The Apostolic Vicariate of Istanbul () is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

apostolic vicariate An apostolic vicariate is a territorial jurisdiction of the Catholic Church under a titular bishop centered in missionary regions and countries where dioceses or parishes have not yet been established. The status of apostolic vicariate is often ...

located in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, Turkey."Vicariate Apostolic of Istanbul"
''

Catholic-Hierarchy.org ''Catholic-Hierarchy.org'' is an online database of bishops and dioceses of the Latin Church and the 23 Eastern Catholic Churches that are in full communion with Rome. The website, not officially sanctioned by the Church, is run as a private pro ...

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved February 29, 2016"Apostolic Vicariate of Istanbul"
''GCatholic.org''. Gabriel Chow. Retrieved February 29, 2016 Its territory encompasses the northwestern region of the country. The current

Vicar Apostolic A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

is Mgr Massimiliano Palinuro.

History

* April 15, 1742: Established as Apostolic Vicariate of

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

* November 30, 1990: Renamed as Apostolic Vicariate of Istanbul

Special churches

Cathedral

Cathedral of the Holy Spirit The Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, alternatively known as the ''St. Esprit Cathedral'' ( Turkish: ''Saint Esprit Kilisesi''), located on Cumhuriyet Avenue 127/A, in the quarter of Pangaltı in Şişli district, the former Harbiye, between Taksim ...

Minor basilicas

* Basilique Saint Antoine de Padoue (Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua)

Other church buildings

* Church of St. Mary Draperis, Istanbul *

Church of SS Peter and Paul, Istanbul SS Peter and Paul (, , ) is a Catholic Church, Catholic church in Istanbul, important for historical reasons. The church owns an icon of the Virgin of the Hodegetria type, which originally lay in a Dominican Order, Dominican church in Caffa, Crime ...

* Church of Saint Benoit, Istanbul * Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Istanbul * St. Teresa's Catholic Church, Ankara

Leadership

;Apostolic Vicariate of Constantinople Erected: 15 April 1742, Latin Name: ''Constantinopolitanus'' * Gaspar Gasparini, O.F.M. Conv. (31 May 1677 – 22 August 1705 Died) ... * Antonio Balsarini (26 August 1730 – 2 January 1731 Died) *

Francesco Girolamo Bona Francesco, the Italian (and original) version of the personal name "Francis", is one of the most common given name among males in Italy. Notable persons with that name include: People with the given name Francesco * Francesco I (disambiguation) ...

(18 June 1731 – 16 February 1750 Died) * Blaise Paoli (18 March 1750 Appointed – ) ... * Giuseppe Roverani (10 March 1767 – 2 July 1772 Died) * Giovanni Battista Bavestrelli (31 August 1772 – 20 April 1777 Died) *

Francesco Antonio Fracchia Francesco, the Italian (and original) version of the personal name "Francis", is one of the most common given name among males in Italy. Notable persons with that name include: People with the given name Francesco * Francesco I (disambiguation) ...

(26 September 1778 – 21 October 1795 Died) *

Julio Maria Pecori Julio is the Spanish equivalent of the month July and may refer to: *Julio (given name) *Julio (surname) *Júlio de Castilhos, a municipality of the western part of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * ''Julio'' (album), a 1983 compilation albu ...

, O.F.M. Ref. (21 October 1795 – 28 February 1796 Died) *

Nicolao Lorenzo Timoni Nicolao is an Italian given name and a surname. It may refer to the following: Given name *Nicolao Civitali (1482 – after 1560), Italian sculptor and architect *Nicolao Colletti (18th century), Italian mathematician *Nicolao Dorati (c. 1513 – 1 ...

(3 June 1796 Appointed – did not take effect) *

Giovanni Battista Fonton Giovanni may refer to: * Giovanni (name), an Italian male given name and surname * Giovanni (meteorology), a Web interface for users to analyze NASA's gridded data * ''Don Giovanni'', a 1787 opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, based on the legend of ...

, O.F.M. Conv. (16 March 1799 – 26 August 1816 Died) *Binkentios Coressi (26 August 1816 – 7 March 1835 Died) ... *Leopoldo Angelo Santanchè, O.F.M. (13 November 1874 – 3 April 1876 Appointed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of Fabriano e Matelica) *Vincenzo Vannutelli (23 January 1880 – 22 December 1882 Appointed, Apostolic Internuncio to Brazil) *

Luigi Rotelli Luigi Rotelli (26 July 1833 – 15 September 1891) was an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who was a bishop and a diplomat in the service of the Holy See. He was made a cardinal in June 1891, just weeks before his death. Biography Luigi Rot ...

(26 January 1883 – 23 May 1887 Appointed,

Apostolic Nuncio to France The Apostolic Nunciature to France is an ecclesiastical office of the Catholic Church in France. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio with the rank of an ambassador. History of the Nunciat ...

) ... *Vincenzo Sardi di Rivisondoli (10 April 1908 – 10 June 1914 Resigned) ... *Gauthier Pierre Georges Antoine Dubois, O.F.M. Cap. (15 November 1974 – 29 May 1989 Died) *Antuvan Marovitch (29 May 1989 – 15 December 1991 Died) ;Apostolic Vicariate of Istanbul Name Changed: 30 November 1990 *

Louis Pelâtre Louis may refer to: People * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer Other uses * Louis (coin), a French coin * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also * ...

, A.A. (9 July 1992 – 16 April 2016 Retired) *

Rubén Tierrablanca Gonzalez Reuben or Reuven is a Biblical male first name from Hebrew רְאוּבֵן (Re'uven), meaning "behold, a son". In the Bible, Reuben was the firstborn son of Jacob. Variants include Reuvein in Yiddish or as an English variant spelling on the ...

, O.F.M. (16 April 2016 – 22 December 2020 Died) **

Lorenzo Piretto Lorenzo Piretto, O.P. (born 15 December 1942) is the emeritus Archbishop of İzmir and a Dominican friar. He was ordained to the episcopate and installed as Archbishop of İzmir on 20 December 2015, five days after his 73rd birthday. Biograph ...

, O.P., Archbishop, Apostolic Administrator (24 December 2020 – 13 September 2021) * (14 September 2021 – present)

References

Roman Catholic dioceses in Turkey Religious organizations established in 1742 Christianity in Istanbul Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 18th century 1742 establishments in the Ottoman Empire {{Europe-RC-diocese-stub