ACQUI, DIOCESE OF. – A town in Piedmont, on the Bormida River, a tributary of the Po, in the upper Monferrato. It is the ancient Aquae Statellae, center of the Ligurian Statellati, subdued by the Romans around 163 BC. It became a Roman municipium within Regio IX, and its geographical position soon contributed to its economic prosperity. Many monuments attest to the level of civilization reached by Acqui, including the ruins of a grand aqueduct 14 km long, which conveyed the waters of the Erro to the city. After the Gothic invasions, Acqui was occupied by the Lombards in 568 and elevated to a duchy, subject to the more important duchy of Asti. Later, Charlemagne appointed a count over it, as he did for other cities. The establishment of the diocese of Alessandria (1175), whose territorial jurisdiction encroached upon that of Acqui, led to wars between the two neighboring cities, and Acqui was often forced to seek the help of the Marquis of Monferrato and even Frederick II, who in 1224 managed to broker a peace treaty between the contending parties. After being sacked by Charles of Anjou (1273), it was retaken by the Marquises of Monferrato and, after various vicissitudes and disputes, remained under their rule. In 1533, with the death of the last Marquis of Monferrato (Giangiorgio Paleologo), the marquisate passed to the Gonzaga of Mantua. In the 17th century it was repeatedly occupied by the Spanish and the French; in 1746 it passed to Charles Emmanuel III of Savoy. Devastated by the plague in 1630–31, it suffered further damage during the Napoleonic Wars.
Acqui, renowned for its abundant thermal waters, is part of the province of Alessandria and has a population of 1,653. It possesses fine palaces, including the episcopal palace of the 15th century; the cathedral, begun by Bishop Primo, is attributed to St Guido, who likely completed and inaugurated it in 1067, dedicating it to the Assumption of the Virgin. Notable events have altered its original Lombard structure. Above the portal stands the lunette with bas-reliefs by Antonio Pilacorta of Lugano, depicting the Assumption of the Virgin. The apse reveals the original Romanesque character. The brick bell tower dates from the 13th century.
The diocese of Acqui was established toward the end of the 4th century. The first bishop traditionally remembered is St Maggiorino, and it is likely that the tradition corresponds to reality, since the papal catalogue, compiled toward the end of the 11th century, seems reliable (F. Savio, pp. 9–16). The date of his episcopate is uncertain; his body, initially buried in St Peter’s, was later transferred to the cathedral, where traces of the tomb have been lost. An inscription from the ancient cathedral (St Peter’s), where the bishops were buried, records the name of Ditarius, who died in 488. The secure series begins in 680 with Valentinus. The cathedral was transferred from the church of St Peter outside the walls—built by the Lombard kings Aripert and Liutprand—to St Mary by Bishop Dudone. St Peter’s, burned by the Saracens and rebuilt by Bishop St Guido, was granted by him to the Benedictine monks, who maintained a flourishing monastery there until the 15th century. The patron of the city is St Guido, bishop from 1034 to 1070, whose feast is celebrated on the second Sunday of July; his cult from time immemorial was approved by the Sacred Congregation of Rites in 1853. A son of the Counts of Acquasana, he endowed the diocese with property and enriched the city with monuments and monasteries, including that of St Mary near the cathedral for Benedictine nuns.
A suffragan of Milan until 1805 and then of Turin, the diocese of Acqui has 180,000 inhabitants, of whom 179,800 are Catholic; it comprises 90 communes in the province of Alessandria, 23 in that of Genoa, 1 in that of Cuneo, 147 parishes, 267 diocesan priests, 46 regular clergy, and 59 secular clergy.
Acqui – Exterior of the church of St Peter (12th century).