The Diocese of Aleria (Latin Dioecesis Aleriensis) is, since 2002, a titular see of the Catholic Church. It was formerly a diocese of the Latin Church in the center of the eastern coast of the island of Corsica in the Department of Haute-Corse. The town of Aleria was subject to repeated raids by Arab fleets in the eighth and ninth centuries, and, eventually, abandoned. The bishop moved to a secure stronghold to the north. From at least the eleventh century, the diocese was a suffragan of the metropolitan archdiocese of Pisa. The diocese was suppressed by the Civil Constitution of the Clergy in 1790, and was not revived by the Concordat of 1801 between the French Consulate and the Papacy. [1] [2]
There is evidence that Corsica was being converted to Christianity in the late 6th century. Pope Gregory I wrote in 597 to Bishop Peter of Aleria to recover lapsed converts and to convert more pagans from the worship of trees and sacred stones (menhir). He sent him money for baptismal robes. [3] In 601, however, Aleria was without a bishop. Gregory had sent a certain Bishop Leo as Apostolic Visitor to deal with the situation in Corsica, where there had been no bishop for some time. Pope Gregory addresses Leo as episcopus in Corsica, bishop in Corsica, not bishop of Corsica, and authorizes him to perform ordinations of priests and deacons. [4] While Leo was still in Corsica, Pope Gregory sent a second bishop, Martinus to join in the Visitation. [5]
With the Arab invasions, the town of Aleria was destroyed and abandoned. The bishop and cathedral retreated to the hillside town of Cervione, above the beach of Campoloro, some 25 km north of Aleria. In 846, Adelbert the tutor Corsicanae insulae informed Pope Sergius II that a force of 11,000 Saracens, with 73 ships and 500 cavalry, had come. [6] Pope Leo IV (849–855) allowed the people of Corsica, who were fleeing from the Saracens, to settle in the town of Porto [7]
By the time of Pope Alexander II (1061–1073) there were several bishops functioning in Corsica again. [8] In 1077, Pope Gregory VII (1073–1085) entrusted the dioceses of the island to the Bishop of Pisa as his Vicar. [9] The Pope expresses happiness that the people of Corsica, after having for such a long time been subjected to the justice of the invaders, wish to return to the justice of the Holy Roman Church. [10]
In 1713 there were some 200 people living in Aleria, under the government of the Genoese, though ecclesiastically they belonged to the Metropolitan of Pisa. There were 18 towns and villages in the diocese. [11] In 1770, at the beginning of the French domination of Corsica, the bishop no longer lived in Aléria, but in Cervione. The Cathedral Chapter had one dignity and twelve Canons. The diocese had 160 parishes. [12]
On 29 November 1801, in accordance with the Napoleontic Concordat of 1801, it was suppressed as the territory of the diocese of Ajaccio was extended to the whole of Corsica.
Today, Aleria is no longer a residential bishopric, but the name was revived as a titular see in April 2002. [13]
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The Diocese of Ajaccio is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the Catholic Church in France. The diocese comprises the whole of the island of Corsica.
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The Diocese of La Spezia-Sarzana-Brugnato is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church in Liguria, northern Italy, created in 1929. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Genoa.
The Diocese of Acerra is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church in Campania, southern Italy, eight miles east of Naples, in the area once called Terra Laboris (Liburia). It has existed since the 11th century. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Naples.
The Diocese of Anagni-Alatri is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Lazio, Italy. It has existed in its current form since 1986. In that year the Diocese of Alatri was united to the historical Diocese of Anagni. The diocese is immediately exempt to the Holy See.
The Diocese of Mariana and Acci or Diocese of Accia and Mariana was a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory. It is now a titular see.
The Diocese of Accia was a Roman Catholic bishopric on the island of Corsica. It is now a titular diocese. The diocese was located in the town of Accia in the interior region of Haute-Corse, which was destroyed and from which only some ruins remain. Established in 824 AD it was merged with the Diocese of Mariana in 1554. In 1570 the Bishop of Mariana and Accia moved his seat to Bastia.
The Diocese of Mariana in Corsica was a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Mariana, Corsica, in the north-eastern corner of the island. In 1563 the diocese was united with the Diocese of Acci(a) to form the Diocese of Accia and Mariana. Both dioceses were poor and had lost population. Mariana had been abandoned and its bishop lived in Bastia to the north, the seat of the civil government of the island. The Cathedral sat alone near the banks of the River Golo some three miles from the sea, in the midst of fields.
The Diocese of Sagone was a Roman Catholic diocese in France, located in the city of Sagone, Corsica. In 1801, it was suppressed, and its Catholic population assigned to the Archdiocese of Ajaccio.
The Diocese of Nebbio was a Roman Catholic diocese located in the town of Saint-Florent in Corsica. The Cathedral is on a low hill one mile from the port of Saint-Florent. In the Medieval period the Bishop of Nebbio was also the temporal lord of nearly all the lands in his diocese. In 1667, Nebbio was completely abandoned and the bishop lived in Saint-Florent, a town of about 200 inhabitants, under the dominion of the Republic of Genoa. The diocese had some 22 places. The Cathedral Chapter had two dignities, the Archdeacon and the Provost, and three Canons. In 1770 the diocese was under the dominion of the King of France, and Saint-Fleur had about 600 inhabitants. The Chapter of the Cathedral still existed, with two dignities and six Canons.