MINORCA, DIOCESE OF. — On the island of the same name (Balearic Islands, Spain) in the Mediterranean. Area: 669 sq km. It is part of the ecclesiastical province of Valencia. It has a population of 45,800 inhabitants, of whom 45,300 are Catholic. It comprises 14 parishes, with 47 diocesan priests and 5 regular clergy, 4 male religious communities and 25 female (1949).
At the beginning of the 5th century V. episcopate, as is evident from the letter of Bishop Severus (year 417). During the Vandal and Muslim invasions the episcopal see of Minorca disappeared. With the Christian reconquest (1287) it was incorporated into the diocese of Majorca, until in 1795 Pius VI erected it as an independent episcopate. Since then, 12 prelates have governed the diocese, which suffered no harm during the successive British dominations.
MINORCA - Prehistoric Temple (Naveta) - Ela Tudons (Ciudadela).
Archives: the diocesan archive, partially destroyed during the last revolution. Libraries: that of the Episcopal Palace and that of the Seminary. Cultural institutions: the Conciliar Seminary in Ciudadela, established in 1938. Monuments: the most important is the cathedral church in Ciudadela, built in the 14th century with a 19th-century façade, featuring a single, very spacious nave. It was restored after 1939.