Modruš

History

Ecclesiastical history

• During the 1460s, due to the Ottoman advance in Dalmatia, the medieval Catholic Diocese of Corbavia was formally suppressed by Pope Pius II, but its territory immediately reassigned to establish as successor see the Diocese of Modruš / Modrussa / Modrussen, named after its new see, near Fiume, at the rock fortress of the Frankopan counts. Again it was a suffragan of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Spalato.
• Due to a Croat defeat against the Turks at Udbina in, the episcopal see was again transferred, now to Novi Vinodolski, south-east of Fiume, but kept Modruš as its title.
• Turkish raids having devastated the nearly-abandoned bishopric since the 1560s, its administration was vested in the nearby Diocese of Segna, and in 1630 Pope Urban VIII united both sees per aequalitatem jurium in personal union, formally remaining separate suffragans of Spalato, as confirmed in 1833 by papal bulla from Gregory XVI. They became known as the Roman Catholic Diocese of Senj-Modruš.
• By the 19th century, besides the cathedral little survived the Turkish rule, except its Chapter of Canons, divided in three parts residing in the diocese's last parishes : Novi itself, Bribir and Buccari.
• In the first half of the 18th century, Segna and Modruš became suffragans in the ecclesiastical province of the Hungarian Archdiocese of Kalocsa, then from 8 March 1788 suffragans of the Slovenian Archdiocese of Ljubljana, but 19 August 1807 returned to Kalocsa, until 11 December 1852 they became part of the ecclesiastical province of the Croatian Archdiocese of Zagreb.
• On 27 July 1969 by Paul VI's papal bulla 'Coetu intante', Modruš was united with the Diocese of Rijeka–Opatija, which was elevated to Metropolitan archbishopric and renamed Archdiocese of Rijeka–Senj, by privilege bearing the 'additional' title Bishops of Modruš.

  Residential Bishops of Modruš

• Niccolò di Cattaro
• Cristoforo da Ragusa
• Giacomo Dragazio
• Simone de Begno
• Pierpaolo Vergerio, previously Apostolic Nuncio to Austria-Hungary ; later Bishop of Koper , died 1565
• Ermolao Ermolai, Observant Franciscans
• Giovanni Evangelista Brachi, Benedictine Order
• Diego de Loaysa, Recollect Augustinians
• Alberto Divini = Gliričić,, Dominican Order , next Bishop of Krk and Apostolic Administrator of Diocese of Skradin
• Lorenzo Gherardi, O.P.
• See administrated by Diocese of Veglia
• Dionigi Pieppi, O.P.
• Jovan Kosisić
• See administrated by Diocese of Segna

  Titular see

• Dominick John Lagonegro, as Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of New York .

  Notable locals

• Bernardin Frankopan
• Krsto Frankopan
• Beatrica Frankopan