The Archbishopric of Magdeburg was a

Latin Catholic The Latin Church () is the largest autonomous () particular church within the Catholic Church, whose members constitute the vast majority of the 1.3 billion Catholics. The Latin Church is one of 24 ''sui iuris'' churches in full communion w ...

archdiocese 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 associated ...

(969–1552) and Prince-Archbishopric (1180–1680) of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

centered on the city of

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; ) is the Capital city, capital of the Germany, German States of Germany, state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is on the Elbe river. Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archbishopric of Mag ...

on the

Elbe The Elbe ( ; ; or ''Elv''; Upper Sorbian, Upper and , ) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Republic), then Ge ...

River. Planned since 955 and established in 967, the archdiocese had de facto turned void since 1557, when the last papally confirmed prince-archbishop, the Lutheran

Sigismund of Brandenburg Sigismund of Brandenburg (1538–1566) was Prince-Archbishop of Magdeburg and Administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Halberstadt. Life Sigismund was born on 11 December 1538 in Cölln; the son of the Elector of Brandenburg, Joachim II (15 ...

came of age and ascended to the see. All his successors were only administrators of the prince-archbishopric and Lutheran too, except the Catholic cleric Leopold William of Austria (1631–1635). In ecclesiastical respect the remaining Catholics and their parishes and abbeys in the former archdiocese were put under supervision of the

Archdiocese of Cologne The Archdiocese of Cologne (; ) is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and northern Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. History At an early date Christianity came to Cologne with the Roman soldiers ...

in 1648 and under the jurisdiction of the Apostolic Vicariate of the Northern Missions in 1670. In political respect the ''Erzstift'', the archiepiscopal and capitular

temporalities Temporalities or temporal goods are the secular properties and possessions of the church. The term is most often used to describe those properties (a '' Stift'' in German or ''sticht'' in Dutch) that were used to support a bishop or other religious ...

, had gained

imperial immediacy In the Holy Roman Empire, imperial immediacy ( or ) was the status of an individual or a territory which was defined as 'immediate' () to Emperor and Empire () and not to any other intermediate authorities, while one that did not possess that stat ...

as a prince-archbishopric in 1180. Its territory comprised only some parts of the archdiocesan area, such as the city of Magdeburg, the bulk of the

Magdeburg Börde The Magdeburg Börde () is the central landscape unit of the state of Saxony-Anhalt and lies to the west and south of the eponymous state capital Magdeburg. Part of a loess belt stretching along the southeastern rim of the North German Plain, it ...

, and the Jerichow Land as an integral whole and

exclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is s ...

s in parts of the

Saalkreis Saalkreis was a district (''Kreis'') in the south of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Neighboring districts were (from west clockwise) Mansfelder Land, Bernburg, Köthen, Bitterfeld, the district Delitzsch in Saxony, and the district Merseburg-Querfurt. ...

including

Halle upon Saale Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (), is the second largest city of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is the sixth-most populous city in the area of former East Germany after (East) Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Chemnitz and Magdeburg as well as th ...

Oebisfelde Oebisfelde () is a town and a former municipality in the Börde district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Oebisfelde-Weferlingen. It is accessed by Bundesstraße (German federal highway) 188. Geography ...

and environs as well as

Jüterbog Jüterbog () is a historic town in north-eastern Germany, in the Teltow-Fläming district of Brandenburg. It is on the Nuthe river at the northern slope of the Fläming hill range, about southwest of Berlin. History The Polabian Slavs, Slavic se ...

and environs. The prince-archbishopric maintained its statehood as an

elective monarchy An elective monarchy is a monarchy ruled by a monarch who is elected, in contrast to a hereditary monarchy in which the office is automatically passed down as a family inheritance. The manner of election, the nature of candidate qualifications, ...

until 1680. Then the Brandenburg-Prussia the prince-archbishopric of Magdeburg. After being

secularised In sociology, secularization () is a multilayered concept that generally denotes "a transition from a religious to a more worldly level." There are many types of secularization and most do not lead to atheism or irreligion, nor are they automatica ...

, the state was transformed into the

Duchy of Magdeburg The Duchy of Magdeburg () was a province of the Margraviate of Brandenburg from 1680 to 1701 and a province of the German Kingdom of Prussia from 1701 to 1807. It replaced the Archbishopric of Magdeburg after its secularization by Brandenburg, gi ...

, a

hereditary monarchy A hereditary monarchy is a form of government and succession of power in which the throne passes from one member of a ruling family to another member of the same family. A series of rulers from the same family would constitute a dynasty. It is ...

personal union A personal union is a combination of two or more monarchical states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, involves the constituent states being to some extent in ...

with Brandenburg. The 1994-founded modern

Diocese of Magdeburg The Diocese of Magdeburg () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church, located in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Its seat is Magdeburg; it is suffragan to the Archdiocese of Paderborn. The diocese was erected out of Paderborn territo ...

is a diocese of the

Latin Church The Latin Church () is the largest autonomous () particular church within the Catholic Church, whose members constitute the vast majority of the 1.3 billion Catholics. The Latin Church is one of 24 Catholic particular churches and liturgical ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

located in the

German states The Federal Republic of Germany is a federation and consists of sixteen partly sovereign ''states''. Of the sixteen states, thirteen are so-called area-states ('Flächenländer'); in these, below the level of the state government, there is a ...

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a States of Germany, state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the List of German states ...

(bulk),

Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...

and

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

(smaller fringes each).

History

The town was one of the oldest emporia of the German trade for the

Wends Wends is a historical name for Slavs who inhabited present-day northeast Germany. It refers not to a homogeneous people, but to various people, tribes or groups depending on where and when it was used. In the modern day, communities identifying ...

who dwelt on the right bank of the Elbe. In 805 it is first mentioned in history. In 806 Charlemagne built a fortress on the eastern bank of the river opposite Magdeburg. The oldest church is also credited to this time.Löffler, Klemens. "Magdeburg." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 11 August 2023 Magdeburg first played an important part in the history of Germany during the reign of

Otto the Great Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), known as Otto the Great ( ) or Otto of Saxony ( ), was East Frankish ( German) king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the eldest son of Henry the Fowler and Matilda ...

(936-73). In 929 King Otto I granted the city to his English-born wife

Edith Edith is a feminine given name derived from the Old English word , meaning ''wealth'' or ''prosperity'', in combination with the Old English , meaning ''wiktionary:strife, strife'', and is in common usage in this form in English language, Englis ...

as dower. She had a particular love for the town and often lived there. The emperor also continually returned to it. In September 937, Otto and his wife founded a Benedictine monastery at Magdeburg, which was dedicated to Sts. Peter, Maurice, and the Holy Innocents. The first abbots and monks came from

St. Maximin's Abbey, Trier Saint Maximin's Abbey () was a Benedictine monastery in Trier in the Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. History The abbey, traditionally considered one of the oldest monasteries in western Europe, was held to have been founded by Saint Maximin of Tr ...

. After the wars of the years 940 and 954, the

Polabian Slavs Polabian Slavs, also known as Elbe Slavs and more broadly as Wends, is a collective term applied to a number of Lechites, Lechitic (West Slavs, West Slavic) tribes who lived scattered along the Elbe river in what is today eastern Germany. The ...

as far as the

Oder The Oder ( ; Czech and ) is a river in Central Europe. It is Poland's second-longest river and third-longest within its borders after the Vistula and its largest tributary the Warta. The Oder rises in the Czech Republic and flows through wes ...

, had been brought into subjection to German rule. However, the

Magyars Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common culture, language and history. They also have a notable presence in former parts of the Kingdom of Hungary. The Hungarian language belongs to the ...

had advanced so far into Germany, that

Augsburg Augsburg ( , ; ; ) is a city in the Bavaria, Bavarian part of Swabia, Germany, around west of the Bavarian capital Munich. It is a College town, university town and the regional seat of the Swabia (administrative region), Swabia with a well ...

was threatened. At the

Battle of Lechfeld The Battle of Lechfeld also known as the Second Battle of Lechfeld was a series of military engagements over the course of three days from 10–12 August 955 in which the Kingdom of Germany, led by King Otto I the Great, annihilated the Hungaria ...

in 955 they were defeated and repelled. Otto immediately set to work to establish an archbishopric in Magdeburg, for the stabilisation through

Christianisation Christianization (or Christianisation) is a term for the specific type of change that occurs when someone or something has been or is being converted to Christianity. Christianization has, for the most part, spread through missions by individu ...

of the eastern territories. He wished to transfer the capital of the diocese from

Halberstadt Halberstadt (; Eastphalian dialect, Eastphalian: ''Halverstidde'') is a town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt in central Germany, the capital of Harz (district), Harz district. Located north of the Harz mountain range, it is known for its old town ...

to Magdeburg, and make it an archdiocese. But this was strenuously opposed by the

Archbishop of Mainz The Elector of Mainz was one of the seven Prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire. As both the Archbishop of Mainz and the ruling prince of the Electorate of Mainz, the Elector of Mainz held a powerful position during the Middle Ages. The Archb ...

, who was the metropolitan of Halberstadt. DomzuMagdeburg

When, in 962,

Pope John XII Pope John XII (; 14 May 964), born Octavian, was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 16 December 955 to his death in 964. He was related to the counts of Tusculum, a powerful Roman family which had dominated papal politics for ...

sanctioned the establishment of an archbishopric, Otto seemed to have abandoned his plan of a transfer. The estates belonging to the convent founded in 937 were converted into a

mense A mense (from Latin ''mensa'' 'table') is the name of a form of ecclesiastical income in the Catholic Church. Historically, the mense was a land tax whose income was used as income for its holder (i.e. bishop, abbot, canons or monks, pastor, ...

for the new archbishopric, and the monks transferred to the Berge Convent. The abbey church became the Cathedral of St. Maurice. Its

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consist ...

included the existing dioceses of

and

Havelberg Havelberg () is a town in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the Havel, and part of the town is built on an island in the centre of the river. The two parts were incorporated as a town in 1875. It has a populati ...

and the newly founded dioceses of

Merseburg Merseburg () is a town in central Germany in southern Saxony-Anhalt, situated on the river Saale, and approximately 14 km south of Halle (Saale) and 30 km west of Leipzig. It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese ...

Zeitz Zeitz (; , ) is a town in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the river White Elster, in the triangle of the federal states Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Saxony. History First a Slavic pagan settlem ...

, and

Meißen Meissen ( ), is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden and 75 km (46 mi) west of Bautzen on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, th ...

. (

Lebus Lebus () is a historic town in the Märkisch-Oderland District of Brandenburg, Germany. It is the administrative seat of ''Amt'' ("collective municipality") Amt Lebus, Lebus. The town, located on the west bank of the Oder river at the border with ...

was added in 1424.) The new archdiocese was close to the unsecured border regions of the

and

Slavic Slavic, Slav or Slavonic may refer to: Peoples * Slavic peoples, an ethno-linguistic group living in Europe and Asia ** East Slavic peoples, eastern group of Slavic peoples ** South Slavic peoples, southern group of Slavic peoples ** West Slav ...

tribes, and was meant to promote Christianity among the many Slavs and others. On 20 April 967, the archbishopric was solemnly established at the Synod of Ravenna in the presence of the pope and the emperor. The first archbishop was Adelbert, a former monk of St. Maximin's at Trier, afterwards a missionary bishop to the

Ruthenians A ''Ruthenian'' and ''Ruthene'' are exonyms of Latin language, Latin origin, formerly used in Eastern and Central Europe as common Ethnonym, ethnonyms for East Slavs, particularly during the late medieval and early modern periods. The Latin term ...

(

Ruthenia ''Ruthenia'' is an exonym, originally used in Medieval Latin, as one of several terms for Rus'. Originally, the term ''Rus' land'' referred to a triangular area, which mainly corresponds to the tribe of Polans in Dnieper Ukraine. ''Ruthenia' ...

), and Abbot of Weissenburg in

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

. He was elected in the autumn of 968, received the pallium at Rome, and at the end of the year was solemnly enthroned in Magdeburg. The archdiocesan area of Magdeburg was rather small; it comprised the Slavonic districts of Serimunt, Nudizi, Neletici, Nizizi, and half of northern

Thuringia Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Er ...

, which Halberstadt resigned. The cathedral school especially gained in importance under Adalbert's efficient administration. The scholastic Othrich was considered the most learned man of his times. Many eminent men were educated at Magdeburg. Othrich was chosen archbishop after Adalbert's death (981). Gisiler of Merseburg obtained possession of the See of Magdeburg by bribery and fraud. Upon his death in 1004, there followed a brief conflict between King Henry II and the cathedral canons before

Tagino Tagino (died 9 June 1012)Thompson, 644. was the third Archbishop of Magdeburg from 1004 until his death. Tagino was a chaplain of Henry II, Duke of Bavaria, when, in 995, the See of Regensburg became vacant. He was the duke's candidate for bishop ...

was installed as archbishop. Tagino and his suffragans were relied upon heavily for military service in the eastern marches. Among successors worthy of mention are the zealous Gero (1012–23) and St. Norbert, prominent in the 12th century (1126–34), the founder of the

Premonstratensian The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular in the Catholic Chur ...

order.

Archbishop Wichmann (1152–92) was more important as a sovereign and prince of the

than as a bishop. Wichmann sided with the emperor in the Great Saxon Revolt and was rewarded by recognising the archepiscopal and the cathedral capitular

as a state of imperial immediacy within the Holy Roman Empire, thus Wichmann was the first to add the title secular prince to his ecclesiastical archbishop. Albrecht II (1205–32) quarrelled with

Otto II, Margrave of Brandenburg Otto II (after 1147 – July 4, 1205), called ''The Generous'' (), was the third Margrave of Brandenburg from 1184 until his death. Life Otto II was born into the House of Ascania as the eldest son of Otto I and Judith, a daughter of the Pias ...

(1198–1215), because he had pronounced the pope's ban against the latter and this war greatly damaged the archbishopric. In 1208 he began to build the present

Cathedral of Magdeburg Magdeburg Cathedral (), officially called the Cathedral of Saints Maurice and Catherine (), is a Lutheran cathedral in Germany and the oldest Gothic cathedral in the country. It is the proto-cathedral of the former Prince-Archbishopric of Magd ...

, which was only consecrated in 1263, and never entirely finished; Günther I (1277–79) hardly escaped a serious war with the Margrave

Otto IV Otto IV (1175 – 19 May 1218) was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1209 until his death in 1218. Otto spent most of his early life in England and France. He was a follower of his uncle Richard the Lionheart, who made him Count of Poitou in 1196 ...

, who was incensed because his brother

Eric of Brandenburg Eric of Brandenburg ( – 21 December 1295) was Archbishop of Magdeburg from 1283 until his death. Life Eric was a younger son of Margrave John I of Brandenburg. From an early age, he was destined for a career in the clergy. In the 1360s an ...

had not been elected archbishop. The Brandenburgers succeeded in forcing Günther I and Bernard III (1279–1281) to resign and in making Eric archbishop (1283–1295). Cardinal

Albert of Brandenburg Albert von Brandenburg (; 28 June 149024 September 1545) was a German cardinal, elector, Archbishop of Mainz from 1514 to 1545, and Archbishop of Magdeburg from 1513 to 1545. Through his notorious sale of indulgences, he became the catalyst ...

(1513–45), on account of his insecure position, as well as being crippled by a perpetual lack of funds, gave some occasion for the spread of

Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

in his diocese, although himself opposing the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

. It is not true that he became a Lutheran and wished to retain his see as a secular principality, and just as untrue that in the Kalbe Parliament in 1541 he consented to the introduction of the Reformation in order to have his debts paid. His successors were the zealous Catholics John Albert of Brandenburg-Ansbach (1545–1550), who however could accomplish very little, and Frederick IV of Brandenburg, who died in 1552.

Administrators Administrator or admin may refer to: Job roles Computing and internet * Database administrator, a person who is responsible for the environmental aspects of a database * Forum administrator, one who oversees discussions on an Internet forum * N ...

who were secular princes now took the place of the archbishop, and they, as well as the majority of the cathedral chapter and the inhabitants of the archdiocese, were usually Protestant. They belonged to the Hohenzollern House of Brandenburg, which had adopted Calvinism in 1613. Christian William was taken prisoner in 1631 after the

sack of Magdeburg The Sack of Magdeburg, also called Magdeburg's Wedding () or Magdeburg's Sacrifice (), was the destruction of the Protestant city of Magdeburg on 20 May 1631 by the Imperial Army and the forces of the Catholic League, resulting in the deaths ...

, and went over to the Catholic Church in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. At the time of the

Peace of Prague (1635) The Peace of Prague, dated 30 May 1635 Old Style, was a significant turning point in the Thirty Years' War. Signed by John George I, Elector of Saxony, and Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor, the terms ended Saxony's support for the anti-Imperi ...

, the Archbishopric of Magdeburg fell to

August, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels Augustus of Saxe-Weissenfels (13 August 1614 in Dresden – 4 June 1680 in Halle), was a Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels-Querfurt of the House of Wettin and administrator of the Archbishopric of Magdeburg. He was the fourth (but second surviving) son ...

. In the

Treaty of Westphalia The Peace of Westphalia (, ) is the collective name for two Peace treaty, peace treaties signed in October 1648 in the Westphalian cities of Osnabrück and Münster. They ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) and brought peace to the Holy R ...

(1648), the expectancy to the archbishopric was promised to Brandenburg-Prussia upon the death of August. When the Saxon prince died in 1680, the archbishopric was secularised by Brandenburg and transformed into the

. The remaining Catholics in the area were under the jurisdiction of the Apostolic Vicariate of the Northern Missions between 1670 and 1709, and again from 1780 to 1821. Between 1709 and 1780 the Apostolic Vicariate of Upper and Lower Saxony was the competent Catholic jurisdiction. In 1821, the area was transferred in Catholic respect to the

Diocese of Paderborn The Prince-Bishopric of Paderborn () was an ecclesiastical principality (Hochstift) of the Holy Roman Empire from 1281 to 1802. History The Diocese of Paderborn was founded in 799 by Pope Leo III. In the early years it was subordinated to t ...

. In 1994, the

was founded in the area.

Archbishops and administrators

Archbishops of Magdeburg

Adalbert Adalbert is a German given name which means "noble bright" or "noble shining", derived from the words ''adal'' (meaning noble) and ''berht'' (shining or bright). Alternative spellings include Adelbart, Adelbert and Adalberto. Derivative names incl ...

968–981 * Giselmar 981–1004 *

1004–1012 * Waltaro 1012 *

Gero Gero I ( 900 – 20 May 965), sometimes called the Great (),Thompson, 486. Also se was a nobleman from East Francia who ruled an initially modest march centred on Merseburg in the south of the present German state of Saxony-Anhalt, which he ...

1012–1023 *

Humfrid Humfrid was the count of Barcelona, Girona, Empúries, Roussillon, and Narbonne from 858 to 864. He also bore the title margrave of Gothia (''Gothiæ marchio''), as he held several frontier counties.The source for his famous title is the ''Annales ...

1023–1051 *

Engelhard Engelhard Corporation was an American ''Fortune'' 500 company headquartered in Iselin, New Jersey, United States. It is credited with developing the first production catalytic converter. In 2006, the German chemical manufacturer BASF bought ...

1052–1063 * Werner of Steutzlingen 1064–1078 *Hartwig of Spanheim 1079–1102 *Henry I of Assel 1102–1107 *Adalgod of Osterberg 1107–1119 *Rudigar of Baltheim 1119–1125 *

Norbert of Xanten Norbert of Xanten, O. Praem (c. 1080 – 6 June 1134), also known as Norbert Gennep, was a German Catholic bishop who was the Archbishopric of Magdeburg, Archbishop of Magdeburg, founder of the Premonstratensian order of canons regular, and is ...

1126–1134 * Conrad I of Querfurt 1134–1142 *Frederick of Wettin 1142–1152 *

Wichmann von Seeburg Wichmann von Seeburg ( – 25 August 1192) was Bishop of Naumburg from 1150 until 1154 and Archbishop of Magdeburg from 1154 until his death. He became the first Magdeburg prince-archbishop in 1180 Life Wichmann was the second son of the Saxon ...

1152–1180; ''prince-archbishop to 1192; Bishop of Naumburg, 1150–54'' ''1180: Gained

Imperial immediacy In the Holy Roman Empire, imperial immediacy ( or ) was the status of an individual or a territory which was defined as 'immediate' () to Emperor and Empire () and not to any other intermediate authorities, while one that did not possess that stat ...

on breakup of

duchy of Saxony The Duchy of Saxony () was originally the area settled by the Saxons in the late Early Middle Ages, when they were subdued by Charlemagne during the Saxon Wars from 772 CE and incorporated into the Carolingian Empire (Francia) by 804. Upon the 84 ...

Prince-archbishops of Magdeburg

1180–1192; ''archbishop from 1152'' *Ludolf of Koppenstedt 1192–1205 *

Albert I of Käfernburg Albert I of Käfernburg (; – 15 October 1232) was Archbishop of Magdeburg from 1205 until his death. He was the son of Count Gunther II of Käfernburg (d. about 1197), a member of the Thuringian nobility and relative of the comital House of ...

1205–1232 *Burkhard I of Woldenberg 1232–1235 *Wilbrand of Kasernberg 1235–1254 *Rudolf of Dinselstadt 1254–1260 *Rupert of Mansfeld 1260–1266 *Conrad II of Sternberg 1266–1277 *

Günther I of Schwalenberg Günther I of Schwalenberg was a German nobleman. He was elected Archbishop of Magdeburg in 1277, but had to step down in 1278. He was Bishop of the Bishopric of Paderborn from 1307 to 15 May 1310. Background Günther relatives were the Count ...

1277–1279 *Bernhard III of Wolpe 1279–1282 *

1282–1295 *Burkhard II of Blankenburg 1295–1305 *

Henry III, Prince of Anhalt-Aschersleben Henry III, Prince of Anhalt-Aschersleben (died 9 November 1307) was a German prince of the House of Ascania and ruler of the principality of Anhalt-Aschersleben. He was the youngest son of Henry II, Prince of Anhalt-Aschersleben, by his wife Mat ...

1305–1307 *Burkhard III of Mansfeld-Schrapglau 1307–1325 *Heideke of Erssa 1326–1327 * Otto of Hesse 1327–1361 *Dietrich Kagelwit 1361–1367 *Albert II of Sternberg 1367–1372 *Peter Gelvto 1372–1381 *

Louis of Meissen Louis of Meissen (25 February 1341 – 17 February 1382) was a German nobleman from the House of Wettin. He was Bishop of Halberstadt and later Bishop of Bamberg, then Archbishop of Mainz and finally Archbishop of Magdeburg. Life He was t ...

1381–1382 *Frederick II of Hoym 1382 *Albert III of Querfurt 1382–1403 *Günther II of Schwarzburg 1403–1445 *Frederick III of Beichlingen 1445–1464 * John II of Palatinate-Simmern 1464–1475 *

Ernest II of Saxony Ernest II of Saxony (26 or 27 June 1464 – 3 August 1513 in Halle) held two episcopal titles: Archbishop of Magdeburg (from 1476 until his death); Administrator of the Diocese of Halberstadt (from 1480 until his death). Background Ern ...

1475–1480; ''prince-archbishop to 1513'' ''1480:

Prince-Bishopric of Halberstadt The Diocese of Halberstadt was a Roman Catholic diocese () from 804 until 1648."Dio ...

administered by archbishops of Magdeburg''

Prince-archbishops of Magdeburg, administrators of Halberstadt

1480–1513; ''prince-archbishop from 1475'' * Albert IV of Brandenburg 1513–1545; ''also

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

-elector of Mainz from 1514–1545'' * John Albert of Brandenburg-Ansbach 1545–1551 * Frederick IV of Brandenburg 1551–1552; ''Frederick III as administrator of Halberstadt'' *

1552–1566; papally confirmed as archbishop although Lutheran, since the Holy See still expected the new

schism A schism ( , , or, less commonly, ) is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a single religious body, suc ...

to be a temporary phenomenon ''1566: Archdiocese ruled by Lutheran administrators''

Administrators of Magdeburg

* Joachim Frederick of Brandenburg 1566–1598 *

Christian William of Brandenburg Christian Wilhelm of Brandenburg (28 August 1587 – 1 January 1665) was a titular Margrave of Brandenburg, and from 1598 to 1631 Archbishop of Diocese of Magdeburg, Magdeburg. Life Christian Wilhelm was a son of Elector Joachim Frederick, ...

1598–1631 * Leopold William of Austria, a layman, Catholic administrator, 1631–1638; ''also administrator of the prince-bishoprics of Passau (1625–1662), of Strasbourg (1626–1662), of Halberstadt (1628–1648), of Olmütz (1632–1662) and of Breslau (1656–1662) and'' de jure of the ''

prince-archbishopric of Bremen The Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen () was an Hochstift, ecclesiastical principality (787–1566/1648) of the Holy Roman Empire and the Catholic Church that after its definitive secularization in 1648 became the hereditary Bremen-Verden, Duchy of ...

(1635–1645)'' *

Augustus, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels Augustus of Saxe-Weissenfels (13 August 1614 in Dresden – 4 June 1680 in Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Halle), was a Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels-Querfurt of the House of Wettin and administrator of the Archbishopric of Magdeburg. He was the fourth (but s ...

, Count of Barby, 1638–1680 ''1680: Prince-Archbishopric secularised to duchy''

Ecclesiastical Province of Magdeburg

The archbishop of Magdeburg was the

metropolitan Metropolitan may refer to: Areas and governance (secular and ecclesiastical) * Metropolitan archdiocese, the jurisdiction of a metropolitan archbishop ** Metropolitan bishop or archbishop, leader of an ecclesiastical "mother see" * Metropolitan ar ...

of the ''

Ecclesiastical Province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consist ...

of Magdeburg'' (de facto dissolved in 1648), with the archbishops also holding – besides the archbishop-elector of Mainz – the honorary title

Primas Germaniae Primas Germaniae is a historical title of honor for the most important Catholic bishop (the Primate) in the German lands. Throughout the history of the Holy Roman Empire, it was claimed by the Archbishops of Mainz, Trier, Magdeburg and Salzburg a ...

. The

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the metropolitan archdiocese; the diocese led ...

s of Magdeburg were: *

Diocese of Brandenburg The diocese of Brandenburg existed between the 10th and 16th centuries. From the 12th century, its bishops also ruled the Hochstift Brandenburg. History The foundation charter of the Brandenburg diocese is dated 1 October 948, though the actua ...

, Lutheran since 1539, the pertaining prince-bishopric secularised and merged into the

Electorate of Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the fifth-largest German state b ...

in 1571. * Diocese of Havelberg, Lutheran since 1558, the pertaining prince-bishopric secularised and merged into the Electorate of Brandenburg in 1598. * Diocese of Lebus since 1424 (before suffragan to

Gniezno Gniezno (; ; ) is a city in central-western Poland, about east of Poznań. Its population in 2021 was 66,769, making it the sixth-largest city in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. The city is the administrative seat of Gniezno County (''powiat'') ...

), Lutheran since 1555, pertaining

(County of

Beeskow Beeskow (; , ;) is a town in Brandenburg, in eastern Germany, and capital of the Oder-Spree district. It is situated on the river Spree (river), Spree, 30 km southwest of Frankfurt an der Oder. History In 1518 the town was purchased by the Di ...

) secularised and merged into the Electorate of Brandenburg in 1598. * Diocese of Merseburg, Lutheran since 1544, the pertaining prince-bishopric secularised and merged into the

Electorate of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony ( or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356 to 1806 initially centred on Wittenberg that came to include areas around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. It was a ...

in 1565 * Diocese of Naumburg-Zeitz, Lutheran between 1542 and 1547 and from 1562 on, the pertaining prince-bishopric secularised and merged into the Electorate of Saxony in 1615

Residences

Residences of the Archbishops of Magdeburg were: File:Giebichenstein4.jpg,

Giebichenstein Castle Giebichenstein Castle () is a castle in Giebichenstein district of Halle (Saale) in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is part of the Romanesque Road (''Strasse der Romanik''). Being a Burgward in the 9th century, the castle became a royal residence ...

Halle (Saale) Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (), is the second largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is the sixth-most populous city in the area of former East Germany after (East Berlin, East) Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Chem ...

File:Moritzburg-neu.jpg, Moritzburg in Halle File:Neue_residenz.jpg, The New Residence in Halle File:Schloss_Calbe.jpg,

Calbe Calbe (; official name: ''Calbe (Saale)'') is a town in the district of Salzlandkreis, in Saxony-Anhalt, in east-central Germany. Geography It is situated on the river Saale, approx. north of Bernburg, and southeast of Magdeburg. It is kno ...

Castle (secondary residence) File:Ministerium der Justiz (Ministry of Justice) - geograph.org.uk - 5295.jpg, The Archbishop's Palace in Magdeburg

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magdeburg, Archbishopric States and territories established in 1180 States and territories disestablished in 1680

Archbishopric 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 associated ...

Former states and territories of Saxony-Anhalt 968 establishments 1180s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1180 establishments in Europe 1680 disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire 960s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 962 establishments Prince-bishoprics of the Holy Roman Empire in Germany Otto the Great