Forlì Cathedral, otherwise the Cathedral of the Holy Cross (), is the

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

Forlì Forlì ( ; ; ; ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) and city in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, and is, together with Cesena, the capital of the Province of Forlì-Cesena.The city is situated along the Via Emilia, to the east of the Montone river, ...

Emilia-Romagna Emilia-Romagna (, , both , ; or ; ) is an Regions of Italy, administrative region of northern Italy, comprising the historical regions of Emilia (region), Emilia and Romagna. Its capital is Bologna. It has an area of , and a population of 4.4 m ...

, Italy. Formerly the seat of the

bishop of Forlì A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

, it has been since 1986 the episcopal seat of the

Diocese of Forlì-Bertinoro 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 associated ...

History

The cathedral of Santa Croce existed as early as 562. In 1419

Pope Martin V Pope Martin V (; ; January/February 1369 – 20 February 1431), born Oddone Colonna, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 November 1417 to his death in February 1431. His election effectively ended the We ...

ordered restorations that were completed in 1475. It was almost entirely rebuilt in 1841, with the principal exception of the 17th-century chapel of the

Madonna del Fuoco ''Our Lady of the Fire'' ( Italian: ''Madonna del Fuoco'') is an early 15th-century image of the Madonna and Child, venerated by Catholics in Forlì and considered by them to be the protector of salt workers since the 17th century.She is the ...

; the sacred image contained there was formerly in a private house, where it remained unharmed during a fire.

Notable ''maestri di cappella''

Source:Gambassi, Osvaldo; Bandini, Luca (2003). ''Vita musicale nella cattedrale di Forlì tra XV e XIX secolo''. Florence: Olschki *

Giulio Belli Giulio Belli (c. 1560 – 1621 or later) was an Italian composer of the late Renaissance and early Baroque eras. He was a prolific composer during the transitional time between the two musical eras, and worked in many cities in northern Italy. Lif ...

(around 1600) * Clemente Monari (1713–1729) * Gasparo Garavaglia (around 1752) * Ignazio Cirri (1759–1787) *

Giovanni Battista Cirri Giovanni Battista Cirri (1 October 1724 – 11 June 1808) was an Italian cellist and composer in the 18th century. Biography Cirri was born in Forlì in the Emilia-Romagna Region of Italy. He had his first musical training with his brother Ign ...

(1787–1808) * Andrea Favi (1808–1822)

References

Further sources

* ''Guida per la Città di Forlì''. Tipografia Casali. Forlì, 1838 * Brunelli, Domenico; Zoli, Angelo (1862): ''Cenni storici sulla Cattedrale di Forlì''. Forlì, Stabilimento Tip. Croppi * Calzini, E.; Mazzatinti, G. (1893): ''Guida di Forlì''. Luigi Bordandini Editore Tipografo. Forlì * Viroli, Giordano (1994): ''Chiese di Forlì''. Nuova Alfa Editoriale per Cassa dei Risparmi di Forlì * D'Altri, Sivia (2000): ''Il Duomo di Santa Croce in Forlì. Guide d’arte e di storia a cura della coop. "Il Laboratorio"''. Costa Editore. Realizzata dalla Fondazione della Cassa dei Risparmi di Forlì Roman Catholic churches in Emilia-Romagna Buildings and structures in Forlì Forli {{Italy-RC-cathedral-stub