The Diocese of Bath and Wells is an administrative division of the Church of England Province of Canterbury in England. The diocese covers the County of Somerset and a small area of Dorset. The see is in the City of Wells in Somerset where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church of Saint Andrew. Pope Pius XI blesses Bishop Stephen Alencastre as fifth Apostolic Vicar of the Hawaiian Islands in a Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace window. ... Palladian Pulteney Bridge and the weir at Bath Bath is a city in south-west England, most famous for its baths fed by three hot springs. ... Map sources for Wells at grid reference ST5445 The west front of Wells Cathedral Wells is a small city in the Mendip district of Somerset. ... The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and acts as the mother and senior branch of the worldwide Anglican Communion as well as a founding member of the Porvoo Communion. ... The Province of Canterbury consists of the following dioceses of the Church of England: Their archbishop is the Archbishop of Canterbury. ... Somerset is a county in the south-west of England. ... Dorset (pronounced Dorsit, sometimes in the past called Dorsetshire) is a county in the southwest of England, on the English Channel coast. ... A see (from the Latin word sedem, meaning seat) is the throne (cathedra) of a bishop. ... Map sources for Wells at grid reference ST5445 The west front of Wells Cathedral Wells is a small city in the Mendip district of Somerset. ... The west front of Wells Cathedral Wells Cathedral is a cathedral in Wells, Somerset, the smallest cathedral city in England. ...

History of the diocese

The Diocese of Somerset

The origins of the present diocese lay in the foundation of the Diocese of Somerset under the jurisdiction of Æthelhelm from 909 to 914 (Archbishop of Canterbury 923-925), making the secular church of Wells the diocesan cathedral. Arms of the Archbishop of Canterbury The Archbishop of Canterbury is the most senior bishop of the state Church of England and of the worldwide Anglican Communion, outranking the other English archbishop, the Archbishop of York. ...

The secular canons at Wells vied with the monks of the monasteries at Glastonbury and Bath for supremacy in the diocese, who maintained the advantage, and it was with difficulty that the cathedral retained its status, so much so that the canons were reduced to begging in order to obtain their bread.

It was to this impoverished cathedral church that the Bishop Gisa was appointed in 1060. Under him grants of land were obtained successively from the kings Edward the Confessor, Harold and William the Conqueror and had buildings constructed for the secular community. Gisa - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Edward the Confessor (c. ... Harold is an Old English name, meaning army leader. It is a common first name. ... William I ( 1027 – September 9, 1087), was King of England from 1066 to 1087. ...

His successor, John de Villula (1088-1122), removed the see to Bath by 1090, using the Abbey Church of Ss Peter & Paul there as his cathedral and in so doing he regressed the position of the cathedral at Wells. Robert of Lewes, appointed bishop in 1136, secured on the position of Wells. As well as rebuilding the cathedral he instituted the arrangement by which although Bath retained precedence, the seat was located in both churches and the bishop was elected by both chapters. Bath Abbey at sunset Bath Abbey is the last in a series of monastic churches built in Bath and is still in active use. ...

Bishop Reginald de Bohun (1174-91) brought St. Hugh of Lincoln to England and his successor Savaric (1192-1205) forceably annexed Glastonbury to the diocese.

In 1206 a native of Wells itself, Jocelin Troteman de Welles, was appointed "Bishop of Bath and Glastonbury", being so styled until renouncing claim to Glastonbury in 1219, whereupon he adopted the style "Bishop of Bath". Although he did not use the name of Wells in his title, his contribution to the city was greater than any other bishop of the diocese: under his authority the cathedral was restored and enlarged, adding the west front, making this the visual signature of the building. Further, he increased the thirty-five canons to fifty and founded a grammar school for the city.

Following his death in 1242 however, the monks at Bath unilaterally elected one of their number, Roger, as successor, in disregard for the chapter of Wells. His appointment received confirmation from King Henry III and and the new pope Innocent IV. Henry III (October 1, 1207 – November 16, 1272) is one of the least-known British monarchs, considering the great length of his reign. ... Innocent IV, né Sinibaldo de Fieschi ( 1180/90 - December 7, 1254), pope from 1243 to 1254, belonged to one of the first families of Genoa, and, educated at Parma and Bologna, passed for one of the best canonists of his time. ...

The chapter at Wells appealed the decision, with the result that the pope declared that whilst Roger should remain as bishop with the style "Bishop of Bath and Wells", in the future the arrangement arrived at by Robert of Lewes should be observed.

The Diocese of Bath and Wells up to the Reformation

The diocese of Bath and Wells proper (Badoniensis et Wellensis) was instituted in 1244, when pope Innocent IV installed Roger of Salisbury as the first bishop. The diocese contained the three archdeaconries of Bath, Wells, and Taunton. Roger (d. ...

William Bytton (or William of Bitton) bishop from 1267-74 was renouned for his piety, and his tomb became a place of pilgrimage in Wells. The completion of the buildings was achieved under Bishop Ralph of Shrewsbury (1329-63).

Thomas Bekynton (1443-65) was another noted liberal benefactor of the city.

Oliver King (1495-1503) rebuilt Bath Abbey in the late Perpendicular style. The work was begun in 1499 and completed in 1530 under Bishop John Clerk. The abbey was the last complete monastic edifice to be completed before the impending Reformation. Oliver King was the bishop of Bath who organised the restoration of Bath Abbey after 1500. ...

He was succeeded by Adrian de Castello (1504-18) who was an absentee bishop, under whom the see was administered by Polydore Vergil the noted historian. Polydore Vergil or Virgil (c. ...

Adrian's successor Cardinal Wolsey (1518-23) was also an absentee bishop, held the see concurrently with that of York. Cardinal Thomas Wolsey (c. ...

The abbey at Bath was dissolved by King Henry VIII (1538) during the Reformation. Thereafter the bishop, though retaining the old style, had his seat at Wells alone. Henry VIII (28 June 1491 – 28 January 1547) was King of England and Lord of Ireland (later King of Ireland) from 22 April 1509 until his death. ... The Protestant Reformation was a movement which began in the 16th century as a series of attempts to reform the Roman Catholic Church, but ended in division and the establishment of new institutions, most importantly Lutheranism, Reformed churches, and Anabaptists. ...

William Barlow, appointed 1548, alienated much of the property of the diocese. Fleeing in 1553 on the accession of Queen Mary, his successor was the catholic Gilbert Bourne (1554-59), who was deprived and imprisoned in the Tower of London by Elizabeth, becoming, in 1569, one of the eleven Confessor-Bishops who died in bonds. Mary I Queen of England and Ireland Mary I (February 18, 1516–November 17, 1558) was Queen of England and Queen of Ireland from July 6, 1553 (de jure) or July 19, 1553 (de facto) until her death. ... The Tower of London, seen from the river, with a view of the water gate called Traitors Gate. ... Elizabeth I (7 September 1533 – 24 March 1603) was Queen of England and Queen of Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. ...

Sources

• The Catholic Encyclopedia http://www.newadvent.org/

See also

• Bishop of Bath and Wells