EMBRUN. - Ancient diocese and archdiocese of France in the department of the Hautes-Alpes, on the right bank of the Durance. It is the ancient "Eburodunum," on the road that led into Spain; it received the ius Latii from Augustus and was a municipium. Diocletian made it the capital of the Alpes Maritimae.

The bishop Marcellinus, the first apostle and bishop of E., was consecrated by Eusebius of Vercelli and Emilianus of Valence between 362 and 370 (Acta SS. Aprilis, II, Paris

1865, p. 751). Mention is then made of Ingenuus (441-65), Catulinus (ca. 517), Gallicanus (524-30), Emeritus (ca. 583); in the 7th century Lopacarus, Eutherius; in the 9th Agericus, Bermondus and Aribertus, to whom Pope John VIII wrote (Jaffé-Wattenbach, 3001, 3128, 3135); then in the 10th and 11th centuries there is a group of saints such as St. Benedict, martyred by the Saracens, St. Liberalis (920-40), St. Histriidus (1027-45), St. William (1120-34), founder of the abbey of Boscodon, St. Bernard Chabert (1213-35), Bertrand of Deaux (1323-38); Giulio de' Medici (1510-11), later Pope

Clement VII, the cardinals Francesco of Tournon (1517-26) and de Tencin (1724-40).

At the end of the 8th century the ecclesiastical province of E. had the same boundaries as the Roman province of the Alpes Maritimae; in the Middle Ages the bishops were princes of E. and minted coin. Louis XIII destroyed the archiepiscopal castle.

The archdiocese of E. had as suffragans Digne, Antibes and Grasse, Vence, Glandèves, Senez and Nice. The archdiocese was suppressed on 12 July 1790 and E. remained as the residence of the bishop of the Hautes-Alpes; the Concordat of 15 July 1801 included E. in the diocese of Digne; Pius VII, however, by a bull of 27 July 1817 included E. in the diocese of Gap; subsequently, by another bull of 6 Oct. 1822, the title of archbishop of E. was conferred on that of Aix.

The cathedral church, dedicated to the B. Virgin Mary, dates back to the 10th-13th centuries; noteworthy are: an altarpiece of the 14th century and the stained-glass windows of the 15th century.

Very famous is the sanctuary and basilica of Notre-Dame d'E., honored by Charlemagne, visited by Pope Leo III and by King Henry II. Also noteworthy is the small church of the Cordeliers (13th-15th centuries). - See plate XXIII.

Plate XXIII EXTERIOR OF THE CATHEDRAL. South-east side (12th cent.).(fot. Archivio Photographico)

Bibliography3 works

BIBL.: L. Duchesne, Fastes épiscopaux de l'ancienne Gaule, I, 2nd ed., Paris 1907, pp. 290-92; G. Goyau, Gap, in Cath. Enc., VI, p. 378; Cottineau, I, col. 1046.

Enrico Jos.

@incollection{ec5_embrun, author = {Josi, Enrico}, title = {Embrun}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {V}, pages = {282}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1950}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/embrun} }

One of some 20,000 entries brought back from the twelve printed volumes (1948–54). Spotted something? Help us improve it.

About this entry