approval. Bishop Stjepan Blašković of Makarska proposed a compromise solution to the Propaganda in 1759, that included the establishment of another diocese seated in Mostar that would include the territory of Herzegovina. The proposal was denied by the Propaganda. Apostolic Vicariate of Herzegovina There is no document that would indicate the exact date of the establishment of the Apostolic Vicariate in Herzegovina. Herzegovinian Franciscans, mostly from the monastery in Kreševo, who took pastoral care over Herzegovina, decided to establish their own monastery in Herzegovina in Široki Brijeg in 1840. Leaders of this initiative were Nikola Kordić, Anđeo Kraljević and Ilija Vidošević. At the time, Apostolic Vicar of Bosnia Rafael Barišić had an uneasy relationship with the Bosnian Franciscans. The Herzegovinian Franciscans established contact with Vizier of Herzegovina Ali Pasha Rizvanbegović was granted his own eyalet by the Ottoman sultan for his loyalty during the Bosnian uprising. The Franciscans considered that they will build their own monastery faster if the apostolic vicar would come to Herzegovina. The vicar of Čerigaj friar Ilija Vidošević wrote to Bishop Rafael about the idea of establishing a separate Herzegovinian apostolic vicariate, an idea also supported by Ali Pasha. In 1843, Bishop Rafael returned from a trip in Albania and stayed in Čerigaj, where Fr. Ilija helped him to establish a connection with Ali Pasha. In 1844, the Church authorities allowed the Franciscans to build a monastery in Široki Brijeg, so the Herzegovinian Franciscans left their former monasteries to build a new one. In 1845, Bishop Rafael wrote to the Propaganda to allow him to move to Herzegovina, stating that form there, he would also serve the Diocese of Trebinje-Mrkan and that Catholics and Muslims there "all love him and want him, including the Vizier". Their main argument for the establishment of a special vicariate was the number of parishes and the faithful Catholics in Herzegovina. According to a report from Bishop Augustin Miletić from 1818–19, Herzegovina had 8 parishes and 3100 Catholic families, with 20.223 Catholics in total. Ten years later, the same bishop reported that there were 51.744 Catholics, a third of the total number of Catholics in Bosnia and Herzegovina. On 29 October 1845, Bishop Rafael informed the Propaganda that he will renounce his office as Apostolic Vicar in Bosnia. Rome and Istanbul entered the negotiations about the seat of Bishop Rafael, and both were compliant about his transfer to Herzegovina. The Church's