Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham

Archdiocese of Birmingham Archidioecesis Birminghamiensis
File:Coat of Arms of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham.svg Coat of arms of the Archdiocese of Birmingham
Location
Country	England
Territory	Counties of Warwickshire, Oxfordshire, Staffordshire, West Midlands and Worcestershire
Ecclesiastical province	Birmingham
Metropolitan	Birmingham
Statistics
Area
Population - Total - Catholics	(as of 2013) 4,945,600 438,675 (8.9%)
Parishes	222
Information
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Rite	Latin Rite
Established	29 September 1850 (As Diocese of Birmingham) 28 October 1911 (As Archdiocese of Birmingham)
Cathedral	Metropolitan Cathedral Church of Saint Chad, Birmingham
Secular priests	260
Current leadership
Pope	Francis
Metropolitan Archbishop	Most Rev. Bernard Longley
Auxiliary Bishops	Rt Rev. Leonard William Kenney Rt Rev. David Christopher McGough Rt Rev. Robert Byrne
Vicar General	Very Rev. Mgr. Timothy Menezes VG
Episcopal Vicars	Very Rev. Fr Stephen Wright Sr Anna O'Connor SP
Judicial Vicar	Very Rev. Fr Joseph McLoughlin
Emeritus Bishops	Rt Rev. Philip Pargeter
Map
The Archdiocese of Birmingham within the Province of Birmingham
Website
birminghamdiocese.org.uk

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham is one of the principal Latin-rite Catholic administrative divisions of England and Wales in the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church. The archdiocese covers an area of 3,373 square miles (8,740 km²), encompassing Staffordshire, the West Midlands, Warwickshire, Worcestershire and much of Oxfordshire as well as Caversham in Berkshire. The metropolitan see is in the City of Birmingham at the Metropolitan Cathedral Church of Saint Chad. The metropolitan province includes the suffragan diocese of Clifton and Shrewsbury.

The Archbishop is Bernard Longley, who was named the ninth Archbishop of Birmingham on 1 October 2009. He succeeds the Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Vincent Nichols (2000-2009). Bishop Longley was installed as Archbishop of Birmingham at the Metropolitan Cathedral and Basilica of Saint Chad on 8 December 2009, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception and one of the patronal feasts of the Archdiocese, St Chad being the other.

History

Erected as the Vicariate Apostolic of the Midlands District in 1688, the vicariate grew very slowly until the advent of the industrial revolution. In response to the large growth the name was changed in 1840 to the Vicariate Apostolic of Central District and a new vicariate created out of the eastern district.

Finally, in September 1850, the vicariate was elevated to a full diocese, as the Diocese of Birmingham, along with the Diocese of Nottingham and the Diocese of Shrewsbury. The diocese was then suffragan to the Archdiocese of Westminster.

The Diocese of Birmingham was elevated to archdiocese status on 28 October 1911.

Diocese Boundaries

The diocese is divided into three pastoral areas, each headed by an Auxiliary Bishop, which contain a number of deaneries:

• Central and Western Pastoral Area:

Birmingham Cathedral, Birmingham North, Birmingham South, Birmingham East, Kidderminster, Worcester

• Northern Pastoral Area:

Dudley, Lichfield, North Staffordshire, Stafford, Walsall, Wolverhampton

• Southern Pastoral Area:

Banbury, Coventry, Oxford North, Oxford South, Rugby, Warwick

Ordinaries

(see also: Archbishop of Birmingham)

Vicars Apostolic of the Midland District.

• Bonaventure Giffard (appointed on 25 November 1687 – translated to the London District on 14 March 1703)
• George Witham (appointed on 12 August 1702 – translated to the Northern District on 6 April 1716)
• John Talbot Stonor (appointed on 18 September 1715 – died in office on 29 March 1756)
• John Joseph Hornyold (succeeded on 29 March 1756 – died in office on 26 December 1778)
• Thomas Joseph Talbot (succeeded on 26 December 1778 – died in office on 24 April 1795)
• Charles Berington (succeeded on 24 April 1795 – died in office on 8 June 1798)
• Gregory Stapleton (appointed on 7 November 1800 – died in office on 23 May 1802)
• John Milner (appointed on 6 March 1803 – died in office on 19 April 1826)
• Thomas Walsh (succeeded on 19 April 1826 – afterwards became vicar apostolic of the Central District on 3 July 1840)
• (Nicholas Wiseman, appointed coadjutor vicar apostolic of the Midland District on 22 May 1840 – afterwards became coadjutor vicar apostolic of the Central District on 3 July 1840)

Vicars Apostolic of the Central District.

• Thomas Walsh (appointed on 3 July 1840 – translated to the London District on 17 July 1848)
• (Nicholas Wiseman, appointed coadjutor vicar apostolic of the Central District on 3 July 1840 – became coadjutor Vicar Apostolic of the London District on 29 August 1847)
• William Bernard Ullathorne, O.S.B. (appointed on 28 July 1848 – afterwards became the bishop of Birmingham on 29 September 1850)

Bishops of Birmingham.

• William Bernard Ullathorne, O.S.B. (appointed on 29 September 1850 – retired on 27 April 1888)
• Edward Ilsley (appointed on 17 February 1888 – afterwards became the archbishop of Birmingham on 28 October 1911)

Archbishops of Birmingham.

• Edward Ilsley (appointed on 28 October 1911 – retired on 13 June 1921)
• John McIntyre (appointed on 16 June 1921 – resigned on 17 November 1928)
• Thomas Leighton Williams (appointed on 23 Jun 1929 – died in office on 1 Apr 1946)
• Joseph Masterson (appointed on 8 Feb 1947 – died in office on 30 November 1953)
• Francis Joseph Grimshaw (appointed on 11 May 1954 – died in office on 22 March 1965)
• George Patrick Dwyer (appointed on 5 October 1965 – retired on 1 September 1981)
• Maurice Noël Léon Couve de Murville (appointed on 22 January 1982 – resigned on 12 June 1999)
• Vincent Gerard Nichols (appointed on 15 February 2000 – translated to the archdiocese of Westminster on 21 May 2009)
• Bernard Longley (appointed on 1 October 2009 and installed on 8 December 2009)

See also

• Archbishop of Birmingham
• List of Roman Catholic dioceses in England and Wales

References

• Archdioceses of Birmingham website
• GCatholic.org information
• Catholic Hierarchy