Saint-Florent Cathedral or Nebbio Cathedral (''Cathédrale Santa-Maria-Assunta'', also known as ''Cathédrale du Nebbio'') is a former

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

located in the town of Saint-Florent in Corsica,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. The cathedral is a national monument and is now the church of Santa Maria Assunta. The cathedral was the seat of the

Bishop of Nebbio The Diocese of Nebbio (Latin: ''Dioecesis Nebiensis'') 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 Ne ...

until 1801, when the diocese was merged into the Diocese of Ajaccio.

History

The ancient region of the Nebbio, or Nebbiu, on Corsica formed a Christian bishopric from the 5th century onwards. The former cathedral, now the church of Santa Maria Assunta, located at the edge of the town of Saint-Florent on the road that leads to Poggio d'Oletta, is a heavily-restored Romanesque structure. The date of its construction is put at between about 1125 and 1140. The building has had protected status since 1840 as a national monument. Eglise Sainte-Marie (ancienne cathédrale de Nebbio) The first clear documentary reference to this cathedral is in a deed dated 1176 transcribed in the

cartulary A cartulary or chartulary (; Latin: ''cartularium'' or ''chartularium''), also called ''pancarta'' or ''codex diplomaticus'', is a medieval manuscript volume or roll (''rotulus'') containing transcriptions of original documents relating to the fo ...

of Calci Charterhouse, although it may well be referred to in two earlier documents of 1138 and 1145. Because of the insecurity of the coasts and the

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

which was endemic in the marshes that surrounded the foot of the hill on which the cathedral stands, it was abandoned by the bishops. At the beginning of the 16th century the

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "human ...

Agostino Giustiniani Agostino Giustiniani (born Pantaleone Giustiniani; 1470 - 1536) was an Italian Catholic bishop, linguist and geographer. Biography Giustiniani was born at Genoa into a noble Giustiniani family. His father had been ambassador of the Republic of ...

, bishop of Nebbio, had the cathedral repaired. It was also at this time that the belltower was almost certainly added which was destroyed by the 19th-century restorers. Despite these works, the cathedral was abandoned again in 1576. It was described as being roofless during a visitation by Mgr Sauli, the then Bishop of Aleria. In 1611 Mgr Ruscone had a new episcopal palace built next to the cathedral, later destroyed, and later still re-constructed in 1714 by Mgr Aprosio. Both cathedral and palace were occupied in 1748 by Genoese troops. The last bishop of Nebbio was Mgr Santini, from 1776 to 1801, when the bishopric of Nebbio was incorporated into that of Ajaccio, and the cathedral lost its status.

Gallery

File:St-Florent-cathedrale-choeur.jpg, Choir and main altar File:St-Florent-cathedrale-fronton.jpg, West end

References

External links

{{commons category, Cathédrale du Nebbiu
Location
Former cathedrals in France Buildings and structures in Haute-Corse Cathedrals in Corsica Romanesque architecture in France Monuments historiques of Corsica