List of bishops, prince-bishops, and administrators of Verden
This list records the bishops of the Roman Catholic diocese of Verden (German: Bistum Verden), a suffragan of the Archbishopric of Mentz, who were simultaneously rulers of princely rank (prince-bishop) in the Prince-Bishopric of Verden (German: Hochstift Verden; est. 1180 and secularised in 1648), a state of imperial immediacy within the Holy Roman Empire. Verden upon Aller was the seat of the chapter, the cathedral and residence of the bishops until 1195, Rotenburg upon Wümme became the prince-episcopal residence since.
Titles of the incumbents of the Verden See
Not all incumbents of the Verden See were imperially invested princely power as Prince-Bishops and not all were papally confirmed as bishops. In 1180 part of the Verden diocesan territory were disentangled from the Duchy of Saxony and became an own territory of imperial immediacy called Prince-Bishopric of Verden, a vassal of the Holy Roman Empire. The prince-bishopric was an elective monarchy, with the monarch being the respective bishop usually elected by the Verden cathedral chapter, and confirmed by the Holy See, or exceptionally only appointed by the Holy See. Papally confirmed bishops were then invested by the emperor with the princely regalia, thus the title prince-bishop. However, sometimes the respective incumbent of the see never gained a papal confirmation, but was still invested the princely regalia. Also the opposite occurred with a papally confirmed bishop, never invested as prince. A number of incumbents, elected by the chapter, neither achieved papal confirmation nor imperial investiture, but as a matter of fact nevertheless de facto held the princely power. The respective incumbents of the see bore the following titles:
Verden
Verden can refer to:
Verden (state)
The historic territory of Verden (German pronunciation: [ˈfeːɐ̯dən]) emerged from the Monarchs of the Frankish Diocese of Verden in the area of present-day central and northeastern Lower Saxony and existed as such until 1648. The territory managed by secular lords for the bishops was not identical with that of the bishopric, but was located within its boundaries and made up about a quarter of the diocesan area. The territory was referred to at the time as Stift Verden or Hochstift Verden, roughly equating to Prince-Bishopric of Verden. This territory described in local sources today incorrectly as Bistum Verden ("Bishopric of Verden") and, in 1648, was given the title Principality of Verden, sometimes referred to as the Duchy of Verden.
Location
The territory of Verden covered the eastern part of the present district of Verden (its border ran between Langwedel and Etelsen), the southern part of the district of Rotenburg (Wümme) and parts of the districts of Harburg and the Heath district (Heidekreis).
Verden an der Aller
Verden an der Aller, also called Verden (Aller) or simply Verden (German pronunciation: [ˈfeːɐ̯dən]), is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, on the river Aller. It is the administrative centre of the district of Verden.
Verden is famous for a massacre of Saxons in 782, committed on the orders of Charlemagne (the Massacre of Verden), for its cathedral and for its horse breeding.
History
In the Middle Ages there was a massacre of allegedly 4,500 Saxons, by order of Charlemagne because of their involvement in a preceding uprising. Verden was then within the Duchy of Saxony. After in 1180 a coalition of Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa and his allies had defeated the then Saxo-Bavarian Duke Henry the Lion. He was subsequently stripped of his duchies. Saxony was divided among the imperial coalitionaries and so the Catholic Bishop of Verden gained for parts of his diocesan territory imperial immediacy, thus establishing the Prince-Bishopric of Verden.
On 12 March 1259 Prince-Bishop Gerhard of Verden granted the place town privileges following the Bremian version of German town law. In the 15th century Verden gained considerable independence as a Free Imperial City, immediately under the emperors (imperial immediacy), circumventing its former overlords the prince-bishops, who still held the cathedral and pertaining premises in town as an immunity district.
Podcasts:
