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Malta’s first archbishop
If you grew up assuming Malta only got an archbishop in the 20th century, you’re basically right, but also not. On 3 March 1797, Pope Pius VI issued a papal brief that gave the Bishop of Malta archiepiscopal dignity by attaching to the Maltese see a prestigious titular title, Archbishop of Rhodes. The first man to carry it was Vincenzo Labini, who from that point could be styled Archbishop of Rhodes and Bishop of Malta. That wording matters because it wasn’t the same thing as
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