Diocese of Portalegre–Castelo Branco
Portalegren(sis)-Castri Albi
Suffragan diocese · Latin Church · Portalegre–Castelo Branco, Portugal
The Diocese of Portalegre-Castelo Branco is a Latin rite see in the Alentejo and Beira Baixa regions of Portugal, erected at Portalegre in 1550 and given its current name in 1956. Suffragan to the Patriarchate of Lisbon, it received its new bishop, Pedro Fernandes of the Spiritans, who took office in November 2025.
The see
- Rank
- Suffragan diocese
- Tradition
- Latin Church
- Erected
- 2 April 1550
- Latin
- Portalegren(sis)-Castri Albi
- Patron
- Saint Augustine of Hippo
- Annuario code
- 001002631
The see in figures
- Catholics
- 248,923
- Population
- 250,541
- Catholic share
- 99.4%
- Priests
- 66
- Catholics per priest
- 3,772
- Extent
- 9,150 km²
- Catholics per km²
- 27
of the people living within its bounds
Figures as recorded in the register, from the Annuario Pontificio and the see's own published statements. Shares and ratios are computed from the two figures shown beside them.
The bishop
- Bishop
- Pedro Alexandre Simões Gouveia Fernandes
A see whose chair stands empty is recorded as vacant rather than filled with a guess. On what a bishop is, see the bishop.
The cathedral
Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption, Portalegre stands in Portalegre–Castelo Branco, the church that holds the cathedra from which this see takes its name.
Its co-cathedral is Cathedral of St. Michael, Castelo Branco.
On what a cathedral is, see the cathedral; every see church on earth is gathered at the cathedrals.
The province of Lisbon
A suffragan of Lisbon.
The sees of this province:
- Diocese of AngraAngra
- Diocese of FunchalFunchal
- Diocese of GuardaGuarda
- Diocese of Leiria–FátimaLeiria–Fátima
- Diocese of LisboaLisboa
- Diocese of SantarémSantarém
- Diocese of SetúbalSetúbal
On how the Church is ordered into provinces, see the diocese.
History
Since 1956, when the historical diocese of Portalegre was renamed, this Portuguese see has been known as the Diocese of Portalegre-Castelo Branco (Latin: Dioecesis Portalegrensis-Castri Albi). A Latin Church diocese of the Catholic church, it is a suffragan of the archdiocese of Lisbon.
What is kept by invitation
The record above is published because it is public: what this see is, when it was erected, who holds its chair, and where it stands among its neighbours.
The working record is not. The chancery's address, telephone and email, the clergy of the see, and the hours of Mass, confession and adoration in the parishes within it are kept for members, and a person reads every request.
Sources
The see's own website · Wikipedia
This record is compiled from the published statements of the see and the references of the Holy See, among them the Annuario Pontificio. On the method, see the keeping of the record. Whoever finds an error is asked, in charity, to write: [email protected].