The Italian Catholic archdiocese of Cosenza-Bisignano in Calabria has been a metropolitan see since 2001.
The Gospel was first preached in Cosenza by missionaries from Reggio; its earliest known bishop is Palumbus, a correspondent (599) of St. Gregory the Great. Cosenza was erected as a diocese in 700. Cosenza was raised to the dignity of an archbishopric about 1050. Among the best known Archbishops of Cosenza have been: Ruffo, who perished in the earthquake of 1184; the Cistercian Martino (1285), a prolific but uncritical writer; Pirro Caracciolo (1452), the friend of St. Francis of Paula; Bartolommeo Fleury, who died at Rome (1495) in Castle Sant' Angelo, where he had been imprisoned for forgery of pontifical documents; Taddeo, later Cardinal, Gaddi (1535), who obtained from Paul IV the privilege by which the cathedral canons of Cosenza wear the choir habit of the Vatican basilica; and Giuseppe Maria Sanfelice (1650), frequently charged by the Holy See with diplomatic missions.
In 1908, The diocese has a population of 159,500, with 109 parishes, 264 churches and chapels, 200 secular and 16 regular priests, 2 religious houses of men and 5 of women.
On April 4, 1979, the Archdiocese was united with the Diocese of San Marco e Bisignano as Cosenza e Bisignano retaining the former Diocese of Bisignano with remainder renamed as the Diocese of San Marco Argentano-Scalea. On September 30, 1986, the Archdiocese was renamed to Cosenza-Bisignano and was elevated to a Metropolitan See on January 30, 2001.
Basilica della Catena, Laurignano, Cosenza, CalabriaBasilica of St. Francis of Paola, Paola, Cosenza, CalabriaSanctuary-Basilica of the Blessed Angelo of Acri, Cosenza, Cosenza, CalabriaErected: 7th Century
Latin Name: Cosentinus
Elevated: 1150
Latin Name: Cosentinus
Immediately Subject to the Holy See
Niccolò Brancaccio (13 Jan 1377 - 1379 Resigned)Giovanni d'Aragona (cardinal) (14 Nov 1481 - 17 Oct 1485 Died)Carlo Domenico del Carretto (24 Apr 1489 - 10 Oct 1491 Appointed, Administrator of Angers)Battista Pinelli (10 Oct 1491 - 1495 Died)Bartolomeo Flores (5 Aug 1495 - 1497 Resigned)Ludovico Agnelli (16 Oct 1497 - 3 Nov 1499 Died)Francisco de Borja (6 Nov 1499 - 4 Nov 1511 Died)Giovanni Ruffo de Theodoli (6 Nov 1511 - 1527 Died)Niccolò Gaddi (31 Jan 1528 - 21 Jun 1535 Resigned)Taddeo Gaddi (cardinal) (21 Jun 1535 - 22 Dec 1561 Died)Francesco Gonzaga (2 Mar 1562 - 12 Jan 1565 Resigned)Francesco Milesio (12 Jan 1565 - 10 Jan 1568 Died)Flavio Orsini (24 Jan 1569 - 16 Sep 1573 Resigned)Andrea Matteo Acquaviva d'Aragona (16 Sep 1573 - 1576 Died)Fantino Petrignani (6 Jan 1577 - 1585 Resigned)Silvio Passerini (20 May 1585 - 1587 Died)Giovanni Evangelista Pallotta (11 Sep 1587 - 5 Apr 1591 Resigned)Giovanni Battista Costanzo (5 Apr 1591 - 1617 Died)Paolo Emilio Santori (Santorio) (3 Jul 1617 - 20 Nov 1623 Appointed, Archbishop of Urbino)Giulio Antonio Santoro (29 Jan 1624 - 28 Sep 1638 Died)Martino Alfieri (11 Apr 1639 - 1641 Died)Antonio Ricciulli (27 Nov 1641 - May 1643 Died)Alfonso Maurelli (Castiglion Morelli) (31 Aug 1643 - 22 Feb 1649 Died)Giuseppe Sanfelice (22 Aug 1650 - 20 Nov 1660 Died)Gennaro Sanfelice (21 Nov 1661 - 19 Feb 1694 Died)Eligio Caracciolo, C.R. (15 Mar 1694 - 17 Oct 1700 Died)Andrea Brancaccio, C.R. (18 Apr 1701 - 4 Jun 1725 Died)Vincenzo Maria d'Aragona, O.P. (23 Jul 1725 - 18 Apr 1743 Died)Francesco Antonio Cavalcanti, C.R. (20 May 1743 - 7 Jan 1748 Died)Michele Maria Capece Galeota, C.R. (6 May 1748 - 20 Aug 1764 Appointed, Archbishop of Capua)Antonio D'Afflitto, C.R. (20 Aug 1764 - 26 Oct 1772 Died)Gennaro Clemente Francone (14 Dec 1772 - 27 Feb 1792 Confirmed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of Gaeta)Raffaele Mormile, C.R. (27 Feb 1792 Confirmed - 28 Mar 1803 Appointed, Archbishop of Palermo)Vincenzo Nicola Pasquale Dentice, O.S.B. (26 Jun 1805 Confirmed - 1 Nov 1806 Died)Domenico Narni Mancinelli (6 Apr 1818 Confirmed - 24 Feb 1832 Confirmed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of Caserta)Lorenzo Pontillo (20 Jan 1834 Confirmed - 10 Nov 1873 Died)Camillo Sorgente (4 May 1874 - 2 Oct 1911 Died)Tommaso Trussoni (14 Dec 1912 - 9 Apr 1934 Retired)Roberto Nogara (22 Aug 1934 - 24 Apr 1940 Died)Aniello Calcara (1 Jul 1940 - 5 Jul 1961 Died)Domenico Picchinenna (4 Sep 1961 - 29 May 1971 Appointed, Coadjutor Archbishop of Catania)Enea Selis (2 Sep 1971 - 30 Oct 1979 Resigned)United: 4 April 1979 with the Diocese of San Marco e Bisignano
Latin Name: Cosentinus et Bisinianensis
Dino Trabalzini (18 Mar 1980 - 6 Jun 1998 Retired)Name Changed: 30 September 1986
Metropolitan See
Giuseppe Agostino (6 Jun 1998 - 18 Dec 2004 Retired)Salvatore Nunnari (18 Dec 2004 - 15 May 2015 Retired)Francescantonio Nolè, O.F.M. Conv. (15 May 2015 - )
