SABARIA (SZOMBATHELY), DIOCESE of. — In western Hungary, founded in 1777 by Maria Theresa and established by Pope Pius VI.
Area: 4,707 sq km; inhabitants: 391,593; Catholics: 338,456; churches: 287; parishes: 165. Number of secular (diocesan) priests: 261; religious priests: 94; seminarians: 42 (statistical data from 1948). Within the territory of the diocese there were 10 houses of male religious Orders, with 177 members, and 35 houses of female religious Orders, with 401 members. The diocese had the following Catholic schools: 265 elementary schools, 5 female teacher-training schools, 2 higher institutes for the training of teachers, and 2 gymnasia.
The city’s most distinguished monument is the Cathedral; begun in 1791 under the episcopate of Szily János, it was built by the architect Hefele Menyheri in the period’s Baroque-classicizing style and consecrated in 1815 by Bishop Somogyi Lipót. Noble in its lines and richly adorned inside with pink marble revestments and gilding, it was almost completely frescoed by Maulbertsch. Unfortunately, it was destroyed almost entirely in the bombings of the Second World War, but it was completely rebuilt with the admirable collaboration of the entire population and consecrated by Cardinal Mindszenty. The first bishop of the diocese, formed from territory belonging to the adjacent dioceses of Győr,
Veszprem and Zagreb, was Szily Janos (1777–99), who left an indelible mark on the life of the young diocese. His successor was Cardinal Herzan Ferenc (1799–1804), a great humanist. A glorious period for the diocese was the episcopate of Somogyi Lipót, who completed the construction of the Cathedral, had a home built for elderly priests, and held a diocesan synod in 1821; he died in a reputation for holiness. During the difficult years for the Church in the 19th century, Bishop Böle András (1824–43) fought against liberalism; Bishop Hidasy Kornél revived Catholic life after the period of absolutism. The then-imprisoned Archbishop of Kalocsa, Monsignor Gross József, was also Bishop of Szomathely. The current bishop is Monsignor Kovács Sándor, consecrated by Cardinal Mindszenty on 25 March 1944.