Archdiocese of Messina-Lipari-Santa Lucia del Mela

In the war between King Charles II of Naples and Frederick III of Sicily for the crown of Sicily, Messana supported Frederick, even under attack by the fleet of Charles in 1298. Sicily was under papal interdict because it rejected the candidate supported by the Pope. Canon Antonio Amico wrote extensively on the history of Messina in the seventeenth century. Messina has the misfortune of being situated on a major tectonic plate boundary, between the European plate and the African plate. On 11 January 1693, a major earthquake struck the eastern coast of Sicily from Messina to Syracuse; twenty-nine people died, and destruction extended to the Royal Palace, the Episcopal Palace, the Seminary, and there was severe damage to the Church of S. Francesco. The bell towers of the cathedral and the church of SS. Anunziata were destroyed. In February 1783, Messina was stricken by a major destructive earthquake. At least 617 persons died in the city. The cathedral, Episcopal Palace, seminary, a large part of the hospital, most of the palazzi in the Teatro Maritima, and convents and monasteries (including the Certosa of S. Bruno and the Convent of S. Dominico Soriano) were damaged or destroyed. On 28 December 1908 a major earthquake struck Messina, destroying the cathedral, the seminary, and numerous other buildings. It is estimated that 91% of the buildings in Messina were destroyed. The quake was accompanied by a destructive tsunami. Some 75,000 people lost their lives. Cathedral and Chapter The new cathedral (built between 1909 and 1921) was again damaged by bombs and a fire during World War II. Like its predecessors, and like all of the cathedrals in the Kingdom of Naples, it was dedicated to the Assumption of the Body of the Virgin Mary into Heaven. The Chapter of the Cathedral was founded by Count Roger Guiscard in the late 11th century, perhaps in 1091. The dignitaries of the Cathedral Chapter were: the Dean, the Cantor and the Archdeacon. The Dean is already attested in 1094, and held the first place after the Archbishop; he had one of the canonries annexed to his office. The Cantor also holds one of the canonries; a Cantor is attested in 1131. The Archdeacon, who is also known from 1094, holds the Canonry of S. Petrus Pisanorum. There were eighteen Canons, the first three of whom were the three dignities. Except for the canonry of the Dean, the canons and prebends were conferred alternately by the Pope and the Archbishop. There were also eighteen priests called 'Canonici tertiarii', who, however, did not belong to the Chapter. San Salvatore The most famous monastery in the diocese of Messina was that of the Holy Savior (S. Salvatoris, San Salvatore), which had been founded by the Norman Count Roger in 1059, and was under the leadership of Fr. Bartolomeo. The monks of that monastery followed the Rules of St. Basil. Their abbot bore the Greek title Archimandrite, and he acquired preeminence and control over all of the Basilian monks in Sicily and Calabria. The Archimandrite was elected by the monks. In 1421 the office was secularized, and given in commendam (caretakership) to secular prelates instead of monks. In a breve of 23 February 1635, Pope Urban VIII made the office immediately subject to the Holy See, and the pope of the day appointed the Archimandrite. In 1883 Pope Leo XIII united the office of Archimandrite with that of the Archbishop of Messina. The monastery was situated at the tip of the mole in the harbor of Messina, until the Emperor Charles V had the monks moved to a new building on the mainland and the monastery on the mole destroyed to make way for his lighthouse. The monastery was closed during the Revolution of 1848. ==Bishops of Messina==