 568-569.
  23. Kehr IV, p. 214: "Recordamur Petrum ep., qui a. 876 et 877 sub lohanne VIII legationis munere in Galliam functus est."
  24. Bishop Reginhard attended the Synod of Ravenna on 25 April 967. Schwartz, p. 243.
  25. Adam: Schwartz, p. 243.
  26. Benedictus: Ughelli II, p. 827. Kehr IV, p. 216, no. 7 (15 May 1070). Schwartz, p. 243.
  27. Bishop Fulcinus was present at the Council of Salona in October 1076, as legate of Pope Gregory VII, to receive the oath of fidelity to the Holy See from Demetrius Zvonimir, King of Croatia and Dalmatia. Ludovico Muratori, Antiquitates Italicae medii aevi Tomus V (Milan 1741), p. 840. Gams, p. 698. Kehr IV, p. 214. Schwartz, p. 244. A bishop Fulco attended a synod of the Antipope Clement III (Wibert of Ravenna) on 27 February 1086; he might be the same person as Fulcuinus, according to Schwartz and Cappelletti III, p. 270.
  28. Ridolfo Maria da Fossombrone (1705). Vita di Santo Aldebrando già Vescovo della città di Fossombrone, etc (in Italian). Fano: Francesco Gaudenzii. Bishop Aldebrandus is said to have died aged 118.
  29. Gualfredus is known from a single document referred to by Ughelli II, p. 827, the grant of four castelli by Dux et Marchio Guarnerus. Cappelletti III, p. 270.
  30. Bishop Nicolaus attended the Third Lateran Council of Pope Alexander III in Rome in March 1179. He was present in Rome in 1196, and assisted Pope Celestine III in the consecration of three altars in the church of S. Eustachio. He also assisted, on 26 May 1196, in the dedication of S. Lorenzo in Lucina in Rome. Ughelli II, p. 827. J.D. Mansi, Sacrorum Conciliorum nova et amplissima collectio, editio novissima, Tomus 22 (Venice: A. Zatta 1778), p. 214. Gams, p. 698. V. Forcella, Inscrizioni delle chiese e d'altri edifici di Roma, Vol. 2 (Roma: Bencini 1873), p. 385, no. 1177; Vol. 5, p. 119, no. 344. Kehr IV, p. 217 no. 17 (8 March 1182).
  31. Pope Innocent III granted the unnamed bishop the monastery over which he had presided before his election. Eubel, I, p. 254, note 1.
  32. On 16 August 1217, Pope Honorius III granted bishop-elect Ubertinellus a delay in appearing in Rome for his episcopal consecration, due to the disturbances in Fossombrone and in his church. Eubel I, p. 254 with note 2.
  33. Monaldus was finally consecrated by Honorius III in his Year 8 (24 July 1223–1224). Ughelli II, pp. 827-830. Eubel I, p. 254 with note 3.
  34. Ricardus: Eubel, I, p. 254.
  35. Arnaldus: Gams, p. 698. Eubel I, p. 254.
  36. Oddo: Cappelletti III, p. 275. Eubel I, p. 254.
  37. Gozzadini was a native of Bologna and had been Bishop of Penne (1420–1433). He was appointed bishop of Fossombrone by Pope Eugenius IV on 23 March 1433. He died in 1434. Cappelletti III, p. 275. Eubel I, p. 395; II, p. 156.
  38. Andrea, who was a Doctor of Canon Law, had been Bishop of Caorle (1431–1433). He was appointed bishop of Fossombrone on 18 August 1434, and was transferred to the diocese of Osimo on 29 August 1434, by Pope Eugenius IV. Eubel II, pp. 100, 117, 156.
  39. Benveduto had been Bishop of Sagona. He was transferred to Fossombrone by Pope Eugenius IV on 29 October 1434.
  40. Of Dutch origin and a skilful mathematician, Middelburg was author of a work on the computation of Easter. He studied in Bruges and Louvain, and lectured in astrology at Padua in the 1470s. In 1481 he joined the entourage of Federico da Montefeltro, duke of Urbino, who obtained the bishopric of Fosssombrone for him on 30 July 1494, from Pope Alexander VI. In 1514, he was in Rome for the Fifth Lateran Council, and was appointed to a commission on the correction of the calendar (Struik, pp. 95-96). He resigned the diocese and died on 13 December 1534. Vernarecci, Fossombrone, II .1, pp. 552–573. Eubel, II, p. 156; III, p. 198 with note 2. D. J. Struik, "Paulus van Middelburg (1445-1533)," (in Dutch), in: Mededeelingen van het Nederlandsch Historisch Instituut te Rome, Vol. 5 (1925), pp. 79-118. "PAOLO di Middelburg," in: Enciclopedia Italiana (1935).
  41. Giovanni Guidiccioni (1782). Le rime di monsignor Giovanni Guidiccioni vescovo di Fossombrone (in Italian). Nizza: presso la Societa' Tipografica. pp. 6–10..
  42. Mazza's uncle was the prolific Servite author, Dionigi Bussotti of Florence, who became General of his Order. Giulio Negri (1722). Istoria degli scrittori fiorentini (in Italian). Ferrara: Bernardino Pomatelli. p. 148. Eubel, III, p. 198, with note 7.
  43. Accoramboni: Vernarecci II. 2, pp. 851-853.
  44. Cannuli held doctorates in theology and philosophy. He was a familiaris of Cardinal Scipione Borghese, and had been his secretary. He was consecrated bishop in Rome on 22 August 1610 by Cardinal Michelangelo Tonti. He took possession using his brother as a proxy, and appointed a Vicar-General, Antonio da Urbino, to administer the diocese. He resigned on 4 July 1612, due to illness. Vernarecci II. 2, pp. 853-854. Gauchat, IV, p. 190, with note 2.
  45. Landi had been a canon of the cathedral of Velletri, and was a Referendary of the Tribunal of the Two Signatures. Landi was 62 years of age when he died on 12 December 1627. Vernarecci II. 2, pp. 854-858. "Bishop Lorenzo Landi" Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. Retrieved November 24, 2016
  46. A native of Velletri, Benedetto Landi held the degree of Doctor in utroque iure. He had been Auditor of Cardinal Antonio Barberini, the brother of Pope Urban VIII, who consecrated him a bishop. He was named bishop of Fossombrone on 5 June 1628, by Pope Urban, and conducted a vigorous administration of the diocese, enlarging it by seven parishes and four castles. Unfortunately he was also given to litigation, notably with the Camaldolese monks, who gave him no quarter. Finally he resigned the diocese, in favor of his nephew Giambattista. Vernarecci II. 2, pp. 858-861. Gauchat, p. 190 with note 4.
  47. Giovanni Landi was appointed bishop of Fossombrone on 21 February 1633, and was consecrated by Cardinal Barberini on 24 February. He took possession of the diocese on 5 April. His term also saw a struggle with the Camaldolese, who wanted to establish an abbey inside the city of Fossombrone. In 1644, Pope Innocent X appointed him papal nuncio to the court of Turin. He died on 20 May 1647. Vernarecci II. 2, pp. 861-864. Gauchat, p. 190 with note 5.
  48. Zeccadoro was born in Rome of a family with origins in Gubbio. He was a protonotary apostolic, and had been a Referendary (judge) of the Tribunal of the Two Signatures. He served as governor of Cesena and then of Fano, and was then Vice-Legate of Bologna. He was appointed bishop of Fossombrone by Pope Innocent X on 24 August 1648. He erected the episcopal seminary, and added three new parishes to the diocese. In 1660, he held a diocesan synod. He died on 26 November 1696. Vernarecci II. 2, pp. 864-867. Gauchat, p. 190 with note 6.
  49. Fabri died on 17 April 1709. Vernarecci II. 2, p. 868. Ritzler & Sefrin Hierarchia catholica V, p. 204 with note 3.
  50. C. Palma: Vernarecci II. 2, p. 868-869. Ritzler & Sefrin Hierarchia catholica V, p. 204 with note 4.
  51. E. Palma died on 2 September 1754. Vernarecci II. 2, pp. 869-872. Ritzler & Sefrin Hierarchia catholica V, p. 204 with note 5.
  52. Peruzzini was born in Fossombrone. He became Master of Theology (1745), lectured in philosophy and theology in the houses of his Order, was Prior, and Consultor of the Holy Office. He was consecrated in Rome by Cardinal Giorgio Doria on 31 March 1755. Vernarecci II. 2, p. 872. Ritzler, VI, p. 218, with note 2.
  53. Born in Bocchignano (Abbazia di Farfa) in the Sabine country, south-west of Rieti, in 1757, Alvisini (Aloisini) was prefect of studies at the Irish College in Rome, abbot commendatory of Farfa He was Auditor of Bishop Thomas Arezzo at the papal nunciature in Russia (1802-1804). On his return to Rome he was named Rector of the Greek College in Rome (1804). He was one of the founders of the Giornale Ecclesiastico. He was named bishop of Fossombrone by Pope Pius VII on 11 January 1808, and consecrated in Rome by Cardinal Michele di Pietro on 24 January. He died on 31 August 1823. Umberto Benigni, "Fossombrone (Forum Sempronii)." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909, retrieved: 2016-10-12. M. J. Rouet de Journel, Nonciatures de Russie d'après les documents authentiques Vol. 3 (Città del Vaticano 1922), pp. xxvii, 73, 130. Ritzler & Sefrin, Hierarchia catholica VII, p. 197.

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