The Diocese of St Albans forms part of the

Province of Canterbury The Province of Canterbury, or less formally the Southern Province, is one of two ecclesiastical provinces which constitute the Church of England. The other is the Province of York (which consists of 12 dioceses). Overview The Province consist ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

and is part of the wider

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...

, in turn part of the worldwide

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion after the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Founded in 1867 in London, the communion has more than 85 million members within the Church of England and other ...

. The

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 associ ...

is home to more than 1.6 million people and comprises the historic Counties of

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For gov ...

and

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council ...

, or in terms of local government areas,

, Luton,

and parts of the London Borough of Barnet. It therefore ranges from small rural communities in villages and hamlets to major urban centres like

Luton Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst t ...

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, and ...

and

Hemel Hempstead Hemel Hempstead () is a town in the Dacorum district in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of London, which is part of the Greater London Urban Area. The population at the 2011 census was 97,500. Developed after the Second World War as a new ...

, and includes suburban areas on

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

's outer reaches.

History

The diocese was founded by an Order in Council on 30 April 1877, implementing the Bishopric of St Albans Act 1875. The diocese was established from parts of the large Diocese of Rochester, extending the new bishop's jurisdiction over more than 600 parishes in the two counties of

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

and

. The first Bishop of St Albans was Thomas Legh Claughton, who served from 1877 to 1890. The see is in the

City of St Albans The City and District of St Albans () is a local authority district in Hertfordshire in the East of England region. The main urban settlements are St Albans and Harpenden. The council offices are in St Albans. History St Albans City and ...

, where the ''

cathedra A ''cathedra'' is the raised throne of a bishop in the early Christian basilica. When used with this meaning, it may also be called the bishop's throne. With time, the related term ''cathedral'' became synonymous with the "seat", or principal ...

'' (bishop's seat) is located in St Albans Cathedral. The cathedral building itself dates from 1077. It was an abbey church (part of St Albans Abbey) prior to its dissolution in 1539, and then a parish church (purchased by the town in 1553) until its elevation to cathedral status in 1877. In 1914, the new

Diocese of Chelmsford The Diocese of Chelmsford is a Church of England diocese, part of the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers Essex and the five East London boroughs of Barking and Dagenham, Havering, Newham, Redbridge, and Waltham Forest (most of which ...

was formed, removing Essex from the St Albans diocese. A few months later the county Archdeaconry of Bedford was added from the

Diocese of Ely The Diocese of Ely is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury. It is headed by the Bishop of Ely, who sits at Ely Cathedral in Ely, Cambridgeshire, Ely. There is one suffragan bishop, suffragan (subordinate) bishop, the Bish ...

, thereby providing the diocese substantially with its current boundaries. The suffragan bishopric of Bedford was revived in 1879 and again in 1935 and that of

Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a ford on the River Lea, n ...

was created in 1968.

Current geographical limits and structure

The diocese currently includes: *the county of

*the county of

*parts of the London Borough of Barnet The diocese is overseen by the Bishop of St Albans, whose ''cathedra'' (or seat) is in St Albans Cathedral. He is supported in his pastoral work in the diocese by two suffragan bishops, the

Bishop of Hertford The Bishop of Hertford is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of St Albans, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The suffragan See was created by Order in Council of 5 July 1889, but remained dorman ...

and the

Bishop of Bedford The Bishop of Bedford is an episcopal title used by a Church of England suffragan bishop who, under the direction of the Diocesan Bishop of St Albans, oversees 150 parishes in Luton and Bedfordshire. The title, which takes its name after the to ...

as well as three archdeacons. The diocese is divided into three

archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that of mo ...

ries, which are in turn divided into 20 area or rural deaneries. The diocesan offices are located in Holywell Hill in St Albans.

Bishops

The Bishop of St Albans ( Alan Smith) leads the diocese, and is assisted by the Bishops suffragan of Bedford ( Richard Atkinson) and of Hertford (vacant). The suffragan see of Bedford was created by the Suffragan Bishops Act 1534 but went into abeyance after one incumbent; that see was next filled in the late 19th century and has been in near-constant use again since 1935. The See of Hertford was created by

Order in Council An Order-in-Council is a type of legislation in many countries, especially the Commonwealth realms. In the United Kingdom this legislation is formally made in the name of the monarch by and with the advice and consent of the Privy Council (''Kin ...

of 5 July 1889, but remained dormant until first filled in December 1967. Alternative episcopal oversight (for parishes in the diocese which reject the ministry of priests who are women) is provided by the provincial episcopal visitor, Norman Banks, Bishop suffragan of Richborough, who is licensed as an honorary assistant bishop of the diocese in order to facilitate his work there. There are also several former bishops living in the diocese who are licensed as

honorary assistant bishop An assistant bishop in the Anglican Communion is a bishop appointed to assist a diocesan bishop. Church of England In the established Church of England, assistant bishops are usually retired (diocesan or suffragan) bishops – in which case they ...

s: *2001–present: Robin Smith, retired Bishop suffragan of Hertford, lives in Redbourn. *2013–present:

Stephen Venner Stephen Venner (born 19 June 1944) was Bishop of Dover (the bishop with delegated responsibility for the Diocese of Canterbury) from 1999 until 2009. He was also Bishop for the Falkland Islands from 2007 and Bishop to the Forces from 2009 until ...

, retired

Bishop of Dover The Bishop of Dover is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after the town of Dover in Kent. The Bishop of Dover holds the additional title of "Bishop ...

, former Bishop for the Falkland Islands and Bishop to the Forces, lives in

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major town on the old Roman ...

, itself. Venner is also licensed in the Dioceses of Rochester and in Europe. *Also, David Pytches (retired diocesan Bishop of Chile, Bolivia and Peru) lives in

Chorleywood Chorleywood is both a village and a civil parish in the Three Rivers District, Hertfordshire, on the border with Buckinghamshire, approximately northwest of Charing Cross. The village is adjacent to the Chiltern Hills Area of Outstanding Natu ...

and John Gladwin (retired

Bishop of Chelmsford The Bishop of Chelmsford is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Chelmsford in the Province of Canterbury.'' Crockford's Clerical Directory 2008/2009 (100th edition)'', Church House Publishing (). The current bishop is Guli Francis ...

) lives in Wheathampstead, but there is no evidence that either is licensed as an honorary assistant bishop.

Archdeacon of Hertford

In the late 11th/early 12th century,

Nicholas Nicholas is a male given name and a surname. The Eastern Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Anglican Churches celebrate Saint Nicholas every year on December 6, which is the name day for "Nicholas". In Greece, the name and its ...

, an archdeacon of Lincoln diocese, was called " Archdeacon of Cambridge,

Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by John, King of England, King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cr ...

and Hertford. The Archdeaconry of Hertford was created by Order in Council on 1 January 1997 from the eastern parts of the Archdeaconry of St Albans, which at the time was one of the largest archdeaconries in England. There have been only two Archdeacons of Hertford since the archdeaconry's institution: the first, Trevor Jones, who retired on 31 August 2016; and the incumbent, Janet Mackenzie, who was collated on 6 September 2016.Diocese of St Albans — New Archdeacon’s Collation date
(Accessed 2 September 2016) * 1997 to 2016: Trevor Jones * 2016 to present: Janet Mackenzie

Churches

Outside deanery structures: St Albans Cathedral

Archdeaconry of Hertford

Deanery of Barnet: Arkley (St Peter), Barnet St John the Baptist, Barnet St Stephen, Barnet Vale (St Mark), Borehamwood All Saints, Borehamwood Holy Cross, Borehamwood St Michael & All Angels, East Barnet (St Mary the Virgin), Elstree (St Nicholas), Little Heath (Christ Church), Lyonsdown (Holy Trinity), New Barnet (St James), Potters Bar King Charles the Martyr, Potters Bar St Mary & All Saints, Ridge (St Margaret), South Mimms (St Giles), Totteridge (St Andrew) Deanery of Bishop's Stortford: Albury (St Mary the Virgin), Bishop's Stortford Holy Trinity, Bishop's Stortford St Michael, Braughing (St Mary the Virgin), Eastwick (St Botolph), Furneux Pelham (St Mary the Virgin), Gilston (St Mary), High Wych (St James the Great), Hockerill (All Saints), Little Hadham (St Cecilia), Little Munden (All Saints), Much Hadham (St Andrew), Perry Green (St Thomas), Sacombe (St Catherine), Sawbridgeworth (Great St Mary), Standon (St Mary), Stocking Pelham (St Mary), Thorley (St James the Great) Deanery of Buntingford: Anstey (St George), Ardeley (St Lawrence), Ashwell (St Mary the Virgin), Aspenden (St Mary), Baldock (St Mary the Virgin), Barkway (St Mary Magdalene), Barley (St Margaret of Antioch), Benington (St Peter), Brent Pelham (St Mary the Virgin), Buntingford (St Peter), Bygrave (St Margaret of Antioch), Clothall (St Mary the Virgin), Cottered (St John the Baptist), Hinxworth (St Nicholas), Hormead (St Nicholas), Kelshall (St Faith), Meesden (St Mary), Newnham (St Vincent), Reed (St Mary), Royston (St John the Baptist), Rushden (St Mary), Sandon (All Saints), Therfield (St Mary the Virgin), Throcking (Holy Trinity), Walkern (St Mary the Virgin), Wallington (St Mary), Westmill (St Mary the Virgin), Weston (Holy Trinity), Wyddial (St Giles)

Notes

References

Church of England Statistics 2002

External links

Diocesan website
* Diocesan House, St Albans *

Verulam House, St Albans Verulam House is located in Verulam Road, St Albans on the northwestern side between Church Crescent and Britton Avenue opposite College Street. It has previously been referred to as Diocesan House and also known as the Bishop's Palace. It is of e ...

{{authority control

Saint Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

1877 establishments in England History of St Albans Religion in Bedfordshire Religion in Hertfordshire Religious organizations established in 1877