LUGO, DIOCESE of. - A diocese in Spanish Galicia; its boundaries coincide with those of the province of the same name; it has an area of 11,512 sq. km. and a population of 391,301 inhabitants, of whom 391,206 are Catholics. It has 639 parishes, with 617 diocesan priests and 79 regular clergy, 2 seminaries, 7 male and 16 female religious communities (1949).
L., the ancient Lucus Augusta, is the seat of one of the oldest Spanish bishoprics, whose origins date back to the 2nd or 3rd century. At first it was a suffragan of Braga; it then became a metropolitan see in 559, but in 714 it was invaded by the Arabs. Reconquered in 755 by Alfonso I of the Asturias, the diocese was re-established under Bishop Odoario. Since then it has been a suffragan of the metropolitan see of Santiago di Compostella. Among the monasteries of the diocese, mention should be made of the Benedictine monastery of Samos, founded in 759.
Among the artistic monuments of L., noteworthy are the Cathedral, begun in the 12th century, Romanesque in style with Gothic, Baroque, and Neoclassical additions, and the churches of S. Francesco, with a fine cloister, and of S. Domenico. The monstrance with two adoring angels that appears in the coat of arms of L. recalls the city’s profound devotion to the Most Holy Eucharist. The patron of the diocese is St. Froilano di León. The Cathedral is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Ignazio Ortiz de Urbina