Archbishop of Monreale

Archdiocese of Monreale

The outside of the Arab-Norman cathedral is plain, except the aisle walls and three eastern apses, which are decorated with intersecting pointed arches and other ornaments inlaid in marble.

The Italian Catholic archdiocese of Monreale is in Sicily. As of 2000 it is no longer a metropolitan see, and is now a suffragan of the archdiocese of Palermo.^[1]

[edit] History

In 1174 the abbey of Monreale was declared a prælatura nullius; two years later its abbot was vested with the title and jurisdiction of a bishop. In 1182 Monreale became the metropolitan see for the diocese of Catania and diocese of Siracusa. At first the archbishops were elected by the monks, but were not always Benedictines; since 1275 the election has been reserved to itself by the Holy See.

In time the diocese of Girgenti and diocese of Caltagirone also became suffragan to Monreale; but Siracusa, in 1844, and Catania, in 1860, became archiepiscopal sees. The former having become the Metropolitan of Caltagirone, Monreale received the new diocese of Caltanisetta (1860), which see and Girgenti became its only suffragans.

Among the archbishops have been:

• Cardinal Giovanni Proccamazza (1278);
• Cardinal Aussio Despuig de Podio (1458);
• Cardinal Juan de Borja Lanzol de Romaní, el mayor (September 13, 1483—August 1, 1503)
• Cardinal Pompeo Colonna (1531);
• Cardinal Ippolito de' Medici (1532);
• Alessandro Farnese (1536);
• Ludovico de Torres (1584);
• Cardinal Vitaliano Visconti (1670);
• Cardinal Traian d'Acquaviva d'Aragona (1739).

From 1775 to 1802 Monreale and Palermo were united.^[2]

[edit] Notes

1. ^ Catholic Hierarchy page
2. ^ Catholic Encyclopedia article

This article incorporates text from the public-domain Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913.