The Diocese of Passau is a Roman Catholic

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

in Germany that is a suffragan of the

Archdiocese of Munich and Freising The Archdiocese of Munich and Freising (german: Erzbistum München und Freising, la, Archidioecesis Monacensis et Frisingensis) is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Bavaria, Germany.

."Diocese of Passau"
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Catholic-Hierarchy.org ''Catholic-Hierarchy.org'' is an online database of bishops and dioceses of the Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Catholic Churches. The website is not officially sanctioned by the Church. It is run as a private project by David M. Cheney in ...

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved February 29, 2016"Diocese of Passau"
''GCatholic.org''. Gabriel Chow. Retrieved February 29, 2016 Though similar in name to the Prince-Bishopric of Passau—an ecclesiastical principality that existed for centuries until it was secularized in 1803—the two are entirely different entities. The diocese covers an area of 5,442 km².

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...

was born and baptized on

Holy Saturday Holy Saturday ( la, Sabbatum Sanctum), also known as Great and Holy Saturday (also Holy and Great Saturday), the Great Sabbath, Hallelujah Saturday (in Portugal and Brazil), Saturday of the Glory, Sabado de Gloria, and Black Saturday or Easter ...

, 16 April 1927, at

Marktl am Inn Marktl, or often unofficially called ''Marktl am Inn'' ("Little market on the river Inn"), is a village and historic market municipality in the state of Bavaria, Germany, near the Austrian border, in the Altötting district of Upper Bavaria. Th ...

, which is located within the Diocese of Passau.

History

The Diocese of Passau may be considered the successor of the ancient

Diocese of Lorch The Ancient Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Laureacum (Lorch) existed in what is now northern Upper Austria. History When it was set up, Laureacum was in the 'Danubian' Roman Province of Noricum Ripensis. Maximilian of Lorch is said to hav ...

(Laureacum). At Lorch, a Roman station and an important stronghold at the confluence of the rivers Enns and

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , p ...

, Christianity found a foothold in the third century, during a period of Roman domination, and a Bishop of Lorch certainly existed in the fourth. During the great migrations, Christianity on the Danube was completely rooted out, and the Celtic and Roman population was annihilated or enslaved. In the region between the rivers

Lech Lech may refer to: People * Lech (name), a name of Polish origin * Lech, the legendary founder of Poland * Lech (Bohemian prince) Products and organizations * Lech (beer), Polish beer produced by Kompania Piwowarska, in Poznań * Lech Poznań, ...

and Enns, the wandering

Baiuvarii The Baiuvarii or Bavarians (german: Bajuwaren) were a Germanic people. The Baiuvarii had settled modern-day Bavaria (which is named after them), Austria, and South Tyrol by the 6th century AD, and are considered the ancestors of modern-day Bavar ...

were converted to Christianity in the seventh century, while the Avari, to the east, remained pagan. The ecclesiastical organization of Bavaria was brought about by St. Boniface, who, with the support of Duke Odilo or at least enacting an earlier design of the duke, erected the four sees of Freising, Ratisbon, Passau, and

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label= Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...

. He confirmed as incumbent of Passau, Bishop Vivilo, or Vivolus, who had been ordained by

Pope Gregory III Pope Gregory III ( la, Gregorius III; died 28 November 741) was the bishop of Rome from 11 February 731 to his death. His pontificate, like that of his predecessor, was disturbed by Byzantine iconoclasm and the advance of the Lombards, in which ...

, and who was for a long time the only bishop in Bavaria. Thenceforth, Vivilo resided permanently at Passau, on the site of the old Roman colony of Batavis. Here was a church, the founder of which is not known, dedicated to St. Stephen. To Bishop Vivilo's diocese was annexed the ancient Lorch, which meanwhile had become a small and unimportant place. By the duke's generosity, a cathedral was soon erected near the Church of St. Stephen, and here the bishop lived in common with his clergy. Territory of the Prince-Bishopric of Passau

Territory of the Prince-Bishopric of Passau

The boundaries of the diocese extended westwards to the river Isar, and eastwards to the Enns. In ecclesiastical affairs Passau was probably, from the beginning, suffragan to Salzburg. Through the favour of Dukes Odilo and Tassilo, the bishopric received many gifts, and several monasteries arose—e.g.

Niederaltaich Abbey Niederaltaich Abbey (Abtei or Kloster Niederaltaich) is a house of the Benedictine Order founded in 741, situated in the village of Niederalteich on the Danube in Bavaria. Foundation and early history After its foundation in 741 by Duke Odilo o ...

, Niedernburg Abbey, Mattsee Abbey,

Kremsmünster Abbey Kremsmünster Abbey (german: Stift Kremsmünster) is a Benedictine monastery in Kremsmünster in Upper Austria. History The monastery was founded in 777 AD by Tassilo III, Duke of Bavaria. According to the foundation legend, Tassilo founded th ...

—which were richly endowed. Under Bishop Waltreich (774–804), after the conquest of the Avari, who had assisted the rebellious Duke Tassilo, the district between the Enns and the

Raab Raab is a market town (''Marktgemeinde'') in the district of Schärding in Upper Austria in Austria. History The village historically belonged to the Duchy of Bavaria until the Treaty of Teschen transferred the area to Austria in 1780. During ...

was added to the diocese, which thus included the whole eastern part (

Ostmark Ostmark is a German term meaning either Eastern march when applied to territories or Eastern Mark when applied to currencies. Ostmark may refer to: *the medieval March of Austria and its predecessors ''Bavarian Eastern March'' and ''March of Pann ...

) of Southern Bavaria and part of what is now Hungary. The first missionaries to the pagan Hungarians went out from Passau, and in 866 the Church sent missionaries to

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

. Passau, the outermost eastern bulwark of the Germans, suffered most from the incursions of the Hungarians. At that time many churches and monasteries were destroyed. When, after the victory the Battle of Lech, the Germans pressed forward and regained the old Ostmark, Bishop Adalbert (946-971) hoped to extend his spiritual jurisdiction over Hungary. His successor

Piligrim Piligrim (Pilgrim of Passau, Pilegrinus, Peregrinus) (died 20 May 991) was Bishop of Passau. Piligrim was ambitious, but also concerned with the Christianization of Hungary. He was educated at the Benedictine Niederaltaich Abbey, and was made bi ...

(971-991), who worked successfully for the Christianization of Pannonia, aspired to free Passau from the metropolitan authority of Salzburg, but was completely frustrated in this, as well as in his attempt to assert the metropolitan claims which Passau was supposed to have inherited from Lorch, and to include all Hungary in his diocese. By founding many monasteries in his diocese he prepared the way for the princely power of later bishops. He also built many new churches and restored others from ruins. His successor, Christian (991-1002) received in 999 from

Emperor Otto III Otto III (June/July 980 – 23 January 1002) was Holy Roman Emperor from 996 until his death in 1002. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto III was the only son of the Emperor Otto II and his wife Theophanu. Otto III was crowned as King of G ...

the market privilege and the rights of coinage, taxation, and higher and lower jurisdiction. Emperor Henry II granted him a large part of the North Forest. Henceforward, indeed, the bishops ruled as princes of the empire, although the title was used for the first time only in a document in 1193. Under Berengar (1013–1045) the whole district east of the Viennese forest as far as Letha and March was placed under the jurisdiction of Passau. During his time the cathedral chapter made its appearance, but there is little information concerning its beginning as a distinct corporation with the right of electing a bishop. This right was much hampered by the exercise of imperial influence. At the beginning of the

Investiture Controversy The Investiture Controversy, also called Investiture Contest ( German: ''Investiturstreit''; ), was a conflict between the Church and the state in medieval Europe over the ability to choose and install bishops ( investiture) and abbots of mona ...

, St. Altmann occupied the see (1065–1091) and was one of the few German bishops who adhered to Pope Gregory VII. Ulrich I, Count of Höfft (1092–1121), who was for a time driven from his see by Emperor Henry IV, furthered monastic reforms and the Crusades. Reginmar (1121–1138), Reginbert, Count of Hegenau (1136–1147) who took part in the crusade of Conrad III, and Conrad of Austria (1149–1164), a brother of Bishop

Otto of Freising Otto of Freising ( la, Otto Frisingensis; c. 1114 – 22 September 1158) was a German churchman of the Cistercian order and chronicled at least two texts which carries valuable information on the political history of his own time. He was Otto I ...

, were all much interested in the foundation of new monasteries and the reform for those already existing. Bishop

Diepold of Berg Bistumswappen of Passau.Diepold Count von Berg, also: Theobald, (c. 1140, – 3 November 1190) was the 11th Bishop of Passau from 1172 to 1190. Biography Diepold von Berg was born around 1140 as the son of Diepold von Berg-Schelklingen and Gise ...

went on the

Third Crusade The Third Crusade (1189–1192) was an attempt by three European monarchs of Western Christianity (Philip II of France, Richard I of England and Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor) to reconquer the Holy Land following the capture of Jerusalem by ...

, accompanied by the dean of the cathedral,

Tageno Tageno (died 1190) was a Bavarian clergyman and crusader. He was a minor cleric of the cathedral of Passau from at least July 1183. He became dean of the cathedral in 1187 and joined the army of Frederick Barbarossa on the Third Crusade in 1189. ...

, whose diary is historically valuable. Ulrich, Count of Andechs (1215–1221), was formally recognized as a prince of the empire at the Reichstag of Nuremberg in 1217. The reforms which were begun by Gebhard von Plaien (1221–1232) and Rüdiger von Rodeck (1233–1250) found a zealous promoter in Otto von Lonsdorf (1254–1265), one of the greatest bishops of Passau. He took stringent measures against the relaxed monasteries, introduced the

Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

and Dominicans into his diocese, promoted the arts and sciences, and collected the old documents which had survived the storms of the preceding period, so that to him we owe almost all our knowledge of the early history of Passau. (See Schmidt, "Otto von Lonsdorf, Bischof zu Passau", Würzburg, 1903.) Bishop Peter, formerly Canon of Breslau, contributed to the

House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

by bestowing episcopal fiefs on the sons of King Rudolph. Under Bernhard of Brambach (1285–1313) began the struggles of Passau to become a free imperial city. After an uprising in May 1298, the bishop granted the burghers, in the municipal ordinance of 1299, privileges in conformity with what was called the Bernhardine Charter. The cathedral having been burned down in 1281, he built a new cathedral which lasted until 1662. Albert III von Winkel (1363–1380) was particularly active in the struggle with the burghers and in resisting the robber-knights. The Black Death visited the bishopric under Gottfried II von Weitzenbeck (1342–1362). George I von Hohenlohe (1388–1421), who, after 1418, was imperial chancellor, energetically opposed the

Hussites The Hussites ( cs, Husité or ''Kališníci''; "Chalice People") were a Czech proto-Protestant Christian movement that followed the teachings of reformer Jan Hus, who became the best known representative of the Bohemian Reformation. The Huss ...

. During the time of Ulrich III von Nussdorf (1451–1479) the diocese suffered its first great curtailment by the formation of the new

Diocese of Vienna The Archbishop of Vienna is the prelate of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vienna who is concurrently the metropolitan bishop of its ecclesiastical province which includes the dioceses of Eisenstadt, Linz and St. Pölten. From 1469 to 1513, bi ...

(1468). This diocese was afterwards further enlarged at the expense of Passau by Pope Sixtus IV. Towards the close of the fifteenth century the conflict between an Austrian candidate for the see and a Bavarian brought about a state of war in the diocese. The

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and ...

was kept out of all the Bavarian part of the diocese, except the Countship of Ortenburg, by the efforts of

Ernest of Bavaria Ernest of Bavaria (german: Ernst von Bayern) (17 December 1554 – 17 February 1612) was Prince-elector-archbishop of the Archbishopric of Cologne from 1583 to 1612 as successor of the expelled Gebhard Truchsess von Waldburg. He was also bishop ...

who, though never consecrated, ruled the diocese from 1517 to 1541. Lutheranism found many adherents, however, in the Austrian portion. Wolfgang I Count of Salm (1540–1555) and Urban von Trennbach (1561–1598) led the counter-Reformation. Under Wolfgang the

Peace of Passau Holy Roman Emperor Charles V had won a victory against Protestant forces in the Schmalkaldic War of 1547. Many Protestant princes were unhappy with the religious terms of the Augsburg Interim imposed after this victory. In January 1552, led by Maur ...

was concluded, in the summer of 1552. The last Bavarian prince-bishop was Urban, who in his struggles during the Reformation received substantial aid for the Austrian part of the diocese from

Albert V, Duke of Bavaria Albert V (German: ''Albrecht V.'') (29 February 1528 – 24 October 1579) was Duke of Bavaria from 1550 until his death. He was born in Munich to William IV and Maria Jacobäa of Baden. Early life Albert was educated at Ingolstadt by Catholic ...

, and, after 1576, from

Emperor Rudolf II Rudolf II (18 July 1552 – 20 January 1612) was Holy Roman Emperor (1576–1612), King of Hungary and Croatia (as Rudolf I, 1572–1608), King of Bohemia (1575–1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria (1576–1608). He was a member of the Hous ...

. All the successors of Urban were Austrians. Bishop Leopold I (1598–1625) (also Bishop of Strasburg after 1607) was one of the first to enter the Catholic League of 1609. In the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle ...

he was loyal to his brother, Emperor Ferdinand II. Leopold II Wilhelm (1625–1662), son of Ferdinand II, a pious prince and a great benefactor of the City of Passau, especially after the great conflagration of 1662, finally united five bishoprics. The Bishop-Prince Wenzelaus von Thun (1664–1673) began the new

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

which was completed thirty years later by his successor Cardinal John Philip von Lamberg. The Cardinal-Prince and his nephew, also Cardinal-Prince Joseph Dominicus von Lamberg, some time later successor to his uncle (1723–1762), both became cardinals. They were brother and son to Franz Joseph I, Landgrave of Leuchtenberg, and both front-line diplomats for the Austrian court. When Vienna was raised to an archdiocese in 1722, he relinquished the parishes beyond the Viennese Forest, hence was exempted from the metropolitan authority of Salzburg, and obtained the pallium for himself and his successors. Leopold Ernst, Count of Firmian (1763–1783), created cardinal in 1772, established an institute of theology at Passau and, after the

suppression of the Jesuits The suppression of the Jesuits was the removal of all members of the Society of Jesus from most of the countries of Western Europe and their colonies beginning in 1759, and the abolishment of the order by the Holy See in 1773. The Jesuits we ...

, founded a lyceum. Under Joseph, Count of Auersperg (1783–1795),

Emperor Joseph II Joseph II (German: Josef Benedikt Anton Michael Adam; English: ''Joseph Benedict Anthony Michael Adam''; 13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg lands from November 29, 1780 un ...

took away two-thirds of the diocese to form the dioceses of Linz and St. Pölten and to enlarge for the last time the archdiocese of Vienna. The last prince-bishop, Leopold von Thun (1796–1826), saw the secularization of the old bishopric in 1803; the City of Passau and the temporalities on the left bank of the

Inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accommo ...

and the right bank of the Ilz went to Bavaria, while the territory on the left banks of the Danube and of the Ilz went to

Ferdinand III of Habsburg-Lorraine Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...

, the former

Grand Duke of Tuscany The rulers of Tuscany varied over time, sometimes being margraves, the rulers of handfuls of border counties and sometimes the heads of the most important family of the region. Margraves of Tuscany, 812–1197 House of Boniface :These were origin ...

, becoming part of the

Electorate of Salzburg The Electorate of Salzburg (german: Kurfürstentum Salzburg or ), occasionally known as the Grand Duchy of Salzburg, was an electoral principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1803–05, the short-lived successor state of the Prince-Archbi ...

and afterwards to Austria. On 22 February 1803, when the Bavarians marched into Passau, the prince-bishop withdrew to his estates in Bohemia, and never revisited his former residence. By the Bavarian Concordat of 1817, the diocese was given new boundaries. After the death of the last prince-bishop, Passau's exemption from metropolitan power ceased, and the diocese became suffragan of Munich-Freising.

Ordinaries

Auxiliary bishops

*Johannes (1441–1465) * Sigismund Pirchan von Rosenberg, O. Cist. (1441–1472)"Bishop Sigismund Pirchan von Rosenberg, O. Cist."
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Benedikt Sibenhirter, O.S.B. (1452–1458)"Bishop Benedikt Sibenhirter, O.S.B."
''

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Wolfgang Püchler, O.F.M. (1465–1475)"Bishop Wolfgang Püchler, O.F.M."
''

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Albert Schönhofer (1473–1493)"Bishop Albert Schönhofer"
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Andreas Weinmair (1477–1491)"Bishop Andreas Weinmair"
''

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Nikolaus Kaps (1491–1499) Appointed, Auxiliary Bishop of Gurk * Bernhard Meurl von Leombach (1496–1526)"Bishop Bernhard Meurl von Leombach"
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Heinrich Kurz (1526–1557)"Bishop Heinrich Kurz"
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Thomas Murner, O.F.M. (1530–1536)"Bishop Thomas Murner, O.F.M."
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Urban Sagstetter (1553–1556) * Erasmus Pagendorfer (1557–1561)"Bishop Erasmus Pagendorfer"
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Michael Englmayr (1561–1568)"Bishop Michael Englmayr"
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Christian Krypper (1570–1573)"Bishop Christian Krypper"
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Hector Wegmann (1575–1589)"Bishop Hector Wegmann"
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Christoph Weilhamer (1589–1597)"Bishop Christoph Weilhamer"
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Andreas Hofmann (bishop) (1597–1604) * Blasius Laubich (1604–1608)"Bishop Blasius Laubich"
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 * Šimun Bratulić, O.S.P.P.E. (1598–1601) * Johannes Brenner (bishop) (1608–1629) * Johannes Kaspar Stredele (1631–1642) * Johannes Bartholomäus Kobolt von Tambach (1637–1645) * Nikolaus Aliprandi de Thomasis (1642) * Ulrich Grappler von Trappenburg (1646–1658) * Martin Geiger (1658–1669) * Jodok Brendt Hopner (1670–1682) * Johannes Maximus Stainer von Pleinfelden (1682–1692)"Bishop Johannes Maximus Stainer von Pleinfelden"
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''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 24, 2016 *Johann Raymund Guidobald von Lamberg, O.F.M. Cap. (1701–1725) *Franciscus Aloysius von Lamberg (1725–1732) *Anton Joseph von Lamberg (1733–1747) *Ermest Amadeus Thomas von Attems (1735–1742) *Johannes Christoph Ludwig von Kuenburg (1747–1756) * Philipp Wirich Lorenz von Daun zu Sassenheim und Callenborn (1757–1763) *Joseph Adam Arco (1764–1773) *Franz Karl Maria Cajetan von Firmian (1773–1776) *Thomas Johann Kaspar von Thun und Hohenstein (1776–1795) Appointed, Bishop of Passau *Leopold Maximilian von Firmian (Frimian) (1797–1800) *Karl Kajetan von Gaisruck (Gaysruck) (1801–1818) *Adalbert von Pechmann (1824–1860) * Franz Xaver Eder (1977–1984) Appointed, Coadjutor Bishop of Passau

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Passau, Diocese Roman Catholic dioceses in Germany Bavarian Circle Passau Prince-bishoprics of the Holy Roman Empire in Germany Prince-bishoprics of the Holy Roman Empire in Austria