Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint-Denis-de-La Réunion

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint-Denis-de-La Réunion (Latin: Sancti Dionysii Reunionis) is the Latin, only Roman Catholic diocese on the island of Réunion.

It is exempt, i.e. directly subject to the Holy see, not part of any ecclesiastical province, but a member of the Episcopal Conference of the Indian Ocean (with Comoros, Mauritius and Seychelles).

Special churches

The cathedral episcopal see of the bishop is Cathédrale Saint-Denis in Saint-Denis, national capital of Réunion.

History

• Established 1712 as Apostolic Prefecture of Islands of the Indian Ocean, on territory split off from the Diocese of Malacca (in Malaysia)
• On 8 May 1807, it lost vast Asian territory establish the Apostolic Prefecture of Batavia (now Archdiocese of Jakarata; then covering the Dutch East Indies)
• In 1818, it was renamed as Apostolic Prefecture of Bourbon, after its see's island's colonial name then (now Réunion)
• On 10 January 1830, it lost vast Oceanian territory to establish the Apostolic Prefecture of South Seas Islands (New Zealand)
• In 1841, it lost vast nearby Indian Ocean territory to establish the Apostolic Prefecture of Madagascar
• In 1850 it was promoted and renamed after its see as Diocese of Saint-Denis-de-La Réunion
• On 26 February 1860, it lost more East African territory to establish the Apostolic Prefecture of Zanguebar (now diocese of Zanzibar)

Ordinaries

(all Roman Rite)

Apostolic Prefects of Islands of the Indian Ocean

(not available?)

Apostolic Prefect of Bourbon

• Gabriel-Henri-Jérôme de Solages (1829 – 1832.12.08), later first Apostolic Prefect of daughter jurisdiction [Apostolic Prefecture of South Seas Islands|South Seas Islands]] (New Zealand) (1830 – 1832.12.08)

Exempt Bishops of Saint-Denis-de-La Réunion

• Florian-Jules Desprez (1850.06.22 – 1857.03.19), later Bishop of Limoges (France) ([1857.02.04] 1857.03.19 – 1859.09.26), Metropolitan Archbishop of Toulouse (France) ([1859.07.30] 1859.09.26 – death 1895.01.21), created Cardinal-Priest of Ss. Marcellino e Pietro (1879.09.22 – 1895.01.21)
• Armand-René Maupoint (1857.02.14 – 1871.07.10), later Apostolic Prefect of daughter jurisdiction [Apostolic Prefecture of Zanguebar|Zanguebar]] (Zanzibar island, now in Tanzania) (1862 – death 1871.07.10)
• Victor-Jean-François-Paulin Delannoy (1872.02.10 – 1876.12.18), later Bishop of Aire et Dax (France) ([1876.10.10] 1876.12.18 – death 1905.08.07)
• Dominique-Clément-Marie Soulé (1876.10.10 – 1880.11.30), later Apostolic Administrator of Guadeloupe et Basse-Terre diocese (Guadeloupe) (1892.11.21 – 1898), emeritate as Titular Archbishop of Leontopolis in Bithynia (1893.03.21 – 1919.04.21)
• Joseph Coldefy (1881.02.17 – death 1887.01.18)
• Edmond-Frédéric Fuzet (1887.10.12 – 1893.01.19), later Bishop of Beauvais (Picardy, France) ([1892.11.26] 1893.01.19 – 1899.12.07), Metropolitan Archbishop of Rouen (Normandy, France) (1899.12.07 – death 1915.12.20)
• Jacques-Paul-Antonin Fabre (1892.11.26 – death 1919.12.26)
• François-Emile-Marie Cléret de Langavant, Holy Ghost Fathers (C.S.Sp.) (1934.12.10 – 1960.10.21), later Titular Bishop of Mactaris (1960.10.21 – 1971.07.21)
• Georges-Henri Guibert, C.S.Sp. (1960.11.07 – retired 1975.02.19), previously Titular Bishop of Dices (1949.12.15 – 1960.11.07) & Auxiliary Bishop of Dakar (Senegal) (1949.12.15 – 1960.11.07)
• Gilbert Guillaume Marie-Jean Aubry (since 1975.11.20 - ), also President of Episcopal Conferences of Indian Ocean (1989 – 1996), Apostolic Administrator of neighbouring Indian Ocean diocese Port Victoria (Seychelles) (1994 – 1995.03.03), President of Episcopal Conferences of Indian Ocean (2002 – 2006)

Source and External links

• GCatholic.org, with incumbent biography links

Link

• The Diocese of Saint-Denis-de-La Réunion website

See Also

• List of Saints from Africa

Coordinates: 20°52′59″S 55°27′00″E / 20.88306°S 55.45000°E / -20.88306; 55.45000