The Roman Catholic diocese of Sansepolcro was a Latin rite see in Tuscany, central Italy.[1][2] It was erected in 1515, as the Diocese of (Borgo) Sansepolcro (Italian),[3] though difficulties prevented the appointment of a bishop until 1520.[4] On 30 September 1986, the diocese was suppressed and united with the Diocese of Arezzo and the Diocese of Cortona to form the Diocese of Arezzo-Cortona-Sansepolcro.
The diocese has always been a suffragan of the archbishop of Florence.[5]
The ecclesiastical entity was established in 1013 as Benedictine monastery of S. Giovanni Evangelista di San Sepolcro, on canonical territory within the Diocese of Città di Castello.[6] In May 1046, Pope Gregory VI removed the monastery from the jurisdiction of the bishop of Arezzo.[7] On 18 January 1106, Pope Paschal II granted the monastery the privilege of baptisms in the Borgo, and confirmed the right to hold an annual fair in the Borgo, and the right to the tithe of the monastery's properties.[8] The Camaldolese monks, coming from their house in Arezzo, first appear in documents relating to the abbey of San Sepolcro on 11 January 1137.[9] In 1148, Pope Eugenius III confirmed the monastery's privileges, and granted the abbot the use of the mitre, staff, and other pontifical vestments.[10] In 1163, the Imperial Archchancellor, Archbishop Raynaldus of Cologne, promulgated an imperial decree of the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, forbidding the Camaldolese from having any authority to depose and deprive an abbot of San Sepolcro, without the license and permission of the emperor.[11]
From 1350 to 1353, Borgo San Sepolcro was occupied by Ghibelline troops of the ambitious Archbishop Visconti of Milan, who was attempting to seize all of Tuscany and Umbria, with the help of local Ghibelline adherents, the Boccagnini, the Pallavicini and the Tarlati of Arezzo. On the withdrawal of the Milanese forces after the Peace of Sarzana in 1353, a civil war broke out between Guelphs and Ghibellines, between Borgo San Sepolcro and Città di Castello.[12]
On 25 December 1352, a major earthquake struck the areas of Borgo San Sepolcro and Città di Castello, causing more than 500 deaths in Borgo. The bell tower of the monastery was destroyed, and there was major damage to the buildings of the cloister. Many sections of the town wall were thrown down.[13]
On 22 September 1515, Pope Leo X issued a bull which erected the Camaldolese monastery church of S. Giovanni into a cathedral, creating Abbot Galeazzo, who had consented to the suppression of his monastery, the first bishop of Borgo San Sepolcro. The bull was not put into effect immediately, however, due to various difficulties.[14] It was not until 18 September 1520 that Graziani was preconised and obtained his bulls of institution.[15] At the same time the prelature gained territories from the Diocese of Arezzo and Diocese of Città di Castello.[16]
In the same bull of 1515, "Praeexcellenti praeeminentia", Pope Leo created the Chapter of Canons of the cathedral, composed of three dignities (the Provost, the Archdeacon, and the Archpriest) and nine other Canons. The cathedral was also a parish church, and the Archpriest had the "cure of souls" (i.e. served as pastor).[17]
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. Instead, 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. In Tuscany, this particularly affected three dioceses: Arezzo, Cortona, and Borgo San Sepolcro (Biturgensis).
On 30 September 1986, Pope John Paul II ordered that the dioceses of Arezzo, Cortona, and San Sepolcro be merged into one diocese with one bishop, with the Latin title Dioecesis Arretina-Cortonensis-Biturgensis. The seat of the diocese was to be in Arezzo, and the cathedral of Arezzo was to serve as the cathedral of the merged diocese. The cathedrals in Cortona and San Sepolcro were to become co-cathedrals, and their cathedral Chapters were to be a Capitulum Concathedralis. There was to be only one diocesan Tribunal, in Arezzo, 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 former dioceses of Cortona and Borgo San Sepolcro.[19]
^Biturgen(sis and Burgi Sancti Sepulchri are Latin forms.
^Umberto Benigni (1907), "Borgo San-Sepolcro." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 2. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. Retrieved: 13 November 2019.
^One difficulty was certainly the objection of the General of the Camaldolese Order, Pietro Delfini. As late as 1522 he was writing to Cardinal Giulio de' Medici against Bishop Galeazzo, Epistolae, Book XII, no. 76. Petrus Delfino (1524). Epistolarum volumen (in Latin). Venice: Bernardinus Benalius. pp. 760–762. Muzi, p. 110.
^In the bull "Quotiens illud" of 8 April 1180, Pope Alexander III confirmed to Abbot Philippus the possessions and privileges of the monastery of San Sepolcro. Kehr, p. 111, no. 8.
^The monastery of S. Giovanni di San Sepolcro received a Visit from the Camaldolese Prior General Guido, who had Graziano removed on the charge of simony. Muzi, p. 73. Abbot Graziano received a confirmation, dated 29 November 1220, from the Emperor Frederick II of the privileges granted originally by Frederick Barbarossa. Czortek, p. 194.
^Abbot Pietro was present at the election of a new Prior General on 30 October 1259. Muzi, p. 79.
^The monastery of San Sepolcro received an official Visit from the Camaldolese Prior General on 4 August 1266. Muzi, p. 79.
^Pietro was charged with profligacy by the Prior General Gerardo. Muzi, p. 81.
^Abbot Pietro led the opposition to the installation of the Archpriest of the Pieve of Borgo San Sepolcro, who had been elected by the Chapter of the cathedral of Città di Castello. Muzi, p. 82-83.
^Giovanni Benedetto Mittarelli; Anselmo Costadoni (1761). Annales Camaldulenses ordinis Sancti Benedicti. Vol. Tomus sextus, complectens res gestas ab anno Christi 1351. ad annum 1430. Venice: apud Jo. Baptistam Pasquali. pp. 45, 49, 76–77, 127, 179, 218, 221, 236–237, 591. Muzi, p. 103.
^, next Bishop of Ajaccio (Corsica, now in France) (1539 – death 1539)
^He was next Bishop of Saluzzo (Italy) (1546–1556), from which he was transferred to Milan as Metropolitan Archbishop of Milan(o). He died on 21 June 1558.
^A native of Florence, Tornabuoni grew up in Rome, where his father was twice Senator. He had previously been Bishop of Saluzzo (Italy) (1530–1546), and was consecrated a bishop by Pope Clement VII on 16 September 1530. F. Savio, (1911), Saluzzo e i suoi vescovi, 1475-1601. Saluzzo: Fratelli Lobeto Bodoni, pp. 184-196. He was transferred to Borgo San Sepolcro by Pope Paul III on 8 October 1546, though on 29 October he was granted the right of possession, since his bulls had not yet been issued. He resigned on 1 October 1557, in favor of his nephew Filippo. Ughelli III, p. 200. Cappelletti XVII, p. 257. Eubel III, p. 143, with notes 6 and 7. He was an enthusiastic botanist and the person who introduced tobacco to Tuscany. Mauro Raffaelli (2009). Il museo di storia naturale dell'Università di Firenze (in Italian). Florence: Firenze University Press. p. 75. ISBN978-88-8453-955-7.
^A Florentine and a Canon of the cathedral of Florence, Filippo, the nephew of his predecessor, Bishop Alfonso, was appointed Bishop of Borgo San Sepolcro on 1 October 1557. He was not resident, however, since he was serving as ambassador of Duke Cosimo of Florence to the King of France. Cesare Guasti, "I manoscritti Torregiani," in: Archivio storico italiano. Terza serie (in Italian). Vol. Tomo XXVI. Firenze: G. P. Viesseux. 1877. pp. 377–378. Bishop Filippo died on 2 November 1559. Ughelli III, p. 200. Cappelletti XVII, pp. 257-258. Eubel III, p. 143, with note 8.
^Tornabuoni was the brother of Bishop Filippo Tornabuoni, his predecessor. He had been parish priest of S. Pietro di Agliana (diocese of Pistoia). He was appointed Bishop of Borgo San Sepolcro by Pope Pius IV on 29 May 1560, though he required a papal dispensation because he was below the minimum age. He also served as an ambassador of Duke Cosimo to the French Court from 1560 to 1565, and was present in 1560 at the time of the death of King Francis II: Ian Wilson (2007). Nostradamus: The Man Behind the Prophecies. New York: St. Martin's Press. p. 148. ISBN978-0-312-31791-1. Abel Desjardins, ed. (1865). Négociations diplomatiques de la France avec la Toscane: documents (in French and Italian). Vol. Tome III. Paris: Impr. nationale. pp. 423–432, 434–435, 443–513. He wrote a treatise on the controversies between orthodox Catholics and the Huguenots. He died on 13 April 1598. Ughelli III, p. 200. Cappelletti XVII, p. 258. Eubel III, p. 143, with note 9.
^Borghi was born in Modigliana. In 1605, he was appointed by Pope Clement VIII on 22 June 1598. He was named Vicar of the Lateran Basilica in Rome by Pope Paul V. Cappelletti, p. 258, treats this as a resignation, which is technically correct, but he was offered a much more prestigious position in Rome. He died in 1614. Ughelli, p. 200.
^A native of Volterra, Incontri was a Doctor of Laws, Canon of the cathedral, and Prior of the church of S. Pietro in Volterra. On the recommendation of Duke Cosimo II, he was appointed Bishop of Borgo San Sepolcro by Pope Paul V on 19 December 1605. He held the seat until November 1615. He died in Volterra. Cappelletti XVII, p. 258. Gaetano Leoncini (1869). Illustrazione della Cattedrale di Volterra (in Italian). Siena: Sordo-Moti. p. 342. Gauchat, Hierarchia catholica IV, p. 124 with note 3.
^A native of Florence, the Dominican Zanobi held a degree of master of theology, and had been a Penitentiary of the Basilica of S. Maria Maggiore in Rome. He was appointed bishop by Pope Urban VIII on 20 November 1634. He died in Florence on 17 October 1637. Ughelli III, p. 202. Cappelletti XVII, p. 258. Gauchat, p. 124 with note 6.
^Malaspina had been the Prior of Santa Maria Novella in Florence. He was appointed on 30 August 1655 by Pope Alexander VII. He died on 14 March 1667. Ughelli, p. 202. Cappelletti XVII, p. 259. Gauchat, Hierarchia catholica IV, p. 124 with note 8.
^Baldovinetti: Ritzler-Sefrin, Hierarchia catholica V, p. 131.
^Born in Rome in 1640, Compagni was appointed Bishop of San Sepolcro on 2 January 1696 by Pope Innocent XII. He was transferred to the diocese of Larino on 25 June 1703, by Pope Clement XI. He died in Larino on 17 September 1703. Ritzler-Sefrin V, pp. 131, 237.
^Born in Castro Fiorentini (diocese of Florence) in 1652, Tilli held the degree of Doctor in utroque iure (Pisa 1672). He was Vicar General and a member of the Chapter of San Miniato. He was appointed Bishop of Borgo San Sepolcro by Pope Clement XI on 21 July 1704. He died in January 1724. Ritzler-Sefrin V, p. 131 with note 5.
^Pucci was appointed Bishop of Borgo San Sepolcro on 20 December 1724 by Pope Benedict XIII. He was transferred to the newly created diocese of Pescia on 20 September 1728. He died on 26 February 1737. Ritzler-Sefrin V, pp. 131 with note 6; 315 with note 2.
^Born in Florence in 1677, Pecchioli obtained the degree of master of theology in 1721. He served as Procurator General of the Dominicans in the Roman Curia, and was Prior of the convent of Dominicans at Santa Maria sopra Minerva in Rome. He was appointed on 20 September 1728. He died on 22 January 1748. Ritzler-Sefrin V, pp. 131 with note 7.
^Poltri was born in the castle of Bibiena in the diocese of Arezzo in 1707, and held the degree of Doctor in utroque iure from the University of Pisa. He was parish priest of Bibiena, and then Provost of the church of S. Hippolytus in Bibiena. He was named Bishop of Borgo San Sepolcro on 21 April 1749, and consecrated in Rome on 27 April by Cardinal Giovanni Guadagni. He was transferred to the diocese of San Miniato by Pope Benedict XIV on 22 September 1755. He died on 30 September 1778. Ritzler-Sefrin VI, pp. 135 with note 2.
^Bivignano: Ritzler-Sefrin VI, pp. 135 with note 4.
^Marcacci was born in S. Cassiano in the diocese of Pisa in 1739, and held the degree of doctor of theology (Pisa). He was an honorary Protonotary Apostolic. On 4 March 1771, Pope Clement XIV named him Bishop of Borgo San Sepolcro, and he was consecrated a bishop in Rome on 10 March by Cardinal Pallavicino. He was transferred to the diocese of Arezzo (1778–1799) by Pope Pius VI on 14 December 1778. Ritzler-Sefrin VI, pp. 135 with note 4.
^Costaguti was appointed by Pius VI on 14 December 1778. He died on 16 November 1818. Cappelletti XVII, p. 260. Ritzler-Sefrin VI, pp. 135 with note 5.
^Tommasi was appointed by Pope Pius VII on 29 May 1820. He died on 14 April 1845. Ritzler-Sefrin, Hierarchia catholica VII, p. 122.
^A republican revolution in Rome in 1848 forced Pius IX into exile in Neapolitan territory.
^A native of Pisa, Siglau was appointed by Pope Pius IX on 20 April 1849. He was consecrated by G.B. Parretti, Archbishop of Pisa. He died on 18 January 1867. Ritzler-Sefrin, Hierarchia catholica VIII, p. 164.
^Biscioni was appointed by Pope Pius IX on 23 February 1872. He retired on 23 September 1875, and was granted the title of Titular Archbishop of Thebae (Greece). He died in 1883.
^Sandrelli was appointed bishop on 11 July 1892 by Pope Leo XIII. He retired on 3 July 1911, and was granted the title of Titular Bishop of Comanae. He died on 27 November 1912.
^Ghezzi was appointed Bishop of Sansepolcro by Pope Pius X on 27 November 1911. He was named Titular Archbishop of Gabula by Pope Pius XII on his retirement on 25 October 1953. He died on 17 April 1957.
^Bishop Emilio Biancheri served as Apostolic Administrator during the reign of Bishop Ghezzi from 1949 to 7 September 1953, while also being Bishop of Sarsina (Italy) (1949–1953). On 7 September 1953 he was transferred to the diocese of Rimini.
^Bornigia was born in Jesi in 1891. He was appointed Bishop of Sansepolcro on 27 November 1953, and consecrated on 26 November. He died on 10 March 1963. Annuario Pontificio (Citta del Vaticano: Tip. Polyglotta Vaticana 1959), p. 439.
^Conigli was appointed Bishop of Sansepolcro on 2 May 1963, by Pope John XXIII. He was transferred to the diocese of Teramo e Atri on 16 February 1967 by Pope Paul VI. He served, with changes in diocesan title, until 31 December 1988, when he retired. He died in 2005.
^Born in Busche di Gualdo Tadino in 1907, Cioli had previously been Titular Bishop of Livias (1956–1961) and Coadjutor Bishop of Arezzo (Italy), succeeding as Bishop of Arezzo on 23 December 1961. He was appointed Administrator of the diocese of Sansepolcro following the death of Bishop Conigli in February 1967, and was named Bishop of the diocese on 7 October 1975.
^Cioli was appointed Bishop of Sansepolcro on 7 October 1975. He was transferred to the diocese of Cortona on 11 April 1983.
Bassetti, M.; Czortek, A.; Menestò, E. (editors) (2013). Una Gerusalemme sul Tevere. L’abbazia e il Burgus Sancti Sepulcri (secoli X-XV). Atti del convegno (Sansepolcro 2012). Spoleto: Centro ISAM, 2013. (in Italian)
Czortek, A. (2013). "I monaci e gli altri. Abati, vescovi, comune e Ordini religiosi a Sansepolcro nel secoli XIII-XIV," in: Una Gerusalemme sul Tevere. L’abbazia e il Burgus Sancti Sepulcri (secoli X-XV) (Spoleto 2013), pp. 183–249. (in Italian)
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Borgo San-Sepolcro". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.