MACERATA, DIOCESE OF. – It is one of the smallest dioceses in the Marches, yet one of the most important, as it is situated in the heart of the region, which it served as a centre of civil, intellectual and administrative life, so much so that it was considered the capital of the March of Ancona and became the seat of the rectors and vicars of the March, the Treasury, the general Curia and the cardinal legates. The city stands on a hill, about 300 m above sea level, from which it is little more than 20 km in a straight line, and is almost equidistant from the rivers Potenza and Chienti, in extremely fertile territory. It has 32,000 inhabitants and 13 parishes.
After the destruction of Helvia Ricina, a Roman colony situated on the left bank of the Potenza, in 553 its inhabitants spread out over the surrounding hills, forming small communities: already in the 8th century, on the hill of Macerata there were some groups of population: Podium montis S. Iuliani, in the county of Cais di Fermo, and Castellum de M., in the county of Camerino, under a local lord. In 1116 the inhabitants of the Podium or Poggio obtained a charter of liberties, confirmed in 1138, when the three groups had already united under the single name of Macerata. In 1320, John XXII, having suppressed the diocese of Recanati, which had rebelled against the Church, elevated Macerata to the status of a city and diocese in reward for its unwavering loyalty. With this decision, the territory of Macerata extended as far as the sea, including the sanctuary of the Holy House of Loreto. The first bishop of the new diocese was the same bishop of Recanati, succeeded by the Bl. Peter Mulucci of the lords of Macerata. In 1357, Innocent VI restored the diocese of Recanati and united it with Macerata. The union lasted until 1586, except for a brief interruption from 1516 to 1546. Among the bishops of the two united dioceses, mention must be made of Angelo Correr (from 1415 to 1417), who was the legitimate pope Gregory XII and resigned from the papacy at the Council of Constance to end the schism. Appointed legate of the March and bishop of Macerata and Recanati, he died in the latter city in 1417 and is buried in the Cathedral. Another bishop of great historical importance was Giovanni Vitelleschi of Corneto Tarquinia. Appointed to the sees of Macerata and Recanati and legate of the Piceno in 1431, he spared no effort in restoring the authority of the pope in the Papal States; he was honoured with a statue in the Campidoglio and hailed as the third founder of Rome. In 1435 he was created cardinal and appointed archbishop of Florence, then patriarch of Alexandria; he died tragically in Castel S. Angelo in 1442. The last bishop of the united sees was Galeazzo Moroni, nephew of St Charles Borromeo, who remained in the see of Macerata after it was separated from Recanati in 1586. In that year, Sixtus V restored the diocese of Tolentino and united it with Macerata, to which were assigned the communes of Urbisaglia and Pollenza, taken from the diocese of Camerino.
In the two sees, up to the present day, there have been 23 bishops, among whom are St Vincent Mary Strambi (1801–24), Amedeo Zangari (1815–64), who died in a reputation for holiness, and Sebastiano Galeati (1881–88), later cardinal and archbishop of Ravenna.
Principal patrons of Macerata and the diocese: Our Lady of Mercy (first Sunday in September) and St Julian the Hospitaller (31 August).
Macerata has given birth to many illustrious ecclesiastical and lay figures: among the former are the cardinals: Buonaccorso Buonaccorsi (1616–78), Prospero Marfocchi (created in 1724), Simone Buonaccorsi (1708–76), Mario Compagnoni Marfocchi (1714–80), Guglielmo Pallotta (1727–95), Giuseppe Ugolini (1783–1863); and also: Fr Matteo Ricci (1552–1610), the greatest missionary and first geographer of China; the Servant of God Fr Giulio Mancinelli (1537–1618); the canon Gian Mario Crescimbeni (1663–1728), historian, man of letters, first custos of the Arcadia; Fr Giuseppe Asclepio (1706–76), physicist and astronomer; Fr Cassiano Beligatti (1708–91), missionary to Tibet; Fr Francesco De Vico (1805–48), distinguished astronomer; Fr Orazio Civalli (1594–1621), author of a valuable account of the convents of the Marches. Many bishops and other ecclesiastics of outstanding learning and holiness were born in Macerata, e.g.: Pompeo Compagnoni (18th century), bishop of Osimo and Cingoli, historian of the Church of Osimo, described by Muratori as “the most learned prelate in Italy and the model of bishops”; Cardinal Gabriele Filippucci, jurist, who in 1706 renounced the purple. In the other field: Floriano Pompeo (1545–1600) and Pietro Paolo (1585–1638), military leaders and military engineers; Pompeo Compagnoni (1602–75), historian of the Piceno; Diomede Pantaleoni (1810–85), physician and politician; Lauro Rossi (1810–85), musician and composer.
S. Maria della Porta: two superimposed churches, the lower one from the 9th century, the upper one from the 14th, with a rich Romanesque-Gothic portal; S. Maria delle Vergini, designed by Galasso Alghisi da Carpi, second half of the 16th century, in the shape of a Greek cross with a high octagonal dome, rich in works of art; the Cathedral of St Julian, a national monument, rebuilt by Cosimo Morelli of Imola at the end of the 18th century; the collegiate church of the Most Holy Saviour (S. Giovanni) by Rosato Rosati, 17th century, author of the interior of S. Carlo ai Catinari in Rome; S. Paolo, by Ambrogio Mazzenta, who rebuilt the metropolitan church of Bologna; the church of the Immaculate Conception, modern, by G. Rossi; worthy of special mention is the basilica sanctuary of Our Lady of Mercy: first built in 1447, renovated and enlarged in the mid-18th century by Vanvitelli; it preserves paintings and frescoes by F. Mancini, S. Conca, B. Biagetti and houses the miraculous image of Our Lady, the principal patron of the city and diocese.
Remains of the theatre of Helvia Ricina; the Fonte Maggiore of 1325; the Palace of the Prefecture, formerly of the cardinal legates (13th–21st centuries); the Loggia dei Mercanti, of 1505, attributed to Giuliano da Maiano; numerous private palaces, including: Palazzo Floriani by Pellegrino Tibaldi (16th century), Palazzo dei Diamanti, the Communal Tower by G. Alghisi da Carpi, Palazzo Ugolini by Valadier, the monumental Sferisterio by Ireneo Aleandri, etc.
Many in the past and present, with educational institutes, kindergartens, hospitals, nursing homes. Among the confraternities, which were very numerous in the past, mention must be made of that of the Most Holy Sacrament in the Cathedral, established as early as 1496, one of the first in the world to have the singular privilege, from the early 1500s, of obtaining on Good Friday the release of condemned prisoners: a privilege reduced by Paul V in 1614 to a single condemned person, and exercised without interruption until 1860; Confraternity of the Most Holy Trinity in the sanctuary of Mercy since 1577. Of the ancient guilds and congregations, which were very numerous, only the Congregation of Merchants and Artists remains. Moreover, in Macerata the pious practice of the Exposition of the Most Holy Sacrament during carnival time, in reparation for offences against the Lord, originated in 1566.
The earliest record of a law school dates to 1290; in 1540, Paul III established the Studium Generale, with all the papal and imperial privileges of the universities of Bologna and Padua, with faculties of theology, philosophy, law, moral philosophy, natural philosophy and medicine. Before ascending to the papacy, Sixtus V and Gregory XVI taught there, as did Annibal Caro and the most eminent doctors of the religious orders present in Macerata. In 1870 it was suppressed by Napoleon, restored with its ancient privileges by Pius VII in 1816; in 1826, Leo XII declared it a pontifical university with faculties of theology, jurisprudence, medicine and mathematics, placed under the authority of the bishop as chancellor; after the Marches were annexed to Italy, it became a royal university; the faculties were gradually reduced, and at present it has only the faculty of law, which is very well attended.
Established in accordance with the Council of Trent in 1615, but already conceived by Bishop Galeazzo Mononi as early as 1584; it had various seats: one was built by St. Vincent Strambi; the present one dates back to the first half of the 19th century; it retained until 1912 the faculty of granting academic degrees in theology.
The most important library in the city and region is the municipal Mozzi-Borgetti; it contains more than 200,000 volumes, numerous incunabula, and about 1,600 manuscripts, many of which are of great value and special interest; the Seminary Library, largely formed from the books left by St. Vincent Strambi, contains more than 6,000 volumes, with precious works of ecclesiastical character, "aldine" editions, and a notable incunabulum: *Biblia cum concordantiiis in margine* published in Bressanone in 1486; noteworthy also is the university library, specialized in legal studies.
Housed in the municipal library, in perfect order, is the prioral archive of the commune of M., with 949 parchments from 1176 to 1804, and 1,084 codices from 1278 to 1808. Of great importance is the Archive of the Sacred Rota of Macerata, which comprises 3,259 volumes from 1589 to 1798. The Sacred Rota of Macerata, established, as has been noted, by Sixtus V on 15 March 1588, extended its jurisdiction over the provinces of Ancona, Ascoli, Fermo, M., Pesaro, and the Duchies of Urbino and Camerino; it judged in appeal all sentences of ecclesiastical, civil, and criminal tribunals; by interrupted convention, an auditor of the Sacred Rota of Perugia resided in M. and vice versa. It was suppressed by Napoleon; Pius VII restored the tribunal in 1816 under the title of the court of appeal.
The Academy of the Catenati, founded in 1574; it included the most learned men from all parts of Italy: it proposed the study of belles-lettres, poetry, eloquence, philology, history, and criticism; after a period of inactivity in the past century, it has resumed notable activity, promoting highly regarded cultural courses.
One may also recall the existence in M. of a mint, of which there is record as early as 1337, in a letter from Pope Benedict XII to the rector of the city. It struck coins of copper, silver, and gold, bearing the papal arms and the images of the Lord, the Madonna, and various saints; it operated, with some intervals, until 1799.
The following communes belong to M.: Urbisaglia (pop. 5,000) on the ruins of the homonymous Roman city, destroyed in 408 by Alaric, king of the Visigoths. Noteworthy: the collegiate parish of St. Lawrence, the 15th-century fortress, perhaps the most beautiful in the Marches, and the *Maestà*, a small church of 1429, with votive frescoes from the 15th–16th centuries.
