Colfiorito is a village in
Umbria, central Italy, former Catholic bishopric under its Roman name Plestia, now a ''
frazione'' of the ''
comune'' of
Foligno
Foligno (; Southern Umbrian: ''Fuligno'') is an ancient town of Italy in the province of Perugia in east central Umbria, on the Topino river where it leaves the Apennines and enters the wide plain of the Clitunno river system. It is located so ...
and a Latin Catholic
titular see.
Geography
It is located on a plateau at 760 m over the sea level, on the road from municipal seat Foligno to
Macerata, which houses a total of c. 5,000 inhabitants (part of it is under the jurisdiction of
Serravalle di Chienti,
Marche
Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...
).
The village contains Umbria's smallest natural park.
History
In the plateau tombs from the 10th century BC and an
Iron Age village (9th century BC) have been found.
In 178 BC existed here the Roman city of ''Plestia'', which had a
forum
Forum or The Forum (plural forums or fora) may refer to:
Common uses
* Forum (legal), designated space for public expression in the United States
*Forum (Roman), open public space within a Roman city
**Roman Forum, most famous example
*Internet ...
, a temple and other edifices and shortly was a bishopric.
The town was abandoned in the 10th century: the site is now marked by the church of ''Santa Maria in Plestia''.
The area was repopulated by the ''
comune'' of Foligno, who built here the castle (1269) from which originated the modern village.
Colfiorito was heavily damaged by the
earthquake which rocked
Umbria and
Marche
Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...
regions on September 26, 1997.
Ecclesiastical History
In the 5th century AD a Bishopric of Plestia was established, which was suppressed in 560, its territory being reassigned to the
Diocese of Camerino
The Italian Archdiocese of Camerino-San Severino Marche ( la, Archidioecesis Camerinensis-Sancti Severini in Piceno) is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory, seated in Camerino, a city in the Province of Macerata, in the central Italian Ma ...
.
In 950 it was restored as Diocese of Plestia, regaining its territory from the above bishopric of Camerino.
In 1006 it was again suppressed, its territory now being divided between the then dioceses of
Spoleto,
Foligno
Foligno (; Southern Umbrian: ''Fuligno'') is an ancient town of Italy in the province of Perugia in east central Umbria, on the Topino river where it leaves the Apennines and enters the wide plain of the Clitunno river system. It is located so ...
and
Nocera Umbra
Nocera Umbra is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Perugia, Italy, 15 kilometers north of Foligno, at an altitude of 520 m above sea-level. The ''comune'', covering an area of 157.19 km², is one of the largest in Umbria.
History Ancie ...
.
No residential incumbents available.
Titular see
In 1966 it was nominally restored as a Latin
Titular bishopric, which has had the following incumbents, all of the lowest (episcopal) rank ''except the archiepiscopal first one :''
*'' Titular Archbishop Leo Christopher Byrne (1967.07.31 – 1974.10.21)''
* Bruno Foresti (1974.12.12 – 1976.04.02) (later Archbishop)
*
Bolesław Filipiak
Bolesław Filipiak (1 September 1901 – 14 October 1978) was a Polish Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Dean of the Roman Rota from 1967 to 1976, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1976.
Biography
Bolesław Fili ...
(1976.05.01 – 1976.05.24); previously Dean of
Sacred Roman Rota (1967.06.26 – 1976.05.01), later created
Cardinal-Deacon of
S. Giovanni Bosco in Via Tuscolana (1976.05.24 – death 1978.10.14)
* John Nicholas Wurm (1976.06.25 – 1981.09.19)
* Anthony Michael Milone (1981.11.10 – 1987.12.14)
* Thaddeus Joseph Jakubowski (1988.02.16 – 2013.07.14)
* Francisco José Villas-Boas Senra de Faria Coelho (2014.04.17 – 2018.06.26),
Auxiliary Bishop of
Braga (Portugal)
* Thomas Joseph Neylon (2021.07.06 – incumbent),
Auxiliary Bishop of
Liverpool
Main sights
* Church of Santa Maria in Plestia (5th century - see
description here).
* Castle of Colfiorito.
* ''Castelliere'' of Monte Orve.
* Archaeological Museum of the
Umbri Plestini
Notes and references
Sources and external links
GCatholic with titular incumbent bio links
{{authority control
Frazioni of the Province of Perugia
Hilltowns in Umbria
Castles in Italy
Foligno