The Diocese of Derry and Raphoe is a

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 ...

of the

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the secon ...

in the north-west of

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. It is in the

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian Churches with traditional hierarchical structure, including Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity. In general, an ecclesiastical province consists of seve ...

of Armagh. Its geographical remit straddles two civil jurisdictions: in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

, it covers all of County Londonderry and large parts of

County Tyrone County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. It is no longer used as an administrative division for local government but retai ...

while in the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...

it covers

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconn ...

Overview and history

After the Church in England broke communion with the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, by decree of the Irish Parliament, the

became the Established Church in the Kingdom of Ireland. The English-speaking minority mostly adhered to the

or to

Presbyterianism Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

, while the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

undertook extensive mission work and retained the allegiance of the majority of the population in Ireland as a whole. From the 1830s onwards, many Anglican dioceses were merged, in view of declining membership. The sees of Derry and Raphoe were united in 1834. It is for this reason that the united diocese has two

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 ...

Cathedrals

* The Cathedral Church of St Columb, Derry, Northern Ireland. * The Cathedral Church of St Eunan, Raphoe, County Donegal, Republic of Ireland.

List of Bishops

The following is a basic list the bishops. * 1831–1853: Richard Ponsonby * 1853–1867: William Higgin * 1867–1896: William Alexander * 1896–1916: George Alexander Chadwick * 1916–1944: Joseph Irvine Peacocke * 1945–1958: Robert McNeil Boyd * 1958–1969:

Charles John Tyndall Charles John Tyndall DD (30 May 1900 – 3 April 1971) was the 13th Bishop of Kilmore, Elphin and Ardagh who was later translated to Derry and Raphoe. Educated at The King's Hospital and Trinity College, Dublin and ordained in 1925, his first p ...

* 1970–1975:

Cuthbert Irvine Peacocke Cuthbert Irvine Peacocke TD (26 April 1903 – 6 April 1994) was the 8th Bishop of Derry and Raphoe, retiring in 1975. Peacocke was born at St Mary's Rectory, Dublin, son of Rt. Revd Joseph Irvine Peacocke, bishop of Derry and Raphoe 1916–1945. ...

* 1975–1980: Robert "Robin" Eames * 1980–2002: James Mehaffey * 2002–2019: Right Reverend Kenneth (Ken) Raymond Good * 2019–present:

Andrew Forster Andrew James Forster is an Irish Anglican Bishop. He is currently Serving as Bishop of Derry and Raphoe since 8 December 2019. Forster was educated at Queen's University, Belfast and the Church of Ireland Theological College. He was ordained ...

References

External links

Diocesan homepage
{{authority control Derry and Raphoe Religion in County Londonderry Religion in County Donegal Religion in County Tyrone Church of Ireland in the Republic of Ireland

Overview and history

Cathedrals

List of Bishops

See also

References

External links