An early martyr, St. Antonius (or Antoninus, as the diocese prefers), is said to have belonged to the
Theban Legion, and to have suffered martyrdom at Piacenza in the second or third century. He has no "Passion", however, and the ninth century document that makes him a member of the Theban legion is
pieno di favole ('full of fables'). The
Lombards took possession of
Piacenza at the beginning of their invasion and thereafter it remained in their power.
Bishop Soffredus In 865, after twenty-five years of service in Piacenza, Bishop Soffredus (Seufredus) found himself driven from his office by the treachery of his own nephew, the deacon Paulus. Eager for power, Paulus usurped the episcopal seat, and styled himself
Paulus vocatus Episcopus sanctae Placentinae ecclesiae.
Pope Nicholas I immediately wrote to the
Emperor Louis II, demanding to know whether there was any crime charged against Soffredus, or any incapacity, that made his removal necessary; and pointing out that such problems were normally directed to the metropolitan, or if they were serious enough, to the pope himself. Pope Nicholas then ordered the Emperor to restore Soffredus to his episcopal seat. At the same time, through his legates, Pope Nicholas had Soffredus restored to his seat. Paulus was forbidden to attempt such a thing ever again, or to seek the bishopric. Nonetheless, on the death of Soffredus in 870, Paulus, who had evidently been restored to favor and was serving as Archdeacon of Piacenza, was elected bishop in his place. The temporal power was in the hands of the bishops from the ninth century until the twelfth century, when the town became a commune governed by consuls and later (1188) by a
podestà. The Bishop of Piacenza was first referred to as bishop and count in 1065.
Bishop Sigulf During the last six years of his administration, Bishop Sigulfus (951–988) enjoyed the services of a coadjutor-bishop, Johannes Philagathos, who, thanks to the patronage of the Empress Theophano, was also Abbot of the Monastery of Nonantola and tutor of the child who would become the
Emperor Otto III. When Sigulfus died, Joannes began to sign himself
Archiepiscopus Sancte Placentine Ecclesie. The diocese of Piacenza had been detached from the ecclesiastical province of Ravenna, through the influence of the Regent Theophano and with the consent of
Pope John XV, and erected into an archdiocese directly dependent upon the Papacy. In 1095, the Archbishop and Archbishop Bernard of Würzburg were sent to Constantinople to attempt to arrange for the marriage of a Byzantine princess and the new Emperor
Otto III. On their return Joannes was drawn into Roman politics by Crescentius II Nomentanus, who had just engineered a coup-d'état against
Pope Gregory V. Archbishop Joannes found himself named pope (or rather antipope) in February or March 997, under the name
John XVI. The Emperor, however, was not pleased that Pope Gregory V, his cousin Otto of Carinthia, had been expelled from Rome. He summoned a synod at Pavia, which anathematized Crescentius and John XVI. Piacenza received a new bishop, the Benedictine
Sigifredus. The title of archbishop was withdrawn, and the diocese of Piacenza was returned to the metropolitanate of Ravenna. Its time as an independent archdiocese had lasted from 988 to 997.
Pope Urban II Pope Urban II visited Piacenza from 1 March to 5 April 1095, and held a synod there from 1–7 March. It is said that more than 4,000 clerics and 3,000 laypersons were present. Archbishop Hugh of Lyon was suspended from office because he was not in attendance and had offered no excuse. The Emperor Henry IV and his antipope Wibert of Ravenna (
Clement III) were again excommunicated, and Wibert's bestowal of holy orders since his excommunication were annulled. The ambassador of the Emperor
Alexios I Komnenos made another public appeal for assistance against the Muslims.
Simony was again condemned, as was clerical concubinage.
Berengar of Tours was condemned for his heretical views on the subject of
transubstantiation. The dates for the observance of the
Quattuor tempora were fixed. People from Piacenza took part in the
First Crusade.
Bishop Sega When Bishop Filippo Sega (1578–1596) was appointed Bishop of Piacenza, he was not even in Italy. He was in Spain, acting as
Pope Gregory XIII's Nuncio to the court of King
Philip II of Spain. He was already a bishop, the second Bishop of
Ripatransone. He continued as Nuncio in Spain until the end of 1581, and did not enter Piacenza until the Spring of 1582. After little more than a year in the diocese, he was again appointed papal Nuncio to Spain on 20 September 1583, and, due to a serious illness at the end of the mission, which incapacitated him for five months in Barcelona, he did not return to Piacenza until June 1584. A new pope,
Sixtus V, who had heard of his reforming efforts in his diocese, summoned him to Rome and appointed him, on 24 April 1585, one of the Reformers of the clergy and clerical institutions of the city of Rome. His tenure was not long, however, for the Pope appointed him Nuncio to the Holy Roman Emperor
Rudolf II in Vienna on 18 January 1586, a post which he held until 28 May 1587. On his return, during his second period of residence, he further advanced the reforms mandated by the
Council of Trent, and held a diocesan synod on 3–5 May 1589. He was summoned back to Rome following the assassination of
Henry III of France on 3 August 1589, and was sent as Nuncio on Cardinal
Enrico Caetani's legantine mission to France. He was made a cardinal in 1591 and replaced Caetani as Legate in 1592. He did not return to Italy until the summer of 1594, when he took up his duties at the Papal Curia in Rome. A beneficial side-effect of the Bishop's frequent absences was that Piacenza did not fall under subordination (suffragan status) to any of the neighboring metropolitanates. The
Council of Trent had decreed that every bishop should attend regular provincial synods, and that those bishops who were directly dependent upon the Holy See (the pope) should choose a provincial synod to attend. Cardinal
Carlo Borromeo of Milan was especially enthusiastic for Tridentine reform, and held frequent diocesan and provincial synods, inviting the bishops of Piacenza to the latter. They either attended under the stipulation that no suffragan status was implied or created, or declined to appear. Borromeo even tried to get the Cathedral Chapter of Piacenza to send a delegation, but they too declined, on the grounds that cathedral chapters were not members of a provincial council. Sega, who was engaged in diplomatic activities, was unable to respond to an invitation (or a summons) to Borromeo's 5th (1579) or 6th (1582) synod; Borromeo had intended to hold a 7th in 1585, but he died in the meantime, and the matter lapsed. The 7th provincial synod of Milan finally took place in 1609, and Bishop Rangoni of Piacenza did not attend. The archbishop of Ravenna also tried to summon Piacenza, in 1582, and his effort too failed.
Cathedral and Chapter The construction of the original cathedral was attributed to Bishop Victor, the first bishop known by name, and was dedicated to Saint Antoninus. It was referred to as the
Victorana Ecclesia. A new building was constructed by Bishop Seufridus (839–870), and dedicated to the Virgin Mary and Saint Justina, possibly
Justina of Padua or perhaps
Justina of Antioch, both of whose stories are fictional. The second cathedral was completed by Bishop Paulus (870– c. 885), and some remains of Justina were given to the cathedral by Bishop Joannes Philagathos the
Antipope John XVI (982–997).
The cathedral was ruined in the great earthquake of 1117 and was completely rebuilt beginning in 1122. It is claimed, in the Chronocle of Piacenza, that the cathedral was dedicated by Pope Calixtus II on 23 October 1123, but, as Paul Fridolin Kehr has pointed out, Calixtus visited Piacenza in April 1120, while on the alleged consecration day he was in Benevento. In 1747, the Chapter had six dignities (including the Archdeacon, the Provost, the Vicedominus, the Archpriest, the Dean, and the Primicerius) and thirty Canons.
Synods A diocesan synod was an irregular but important meeting of the bishop of a diocese and his clergy. Its purpose was (1) to proclaim generally the various decrees already issued by the bishop; (2) to discuss and ratify measures on which the bishop chose to consult with his clergy; (3) to publish statutes and decrees of the diocesan synod, of the provincial synod, and of the Holy See. Bishop Albericus Visconti (1295–1301) held a diocesan synod in Piacenza on 19 February 1298. The "Acts" survive, and were published by Pietro Maria Campi in 1662. Among other things, it ordered
clerici concubinarii (clergy with wives) to leave their houses within eight days of the publication of the synodical decrees, and not to take their children with them. Cardinal Paolo Burali conducted a synod on 27 August 1570, and a second synod on 2 September 1574. On 3–5 May 1589, a diocesan synod was held by Bishop Filippo Sega. Bishop Claudio Rangoni (1596–1619) presided at a diocesan synod on 11 November 1599. He held another synod in 1613. Bishop Alexandre Scappi (1627–1653) presided over a diocesan synod on 3–5 May 1632. He held his second synod on 8–10 November 1646. A diocesan synod was held on 12–14 May 1677 by Bishop Giuseppe Zandemaria. Bishop Giorgio Barni (1688–1731) presided over a diocesan synod on 4–6 June 1696. He held a second synod in 1725. ==Bishops==