The Church of Our Lady of Mercy, which had been bombarded its cathedral, lost that status without being made co-cathedral. In 1969 the diocese was nominally restored as Latin Titular bishopric of Penafiel (Portuguese) / Pintien(sis) (Latin adjective). It has had the following incumbents, mostly of the fitting Episcopal (lowest) rank, "with an archiepiscopal exception :  The municipality extends within an area of , in a confluence of river valleys marked by the Douro, Tâmega and Sousa Rivers, connecting the littoral region and the Transmontana zone. It is a landscape of deep valleys, with intense irrigated zones and pasturelands, with fields encircled by forests of pine and eucalyptus. This inter-fluvial region have granite soils and is rich in water resources, permitting intensive agriculture and extraction industries. The southwest extension of the municipality include a complex of Schist and Greywacke geology, resulting in mountainous, uncultivated and largely forest lands. An intermediary zone, dividing the littoral and mountainous regions, the region was an important transitory point, with lines of communication extending along inter-regional, land and fluvial networks. The first example was the "royal roadways" that date to the medieval period, that connect Porto and the Trás-os-Montes, that resulted the development of the urban centre, that was a fulcrum in supporting transiting peoples and goods. The Douro was an important link and penetrated the interior, while the flanks of the Alto Douro were used to produce vineyards. The "Entre-os-Rios" district was also an important part in supporting travel along the interior. With 28 civil parishes it includes a resident population of 72,000 inhabitants (approximately 338.4 people per kilometre square), integrated into the "Associação de Municípios do Vale do Sousa" ("Vale de Sousa Municipal Association")and NUTSIII Tâmega Subregion. The region is settled, but in dispersed enclaves, supported by small industry and commerce, while newer residential homes juxtaposition older rural dwellings. These older homes are usually maintained by part-time farming families and seniors, perpetuated by intense migration and facilitated by their proximity to major roadways. The municipality is administered by the following civil parishes ("freguesias"):   The parishes are, largely, semi-industrialized, with a mixture of modern homes and rural dwellings in nature.