The Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart is a

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 ...

ecclesiastical territory or

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, 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 Roman province, prov ...

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 ...

in Germany. It is a

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 ...

in 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 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 ...

Archdiocese of Freiburg The Archdiocese of Freiburg im Breisgau (Latin ''Archidioecesis Friburgensis'') is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Baden-Württemberg comprising the former states of Baden and Hohenzollern. The Archdiocese of Freiburg is led by a ...

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

, '' Bundesland''. It covers the same territory of the former

Kingdom of Wurttemberg Kingdom commonly refers to: * A monarchic state or realm ruled by a king or queen. ** A monarchic chiefdom, represented or governed by a king or queen. * Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy Kingdom may also refer to: Arts and me ...

History

* In 1803 a Vicar General for the "New" State of Wurttemberg was nominated by

Prince Primate Prince-primate (German: ''Fürstprimas'', Hungarian: ''hercegprímás'') is a rare princely title held by individual (prince-) archbishops of specific sees in a presiding capacity in an august assembly of mainly secular princes, notably the foll ...

Karl Theodor von Dalberg Karl Theodor Anton Maria von Dalberg (8 February 1744 – 10 February 1817) was a Catholic German bishop and statesman. In various capacities, he served as Archbishop of Mainz, Prince of Regensburg, Arch-Chancellor of the Holy Roman Empire, ...

as an auxiliary bishop (Franz Karl Joseph Furst von Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Schillingfurst, that consacreted the current Co-Cathedral in Stuttgart, later

Bishop of Augsburg Diocese of Augsburg () is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. The diocese is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Munich. History Early history The present city of Augsburg appears in Strabo as ''Damasia'', a stronghold of t ...

) * The Diocese of Rottenburg was established on 16 August 1821 through the

papal bull A papal bull is a type of public decree, letters patent, or charter issued by the pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the leaden Seal (emblem), seal (''bulla (seal), bulla'') traditionally appended to authenticate it. History Papal ...

''De salute animarum'', on territory split off from the suppressed

Diocese of Konstanz The Prince-Bishopric of Constance () was a small ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire from the mid-12th century until its secularisation in 1802–1803. In his dual capacity as prince and as bishop, the prince-bishop also admini ...

. With the enthronement of the first bishop, Johann Baptist von Keller, on May 20, 1828, the formation of the diocese was complete. * On 18 January 1978, the bishopric was renamed to the current title Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart.

Major churches

* The St. Martin's Cathedral is the episcopal see in Rottenburg * The

Co-cathedral A co-cathedral is a cathedral church which shares the function of being a bishop's seat, or ''cathedra'', with another cathedral, often in another city (usually a former see, anchor city of the metropolitan area or the civil capital). Instances o ...

is St. Eberhard in

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

* It also has three

minor basilica Basilicas are Catholic church buildings that have a designation, conferring special privileges, given by the Pope. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectura ...

s : ** the former Cathedral of

Ellwangen Abbey Ellwangen Abbey () was the earliest Benedictine monastery established in the Duchy of Swabia, at the present-day town of Ellwangen an der Jagst, Baden-Württemberg, about 100 km (60 mi) north-east of Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabia ...

( ex territorial abbey), Basilika St. Vitus, in

Ellwangen Ellwangen an der Jagst, officially Ellwangen (Jagst), in common use simply Ellwangen () is a town in the district of Ostalbkreis in the east of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is situated about north of Aalen. Ellwangen has 25,000 inha ...

, first seat of the General Vicar of Wurttemberg ** Basilika St. Martin, in

Ulm Ulm () is the sixth-largest city of the southwestern German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with around 129,000 inhabitants, it is Germany's 60th-largest city. Ulm is located on the eastern edges of the Swabian Jura mountain range, on the up ...

's Benedictine

Wiblingen Abbey Wiblingen Abbey was a former Benedictine abbey which was later used as barracks. Today its buildings house several departments of the medical faculty of the University of Ulm. The former abbey is located south of the Confluence (geography), ...

** Basilika St. Martin von Tours und St. Oswald, in

Weingarten, Württemberg Weingarten (; ; ) is a town with a population of 25,000 () in Württemberg, in the Ravensburg (district), District of Ravensburg, in the valley of the Schussen River. Together with the southern neighbour cities of Ravensburg and Friedrichshafen o ...

. * Another World Heritage Site (originally Catholic, later Lutheran seminary and school) is the former Cistercian monastery Kloster Maulbronn, in

Maulbronn Maulbronn () is a city in the district of Enz in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. History Founded in 1838, it emerged from a settlement, built around a monastery, which belonged to the Neckar Community in the Kingdom of Württemberg. In ...

Episcopal ordinaries

(all

Roman Rite The Roman Rite () is the most common ritual family for performing the ecclesiastical services of the Latin Church, the largest of the ''sui iuris'' particular churches that comprise the Catholic Church. The Roman Rite governs Rite (Christianity) ...

)

Suffragan Bishops of Rottenburg

* Johann Baptist von Keller January 28, 1828 – death October 17, 1845; previously

Auxiliary Bishop An auxiliary bishop is a bishop assigned to assist the diocesan bishop in meeting the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese. Auxiliary bishops can also be titular bishops of sees that no longer exist as territorial jurisdictions. ...

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 ...

(Germany) (1816.06.15 – 1828.01.28) and

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of Evaria (1816.07.22 – 1828.01.28) * June 14, 1847 – death May 3, 1869 *

Karl Joseph von Hefele Karl Josef von Hefele (March 15, 1809 – June 6, 1893) was a Roman Catholic bishop and theologian of Germany. Biography Hefele was born at Aalen, Unterkochen in Württemberg and was educated at university of Tübingen, Tübingen, where in 1839 ...

June 17, 1869 – death June 5, 1893 * June 5, 1893 – death May 11, 1898; succeeded as former Titular Bishop of Ænos (1886.08.31 – 1893.06.05) and

Coadjutor Bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) ("co-assister" in Latin) is a bishop in the Latin Catholic, Anglican and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in administering the diocese. The coa ...

of Rottenburg (1886.08.31 – 1893.06.05) * Father Franz Xaver von Linsenmann July 20, 1898 – September 21, 1898; never consecrated Bishop * November 11, 1898 – death July 16, 1926 * Johannes Baptista Sproll March 29, 1927 – death March 4, 1949; succeeded as former Titular Bishop of Halmyrus (1916.03.03 – 1927.03.29) and Auxiliary Bishop of Rottenburg (1916.03.03 – 1927.03.29) **

: Franz Joseph Fischer (1929.12.19 – death 1958.07.24), Titular Bishop of Zuri (1929.12.19 – 1958.07.24) * Carl Joseph Leiprecht July 4, 1949 – retired June 4, 1974, previously Titular Bishop of Scyrus (1948.10.07 – 1949.07.04) as Auxiliary Bishop of Rottenburg (1948.10.07 – 1949.07.04); died 1981 ** Auxiliary Bishop: Wilhelm Sedlmeier (1953.02.07 – retired 1976), Titular Bishop of Aulon (1953.02.07 – death 1987.02.24) ** Auxiliary Bishop: Anton Herre (1970.10.12 – retired 1985.12.31), Titular Bishop of Galazia in Campania (1970.10.12 – death 1993.09.24)

Suffragan Bishops of Rottenburg-Stuttgart

* Georg Moser March 12, 1975 – death May 9, 1988; previously Titular Bishop of Thiges (1970.10.12 – 1975.03.12) as Auxiliary Bishop of Rottenburg (1970.10.12 – 1975.03.12) **

: Franz Josef Kuhnle ((1976.10.13 – retired 1990.11.07), Titular Bishop of Sorres (1976.10.13 – ...) ** Auxiliary Bishop: Bernhard Rieger (1984.12.20 – retired 1996.07.31), Titular Bishop of

Tigava :''See Leistarcha scitissimella for the moth species also known as Tigava scitissimella'' Tigava was an ancient Roman Empire, Roman-Berbers, Berber town and bishopric in Diocese of Africa, Roman Africa, which remains a Latin Catholic titular see. I ...

(1984.12.20 – death 2013.04.10) *

Walter Kasper Walter Kasper (born 5 March 1933) is a German Catholic prelate who served as President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity from 2001 to 2010. He was previously Bishop of Rottenburg-Stuttgart from 1989 to 1999. Early life B ...

April 17, 1989 – retired May 31, 1999; also Secretary of

Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity The Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, previously named the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (PCPCU), is a dicastery within the Holy See whose origins are associated with the Second Vatican Council which met intermittently fr ...

(1999.03.16 – 2001.02.21), created

Cardinal-Deacon A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. Ca ...

of Ognissanti in Via Appia Nuova (2001.02.21 001.03.25– 2011.02.21), President of

(2001.03.03 – 2010.07.01), President of Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews (2001.03.03 – 2010.07.01), promoted

Cardinal-Priest A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. ...

of above Ognissanti in Via Appia Nuova as ''pro hac vice'' Title (2011.02.21 – ...) ** Auxiliary Bishop: Johannes Kreidler (1991.06.06 – retired 2017.03.02), Titular Bishop of Edistiana (1991.06.06 – ...) ** Auxiliary Bishop: Thomas Maria Renz (1997.04.29 – ...), Titular Bishop of Rucuma (1997.04.29 – ...) * Gebhard Fürst July 7, 2000 – retired December 4, 2023 ** Auxiliary Bishop: Matthäus Karrer (2017.03.02 – ...), Titular Bishop of Tunnuna (2017.03.02 – ...) ** Auxiliary Bishop: Gerhard Schneider (2019.04.16 – ...), Titular Bishop of

Abbir Germaniciana Abbir Germaniciana also known as Abir Cella is the name of a Roman Empire, Roman and Byzantine Empire, Byzantine-era civitas, city in the Roman province of Africa proconsularis (today northern Tunisia). The city was also the seat of a bishopric, ...

(2019.04.16 – ...) * Klaus Krämer October 2, 2024 - …

Statistics and extent

The Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart is located in the

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Province of Hohenzollern, Hohenzollern, two other histo ...

part of the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

State of

. As per 2014, it pastorally served 1,872,849 Catholics (37.0% of 5,068,000 total) on 19,500 km² in 1,096 parishes and 40 missions with 1,016 priests (829 diocesan, 187 religious), 283 deacons, 3,368 lay religious (228 brothers, 3,140 sisters) and 26 seminarians.

Deaneries

It comprises 45

deaneries A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residence of a ...

: *

Aalen Aalen (; Swabian German, Swabian: ''Oole'') is a town located in the eastern part of the German state of Baden-Württemberg, about east of Stuttgart and north of Ulm. It is the seat of the Ostalbkreis district and is its largest town. It is ...

Backnang Backnang (; ) is a town in Germany in the Bundesland (Germany), Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, roughly northeast of Stuttgart. Its population has increased greatly over the past century, from 7,650 in 1900 to 37,957 in 2022. Backnang was ce ...

Balingen Balingen (; Swabian German, Swabian: ''Balenga'') is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, capital of the districts of Germany, district of Zollernalbkreis. It is located near the Swabian Jura, approx. 35 km to the south of Tübingen, 35&nb ...

* Biberach *

Böblingen Böblingen (; ) is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, seat of Böblingen (district), Böblingen District. Sindelfingen and Böblingen are Geographic contiguity, contiguous. History Böblingen was founded by Count Wilhelm von Tübingen-Bö ...

Calw Calw (; previously pronounced and sometimes spelled Kalb accordingly; ) is a Landstadt, town in the middle of Baden-Württemberg in the south of Germany, capital and largest town of the Calw (district), district Calw. It is located in the North ...

Ehingen Ehingen (Donau) (; ) is a town in the Alb-Donau (district), Alb-Donau district in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, situated on the left bank of the Danube, approx. southwest of Ulm and southeast of Stuttgart. The city, like the entire district o ...

* Esslingen-

Nürtingen Nürtingen (; ) is a town on the river Neckar in the district of Esslingen (district), Esslingen in the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. History The following events occurred, by year: *1046: First mention of ''Niuritingin'' in ...

Freudenstadt Freudenstadt (, Swabian: ''Fraidestadt'') is a town in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is the capital of the district Freudenstadt. The closest population centres are Offenburg to the west (approx. 36 km away) and Tübingen to ...

Friedrichshafen Friedrichshafen ( or ; Low Alemannic: ''Hafe'' or ''Fridrichshafe'') is a city on the northern shoreline of Lake Constance (the ''Bodensee'') in Southern Germany, near the borders of both Switzerland and Austria. It is the district capital (''K ...

* Geislingen *

Göppingen Göppingen (; or ) is a town in southern Germany, part of the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg. It is the capital of the Goeppingen (district), district Göppingen. Göppingen is home to the toy company Märklin, and it is the birthplace ...

* Heidenheim *

Heilbronn Heilbronn () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, surrounded by Heilbronn (district), Heilbronn District. From the late Middle Ages on, it developed into an important trading centre. At the begi ...

Hohenlohe The House of Hohenlohe () is a German princely dynasty. It formerly ruled an immediate territory within the Holy Roman Empire, which was divided between several branches. In 1806, the area of Hohenlohe was 1,760 km² and its estimated pop ...

Laupheim Laupheim (; ) is a major district town in southern Germany in the state of Baden-Württemberg. Laupheim was first mentioned in 778 and gained city rights in 1869. One of the main trading routes, from Ulm to Ravensburg and then on towards Lake ...

* Leutkirch *

Ludwigsburg Ludwigsburg (; Swabian German, Swabian: ''Ludisburg'') is a Cities of Germany, city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about north of Stuttgart city centre, near the river Neckar. It is the largest and primary city of the Ludwigsburg (district), Lu ...

Mergentheim Bad Mergentheim (; Mergentheim until 1926; East Franconian: ''Märchedol'') is a town in the Main-Tauber-Kreis district in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It has a population of around 23,000. An officially recognized spa town since 1926, ...

Mühlacker Mühlacker is a town in the eastern part of the Enz (district), Enz district of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Mühlacker station has direct rail connections with Stuttgart, Karlsruhe, Heidelberg, Pforzheim and the Northern Black Forest. Mühlhau ...

Neckarsulm Neckarsulm () is a city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, near Heilbronn, and part of the district of Heilbronn. , Neckarsulm had 26,800 inhabitants. The name Neckarsulm derives from the city's location where the Neckar and Sulm rivers ...

Neresheim Neresheim is a town in the Ostalbkreis district, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated northeast of Heidenheim an der Brenz, Heidenheim, and southeast of Aalen. It's the home of the Neresheim Abbey, which still hosts monks, was ''Reich ...

* Oberndorf *

Ochsenhausen Ochsenhausen () is a city in the district of Biberach (district), Biberach, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located between the city of Biberach an der Riß, Biberach and Memmingen. it has a population of 9,261. The mayor of the town is Phil ...

Ravensburg Ravensburg ( or ; Swabian: ''Raveschburg'') is a city in Upper Swabia in Southern Germany, capital of the district of Ravensburg, Baden-Württemberg. Ravensburg was first mentioned in 1088. In the Middle Ages, it was an Imperial Free City and ...

Reutlingen Reutlingen (; ) is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is the capital of the eponymous Reutlingen (district), district of Reutlingen. As of June 2018, it had an estimated population of 116,456. Reutlingen has a Reutlingen University, univ ...

Riedlingen Riedlingen () is a town in the district (''Kreis'') of Biberach, Baden-Württemberg, in the south-west of Germany. It is one of the destinations of the Upper Swabian Baroque Route. Riedlingen has approximately 11,000 inhabitants. Geography ...

Rottenburg am Neckar Rottenburg am Neckar (; until 10 July 1964 only ''Rottenburg''; Swabian: ''Raodaburg'') is a medium-sized town in the administrative district (''Landkreis'') of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It lies about 50 kilometres (31 miles) s ...

Rottweil Rottweil (; Alemannic: ''Rautweil'') is a town in southwest Germany in the state of Baden-Württemberg. Rottweil was a free imperial city for nearly 600 years. Located between the Black Forest and the Swabian Alps, Rottweil has over 25,000 ...

Saulgau Bad Saulgau is a town in the Sigmaringen (district), district of Sigmaringen, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated 23 km east of Sigmaringen, and 27 km north of Ravensburg between the Danube and Lake Constance. Geography Bad ...

Schwäbisch Gmünd Schwäbisch Gmünd (, until 1934: Gmünd; Swabian: ''Gmẽẽd'' or ''Gmend'') is a city in the eastern part of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. With a population of around 60,000, the city is the second largest in the Ostalb district ...

Schwäbisch Hall Schwäbisch Hall (; 'Swabian Hall'; from 1802 until 1934 and colloquially: ''Hall'') is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg located in the valley of the Kocher river, the longest tributary (together with its headwater Lein) of the N ...

* Spaichingen *

Bad Cannstatt Bad Cannstatt (), also called Cannstatt (until July 23, 1933) or Kannstadt (until 1900), is one of the outer Stadtbezirke, or city boroughs, of Stuttgart in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Bad Cannstatt is the oldest and most populous of Stuttgart' ...

*Stuttgart-Filder *Stuttgart-Mitte (centre) *Stuttgart-Nord (north) *

Tuttlingen Tuttlingen (; Alemannic: ''Duttlinga'') is a town in Baden-Württemberg, capital of the district Tuttlingen. Nendingen, ''Möhringen'' and ''Eßlingen'' are three former municipalities that belong to Tuttlingen. Tuttlingen is located in Swabia ...

Waiblingen Waiblingen (; Swabian: ''Woeblinge'') is a town in the southwest of Germany, located in the center of the densely populated Stuttgart region, directly neighboring Stuttgart. It is the capital and largest city of the Rems-Murr district. , Waiblin ...

* Waldsee * Wangen * Zwiefalten

References

Sources and external links

*
Diocesan website

* * Some information in this article is based on that in its German equivalent. {{DEFAULTSORT:Rottenburg-Stuttgart, Roman Catholic Diocese Roman Catholic dioceses in Germany

Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 19th century Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of Roman civilization * Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter ...

Christianity in Baden-Württemberg Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

1821 establishments in Germany Religious organizations established in 1821