Archbishop of Hamburg

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For the medieval archdiocese, see Archbishopric of Bremen.
Map
Karte des Erzbistums Hamburg in Deutschland
basic data
archbishop: Dr. Werner Thissen
Auxiliary bishop: Norbert Werbs
Dr. Hans-Jochen Jaschke
vicar-general: Franz-Peter Spiza
deaneries: 17
parishes: 121
Surface Area: 32.654 km²
Inhabitants: 5.808.000
Catholics: 396.389
Share: 6,82 %
Address: Danziger Straße 52a

20099 Hamburg
Website: www.erzbistum-hamburg.de
E-Mail-Address: egv@erzbistum-hamburg.de
Suffragan dioceses:

The Archdiocese of Hamburg (lat. Archidioecesis Hamburgensis) (Ger. Erzbistum Hamburg). is a diocese in the north of Germany and contains the Federal States of Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein as well as the part Mecklenburg of the Federal State Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. In terms of surface area it is the largest in Germany. It is characterized by its situation as a diocese in the Diaspora. Seat of the archbishop is the cathedral St. Marien in St. Georg.

[edit] History

In 831 Hamburg was elevated to an archbishopric by Pope Gregory IV and in 834 the Benedictine monk Ansgar was elected to be the first archbishop. After the looting of Hamburg by Vikings in 845 the archbishopric of Hamburg was united with the bishopric of Bremen, and the archbishop's seat moved to Bremen. Still, there was a cathedral chapter in Hamburg with several special rights, which started to build the current cathedral building Mariendom. During reformation the bishopric undergone steady deterioration and finally, with the Peace of Westfalia, it ceased to exist.

By the apostolic constitution Omnium Christifidelium of Pope John Paul II, of October 24, 1994 coming into effect on January 7, 1995, the archdiocese of Hamburg was erected again. Today it consists of territory that once belonged to the dioceses of Osnabrück, and Hildesheim. The cathedral and the vicar-general are seated in the city-quarter St. Georg which is located in the borough of Hamburg-Central.

[edit] Ordinaries

  • Heinrich Theissing † (23 Jul 1973 Appointed - 5 Dec 1987 Resigned)
  • Theodor Hubrich † (23 Nov 1987 Appointed - 26 Mar 1992 Died)
  • Ludwig Averkamp (24 Oct 1994 Appointed - 16 Feb 2002 Retired)
  • Werner Thissen (22 Nov 2002 Appointed - )

[edit] References

v • d • e
Roman Catholic archdioceses and dioceses in Germany