The Metropolis of Corfu, Paxoi and the Diapontian Islands ( el, Ιερά Μητρόπολις Κερκύρας, Παξών και Διαποντίων Νήσων) is a

metropolitan see Metropolitan may refer to: * Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories * Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England * Metropolitan county, a ...

of the Church of Greece. Its seat is the town of Corfu on the island of Corfu in northwestern

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

. It encompasses the entire Corfu Prefecture, i.e. not only the island of Corfu, but also the two small island groups of

Paxoi Paxos ( gr, Παξός) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, lying just south of Corfu. As a group with the nearby island of Antipaxos and adjoining islets, it is also called by the plural form Paxi or Paxoi ( gr, Παξοί, pronounced in Engl ...

and the

Diapontian Islands The Diapontian Islands or Diapontia Islands ( el, Διαπόντια Νησιά, Diapontia Νisia, also known as Othonoi Islands ( el, Νήσοι Οθωνοί, Νisoi Othonoi) are a Greek island group in the Ionian Sea. They are located the north ...

History

The foundation of the see of Corfu exists is attributed to the establishment of a shrine to

Saint Stephen Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ''Stéphanos'', meaning "wreath, crown" and by extension "reward, honor, renown, fame", often given as a title rather than as a name; c. 5 – c. 34 AD) is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first ...

there by two disciples of

Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

, Jason of Tarsus and Sosipatrus of Achaea. Its bishops are attested as participating in ecumenical councils from 325 to 787, originally as suffragans of

Nicopolis Nicopolis ( grc-gre, Νικόπολις, Nikópolis, City of Victory) or Actia Nicopolis was the capital city of the Roman province of Epirus Vetus. It was located in the western part of the modern state of Greece. The city was founded in 29 ...

and later of

Cephallenia Kefalonia or Cephalonia ( el, Κεφαλονιά), formerly also known as Kefallinia or Kephallenia (), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece and the 6th largest island in Greece after Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Rhodes and Chios. ...

. As with the other sees of the Illyricum, it was transferred from the

See of Rome The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Ro ...

to the overall jurisdiction of the

Patriarchate of Constantinople The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( el, Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, translit=Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos, ; la, Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constanti ...

in the 8th century. It was raised to the status of an

archbishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

in the second half of the 10th century, and finally became a

sometime in the third quarter of the 11th century. Following the conquest of the island by Western powers (the Genoese, Venetians, and Angevins) from the turn of the 13th century, a

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 ...

archbishopric was established on the island, first attested in 1228. Under Catholic rule, the local Orthodox Christian population was served by a head priest ('' protopapas''). The Orthodox bishopric was not restored until 1800, after the

fall of the Republic of Venice The fall of the Republic of Venice was a series of events that culminated on 12 May 1797 in the dissolution and dismemberment of the Republic of Venice at the hands of Napoleon Bonaparte and Habsburg Austria. In 1796, the young general Napoleo ...

and the establishment of the

Septinsular Republic The Septinsular Republic ( el, Ἑπτάνησος Πολιτεία, Heptanēsos Politeia; it, Repubblica Settinsulare) was an oligarchic republic that existed from 1800 to 1807 under nominal Russian and Ottoman sovereignty in the Ionian Islan ...

References

Sources

* *

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Corfu (regional unit) Corfu Corfu History of Corfu