Roman Catholic Diocese of Huesca


The Diocese of Huesca is located in north-eastern Spain, in the province of Huesca, part of the autonomous community of Aragón. The diocese is suffragan to the Archdiocese of Zaragoza.
Huesca embraces parts of the province of Huesca in north-eastern Spain, seven parishes in the Broto valley and three within the limits of the Archdiocese of Saragossa, one parish being situated in the city of Saragossa itself.
Diocese created in or before the 6th century; after the Moorish conquest of 713 its bishops moved to Aragon. The episcopal seat was established in Jaca during 1063-1096, then finally moved back to Huesca after king Pedro I of Aragon took the city from the Moors in November 1096.

History

Early history (c. 500 – 713)

The date of origin of the diocese cannot be definitely ascertained; the earliest evidence of its existence is the signature of Gabinius, Bishop of Huesca, to the decrees of the Third Council of Toledo, held in 589. Isidore of Seville, writing in the 7th century, mentions the presence of Elpidius, Bishop of Huesca, at an earlier council, but this is not considered authoritative. The year of the diocese being erected is given as 533.
After 589, we next hear of the diocese through a synod held there in 598 which ordered annual diocesan conferences and enacted various disciplinary measures.

Itinerant bishops of Aragon (713–1063)

The Moorish invasion of 710 rapidly worked toward Huesca; when the city was taken in 713 the bishop fled, and the diocese was directed from Aragon by itinerant bishops, sometimes called bishops of Aragon, sometimes bishops of Huesca or Jaca, who lived either at Jaca or in the neighbouring monasteries of San Juan de la Peña, San Pedro de Siresa, and San Adrián de Sasabe.
Among the bishops of Aragon were:
A council held at Jaca in 1063 determined anew the boundaries of the Diocese of Huesca, which thereafter included the present dioceses of Huesca, Jaca, and Barbastro, as well as a part of the Diocese of Lérida. Jaca was then made the permanent seat of the diocese.
At the same time Sancho II was appointed Bishop of Huesca, and hastened to request the Pope Alexander II to confirm the decisions of the council. In the same year of 1063, however, King Sancho Ramirez of Aragon had won back from the Moors the city of Barbastro, and had granted it to the Bishop of Roda. García Ramírez, the new Bishop of Huesca and the king's brother, regarded this as an infringement of the rights of jurisdiction granted the Bishop of Jaca by the council of Jaca. He therefore renewed his petition to the new pope to have the decisions of the council confirmed, which request the pope granted. As, however, Bishop Raimundo of Roda also obtained the confirmation of all his privileges from Gregory, a violent dispute arose between the Bishops of Huesca and Roda as to jurisdiction over the churches of Barbastro, Bielsa, Gistao, and Alquezar, which in 1080 was decided by the king in favour of the Bishop of Roda.

Bishops' seat returns to Huesca (1096–present)

In November 1096, King Pedro I of Aragon took back Huesca from the Moors and restored the original see.
Pope Urban II decreed that, instead of Jaca, Huesca should again be the seat of the bishop, as it had been until the year 713.
But Jaca itself had a separate existence under a vicar-general, independent of the Bishop of Huesca. It also retained its own cathedral chapter, which originally followed the Rule of St. Augustine, but in 1270 both this chapter and that of Huesca were secularized.
The history of the Diocese of Huesca is from this time on closely associated with that of the present Diocese of Barbastro.
The episcopal city of Huesca was long a centre for education and art. Ancient Osca was the seat of the famous school of Sertorius. After the failure of his plans at Perpignan, king Pedro IV of Aragon in 1354 established a university at Huesca, which was maintained by a tax laid on the city's food, and which pursued a steady if not a brilliant existence until it was eclipsed by the great college at Saragossa.
In 1571, the Diocese of Barbastro was erected out of part of Huesca. From 1848 to 1851 the See of Huesca was vacant. The Concordat of 1851 formally annexed Barbastro once more to Huesca, but preserving its name and administration, being administered by a vicar Apostolic.

Population figures for the Diocese

In 1910 the Diocese of Huesca comprised 181 parishes and 15 subsidiary parishes, with 240 priests and 50 churches and chapels. It had a Catholic population of 87,659.
In 1950 there were 110,000 Catholics in the diocese. There were 196 parishes in the diocese. By 1980 there were 76,500 Catholics in the diocese, and it had 197 parishes. The year 1990 saw 82,500 Catholics and 210 parishes in the diocese. By 2004 there were 78,000 Catholics and 200 parishes.

Bishops of Huesca

713–1096 : Huesca under Moorish rule.
Among the bishops of Aragon were:
1096 : Huesca conquered by king Peter I of Aragon.
  1. 1097–1099 : Pedro
  2. 1099–1130 : Esteban
  3. 1130–1134 : Arnaldo Dodón
  4. 1134–1160 : Dodón
  5. --------- 1162 : Martín
  6. 1166–1185 : Esteban de San Martín
  7. 1187–1201 : Ricardo
  8. 1201–1236 : García de Gudal
  9. 1238–1252 : Vidal de Canellas
  10. 1253–1269 : Domingo de Solá
  11. 1269–1273 : García Pérez de Zuazo
  12. 1273–1290 : Jaime Sarroca
  13. 1290–1300 : Ademar
  14. 1300–1313 : Martín López de Azlor
  15. 1313–1324 : Martín Oscabio
  16. 1324–1328 : Gastón de Moncada
  17. 1328–1336 : Pedro de Urrea
  18. 1337–1345 : Bernardo Oliver
  19. 1345–1348 : Gonzalo Zapata
  20. 1348–1357 : Pedro Glascario
  21. 1357–1361 : Guillermo de Torrellás
  22. 1362–1364 : Bernardo Folcaut
  23. 1364–1368 : Jimeno Sánchez de Ribabellosa
  24. 1369–1372 : Juan Martínez
  25. 1372–1383 : Fernando Pérez Muñoz
  26. 1383–1384 : Berenguer de Anglesola
  27. 1384–1393 : Francisco Riquer y Bastero
  28. 1393–1403 : Juan de Baufés
  29. 1403–1410 : Juan de Tauste
  30. 1410–1415 : Domingo Ram y Lanaja
  31. * 1415–1421 : See vacant
  32. 1421–1443 : Hugo de Urríes
  33. 1443–1457 : Guillermo de Siscar
  34. 1458–1465 : Guillermo Pons de Fenollet
  35. 1470–1484 : Antonio de Espés
  36. 1484–1526 : Juan de Aragón y de Navarra
  37. --------- 1527 : Alonso de So de Castro y de Pinós
  38. 1528–1529 : Diego de Cabrera
  39. 1530–1532 : Lorenzo Campeggio
  40. 1532–1534 : Jerónimo Doria
  41. 1534–1544 : Martín de Gurrea
  42. 1545–1572 : Pedro Agustín
  43. 1572–1574 : Diego de Arnedo
  44. 1577–1584 : Pedro del Frago
  45. 1584–1593 : Martín de Cleriguech
  46. 1594–1607 : Diego de Monreal
  47. 1608–1615 : Berenguer de Bardaxí
  48. 1616–1628 : Juan Moriz de Salazar
  49. 1628–1641 : Francisco Navarro de Eugui
  50. 1641–1654 : Esteban de Esmir
  51. 1644–1670 : Fernando de Sada Azcona
  52. 1671–1674 : Bartolomé de Fontcalda
  53. 1677–1685 : Ramón de Azlor y Berbegal
  54. 1686–1707 : Pedro de Gregorio Antillón
  55. 1708–1714 : Francisco Garcés de Marcilla
  56. 1714–1734 : Pedro Gregorio de Padilla
  57. 1735–1736 : Lucas de Cuartas y Oviedo
  58. 1738–1742 : Plácido Bailés Padilla
  59. 1743–1775 : Antonio Sánchez Sardinero
  60. 1776–1789 : Pascual López Estaún
  61. 1790–1792 : Cayetano de la Peña Granada
  62. 1793–1797 : Juan Armada Araujo
  63. 1797–1809 : Joaquín Sánchez de Cutanda
  64. 1815–1832 : Eduardo Sáenz de la Guardia
  65. 1833–1845 : Lorenzo Ramón Lahoz
  66. * 1848–1851 : See vacant
  67. 1851–1861 : Pedro José de Zarandia
  68. 1861–1870 : Basilio Gil Bueno
  69. 1875–1886 : Honorio María de Onaindía
  70. 1888–1895 : Vicente Alda Sancho
  71. 1895–1918 : Mariano Supervía Lostalé,
  72. 1918–1922 : Zacarías Martínez Núñez
  73. 1922–1934 : Mateo Colom Canals
  74. 1935–1973 : Lino Rodrigo Ruesca
  75. * 1965–1969 : Jaime Flores Martín -
  76. * -------- 1969 : Damián Iguacén Borau -
  77. * 1969–1977 : Javier Osés Flamarique -
  78. 1977–2001 : Javier Osés Flamarique
  79. * 2001–2003 : Juan José Omella Omella -
  80. 2003–2009 : Jesús Sanz Montes