Diocese of Durham
Encyclopedia
The Diocese of Durham is a Church of England
diocese
, based in Durham
, and covering the historic
County Durham
(and therefore including the southern part of Tyne and Wear
, the boroughs of Darlington
, Hartlepool
and the area of Stockton-on-Tees
north of the River Tees
). It was created in AD 1000 to replace the Diocese of Lindisfarne
. The cathedral is Durham Cathedral
and the bishop is the Bishop of Durham who lives at Auckland Castle
, Bishop Auckland
. The diocese's administrative centre, the Diocesan Office, is located in the Scotland Wing of Auckland Castle
.
The Bishop owes his unique position to the 7th and 8th century Kingdom of Northumbria
, which stretched from the Humber
to the Firth of Forth
. Subsequently the Kingdom came under Danish
and English sovereignty and was transformed into an Earldom.
When William the Conqueror became king of England in 1066, he soon realised the need to control Northumbria to protect his kingdom from Scottish incursions. He gained the allegiance of both the Bishop of Durham and the Earl of Northumbria by confirming their privileges and acknowledging the remote independence of Northumbria.
To quell rebellions, William installed Robert Comine
, a Norman
noble, as the Earl of Northumbria, but Comine and his 700 men were massacred in Durham. In revenge, the King raided Northumbria in the Harrying of the North
. Aethelwine, the Anglo-Saxon
Bishop of Durham, tried to flee with Northumbrian treasures, but was caught and imprisoned. He later died in confinement, leaving his see vacant for William to the King to appoint William Walcher
as bishop of Durham in 1071.
in 1081.
King William Rufus divided the Earldom into two parts: the lands north of the rivers Tyne
and Derwent
were ruled by the Earls of Northumberland, while the lands south of the rivers were put under the control of the Bishop of Durham.
The lands ruled by the bishops became known as the County Palatine of Durham
, a defensive buffer zone between England and the Northumbria-Scottish borderland. Due to its strategic importance and its remoteness from London
, the County Palatinate became a virtually autonomous entity, in which the Prince-Bishop possessed the powers of a King. Specifically, the Prince-Bishops had the authority to
For a period Carlisle was also placed under the bishop's jurisdiction, to protect the north west of England.
Durham's exceptional status reached its zenith by 1300, when Prince-Bishop Antony Beck remarked that:
To ensure that episcopal functions continued to be performed while the diocesan bishop was playing his part in political affairs of state, suffragan bishop
s were appointed. For instance, Bishop Thomas Langley
served as chancellor
to the Kings Henry IV
, Henry V
and Henry VI
and was frequently away in London and occasionally overseas.
greatly diminished the Prince-Bishop's secular authority, which was further reduced during and after the English Civil War
.
From 1537 to 1572, there was one suffragan
Bishop of Berwick
. Since 1572, the see has remained in abeyance, and Berwick-upon-Tweed
is now in Newcastle diocese.
After the Union of the crowns of England and Scotland in 1603, the County Palatinate, originally founded to check Scottish incursions, increasingly became an anachronism.
The principality was finally abolished in 1836. In 1844 the Islandshire
exclave was transferred to the jurisdiction of Northumberland, while the Bishop's duty to maintain a major fortress overlooking the Tweed at Norham
also came to an end. 1882 saw the Bishop lose the religious leadership for the whole of Northumbria when the part north of the River Tyne became the newly-created Diocese of Newcastle
. In 1971 the Courts Act
modernised the English courts system and abolished the Palatinate courts.
Since 1906, there has again been a suffragan bishop in the diocese – the Bishop of Jarrow
. , the incumbent is the Rt Revd Mark Bryant.
Still, people born in Bedlington
or the other parts of old North Durham, had birth certificates issued with the County Palatine of Durham printed on them, and the North Durham satellite areas governed their areas as Urban District Councils still under the rule of Durham. This prevailed until 1974, when administrative boundaries where changed and all of these areas, and other "autonomous" towns connected to Durham, lost their independence.
.
in Bishop Auckland
. Until the 1830s and the national mood at the time of the Great Reform Act, the Bishop had at least two more castles; Norham Castle
in Northumberland
and his main Palace at Durham Castle
now occupied by Durham University
. The Bishop still has the right to use "his" suite at Durham Castle, although the right he retained to stable his horses in buildings adjacent to Palace Green
in Durham has lapsed – it was noted in the preamble to University of Durham Act 1936 that the Bishop no longer kept horses.
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
diocese
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
, based in Durham
Durham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
, and covering the historic
Historic counties of England
The historic counties of England are subdivisions of England established for administration by the Normans and in most cases based on earlier Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and shires...
County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
(and therefore including the southern part of Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear is a metropolitan county in north east England around the mouths of the Rivers Tyne and Wear. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972...
, the boroughs of Darlington
Darlington (borough)
Darlington is a local government district and borough in North East England. In 2008 it had a resident population of 100,500 It borders County Durham to the north and west, North Yorkshire to the south along the line of the River Tees, and Stockton-on-Tees to the east.-Council:Traditionally part of...
, Hartlepool
Hartlepool (borough)
Hartlepool is a unitary authority in the ceremonial county of County Durham, north east England. In 2003 it had a resident population of 90,161. It borders the non-metropolitan county of County Durham to the north, Stockton-on-Tees to the south and Redcar and Cleveland to the south-east along the...
and the area of Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees (borough)
Stockton-on-Tees is a unitary authority area and borough in the Tees Valley area of north east England, with a population in 2001 of 178,408, rising to 185,880 in 2005 estimates....
north of the River Tees
River Tees
The River Tees is in Northern England. It rises on the eastern slope of Cross Fell in the North Pennines, and flows eastwards for 85 miles to reach the North Sea between Hartlepool and Redcar.-Geography:...
). It was created in AD 1000 to replace the Diocese of Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne is a tidal island off the north-east coast of England. It is also known as Holy Island and constitutes a civil parish in Northumberland...
. The cathedral is Durham Cathedral
Durham Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham is a cathedral in the city of Durham, England, the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Durham. The Bishopric dates from 995, with the present cathedral being founded in AD 1093...
and the bishop is the Bishop of Durham who lives at Auckland Castle
Auckland Castle
Auckland Castle is a castle in the town of Bishop Auckland in County Durham, England....
, Bishop Auckland
Bishop Auckland
Bishop Auckland is a market town and civil parish in County Durham in north east England. It is located about northwest of Darlington and southwest of Durham at the confluence of the River Wear with its tributary the River Gaunless...
. The diocese's administrative centre, the Diocesan Office, is located in the Scotland Wing of Auckland Castle
Auckland Castle
Auckland Castle is a castle in the town of Bishop Auckland in County Durham, England....
.
Origins
The line of bishops of Durham stretches back to the 10th century, when Aldhun, Bishop of Lindisfarne (995-1018), transferred his see to Durham.The Bishop owes his unique position to the 7th and 8th century Kingdom of Northumbria
Northumbria
Northumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...
, which stretched from the Humber
Humber
The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal River Ouse and the tidal River Trent. From here to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between the East Riding of Yorkshire on the north bank...
to the Firth of Forth
Firth of Forth
The Firth of Forth is the estuary or firth of Scotland's River Forth, where it flows into the North Sea, between Fife to the north, and West Lothian, the City of Edinburgh and East Lothian to the south...
. Subsequently the Kingdom came under Danish
Danelaw
The Danelaw, as recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , is a historical name given to the part of England in which the laws of the "Danes" held sway and dominated those of the Anglo-Saxons. It is contrasted with "West Saxon law" and "Mercian law". The term has been extended by modern historians to...
and English sovereignty and was transformed into an Earldom.
When William the Conqueror became king of England in 1066, he soon realised the need to control Northumbria to protect his kingdom from Scottish incursions. He gained the allegiance of both the Bishop of Durham and the Earl of Northumbria by confirming their privileges and acknowledging the remote independence of Northumbria.
To quell rebellions, William installed Robert Comine
Robert Comine
Robert Comine was very briefly earl of Northumbria. His name suggests that he originally came from Comines, then in the County of Flanders, and entered the following of William the Conqueror. He was sent to the north as earl from 1068 to 1069 after the deposition of Gospatric...
, a Norman
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
noble, as the Earl of Northumbria, but Comine and his 700 men were massacred in Durham. In revenge, the King raided Northumbria in the Harrying of the North
Harrying of the North
The Harrying of the North was a series of campaigns waged by William the Conqueror in the winter of 1069–1070 to subjugate Northern England, and is part of the Norman conquest of England...
. Aethelwine, the Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
Bishop of Durham, tried to flee with Northumbrian treasures, but was caught and imprisoned. He later died in confinement, leaving his see vacant for William to the King to appoint William Walcher
William Walcher
William Walcher was the bishop of Durham from 1071, a Lotharingian, the first non-Englishman to hold that see and an appointee of William the Conqueror....
as bishop of Durham in 1071.
Prince-Bishops
The King also appointed Waltheof, an Anglo-Saxon of the old Northumbria house, as the new Earl. Bishop William was on friendly terms with Earl Waltheof, who built a castle at Durham for the bishop. After another rebellion, Waltheof was executed in 1075 and in his place William Walcher was appointed Earl, becoming the first Prince Bishop. Walcher was well-intentioned but proved an incompetent leader. He was murdered in GatesheadGateshead
Gateshead is a town in Tyne and Wear, England and is the main settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead. Historically a part of County Durham, it lies on the southern bank of the River Tyne opposite Newcastle upon Tyne and together they form the urban core of Tyneside...
in 1081.
King William Rufus divided the Earldom into two parts: the lands north of the rivers Tyne
River Tyne
The River Tyne is a river in North East England in Great Britain. It is formed by the confluence of two rivers: the North Tyne and the South Tyne. These two rivers converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Waters'.The North Tyne rises on the...
and Derwent
River Derwent, North East England
The River Derwent is a river on the border between County Durham and Northumberland in the north east of England. It broadens into the Derwent Reservoir, west of Consett. The Derwent is a tributary of the River Tyne, which it joins near the MetroCentre...
were ruled by the Earls of Northumberland, while the lands south of the rivers were put under the control of the Bishop of Durham.
The lands ruled by the bishops became known as the County Palatine of Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
, a defensive buffer zone between England and the Northumbria-Scottish borderland. Due to its strategic importance and its remoteness from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, the County Palatinate became a virtually autonomous entity, in which the Prince-Bishop possessed the powers of a King. Specifically, the Prince-Bishops had the authority to
- hold their own parliamentParliamentA parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
s - raise their own armies
- appoint their own sheriffs and justices
- administer their own laws
- levy taxes and customs duties
- create fairs and markets
- issue charters
- salvage shipwrecks
- collect revenue from mines
- administer the forests
- mint their own coins
For a period Carlisle was also placed under the bishop's jurisdiction, to protect the north west of England.
Durham's exceptional status reached its zenith by 1300, when Prince-Bishop Antony Beck remarked that:
- "There are two kings in England, namely the Lord King of England, wearing a crown in sign of his regality and the Lord Bishop of Durham wearing a mitre in place of a crown, in sign of his regality in the diocese of Durham".
To ensure that episcopal functions continued to be performed while the diocesan bishop was playing his part in political affairs of state, suffragan bishop
Suffragan bishop
A suffragan bishop is a bishop subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop. He or she may be assigned to an area which does not have a cathedral of its own.-Anglican Communion:...
s were appointed. For instance, Bishop Thomas Langley
Thomas Langley
Thomas Langley was an English prelate who held high ecclesiastical and political offices in the early to mid 1400s. He was Dean of York, Bishop of Durham, twice Lord Chancellor of England to three kings, and a Pseudocardinal. In turn Keeper of the King's signet and Keeper of the Privy Seal before...
served as chancellor
Chancellor
Chancellor is the title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the Cancellarii of Roman courts of justice—ushers who sat at the cancelli or lattice work screens of a basilica or law court, which separated the judge and counsel from the...
to the Kings Henry IV
Henry IV of England
Henry IV was King of England and Lord of Ireland . He was the ninth King of England of the House of Plantagenet and also asserted his grandfather's claim to the title King of France. He was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence his other name, Henry Bolingbroke...
, Henry V
Henry V of England
Henry V was King of England from 1413 until his death at the age of 35 in 1422. He was the second monarch belonging to the House of Lancaster....
and Henry VI
Henry VI of England
Henry VI was King of England from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. Until 1437, his realm was governed by regents. Contemporaneous accounts described him as peaceful and pious, not suited for the violent dynastic civil wars, known as the Wars...
and was frequently away in London and occasionally overseas.
Demise
In 1536 Henry VIIIHenry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
greatly diminished the Prince-Bishop's secular authority, which was further reduced during and after the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
.
From 1537 to 1572, there was one suffragan
Suffragan bishop
A suffragan bishop is a bishop subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop. He or she may be assigned to an area which does not have a cathedral of its own.-Anglican Communion:...
Bishop of Berwick
Bishop of Berwick
The Bishop of Berwick was an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Durham, in the Province of York, England. The title takes its name after the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed in Northumberland. Since the death of the only bishop in 1572, the title has remained...
. Since 1572, the see has remained in abeyance, and Berwick-upon-Tweed
Berwick-upon-Tweed
Berwick-upon-Tweed or simply Berwick is a town in the county of Northumberland and is the northernmost town in England, on the east coast at the mouth of the River Tweed. It is situated 2.5 miles south of the Scottish border....
is now in Newcastle diocese.
After the Union of the crowns of England and Scotland in 1603, the County Palatinate, originally founded to check Scottish incursions, increasingly became an anachronism.
The principality was finally abolished in 1836. In 1844 the Islandshire
Islandshire
Islandshire was an area of Northumberland, England, comprising Lindisfarne or Holy Island, plus five parishes on the mainland.It is historically associated with the Bishop of Durham, and was administratively an exclave of County Palatinate of Durham...
exclave was transferred to the jurisdiction of Northumberland, while the Bishop's duty to maintain a major fortress overlooking the Tweed at Norham
Norham
Norham is a village in Northumberland, England, just south of the River Tweed and the border with Scotland.It is the site of the 12th century Norham Castle, and was for many years the centre for the Norhamshire exclave of County Durham...
also came to an end. 1882 saw the Bishop lose the religious leadership for the whole of Northumbria when the part north of the River Tyne became the newly-created Diocese of Newcastle
Diocese of Newcastle
The Diocese of Newcastle is a Church of England diocese based in Newcastle upon Tyne, covering the historic county of Northumberland . The area of Alston Moor in Cumbria also forms part of the diocese.The diocese came into being on May 23, 1882, and was one of four created by the Bishoprics Act...
. In 1971 the Courts Act
Courts Act 1971
The Courts Act 1971 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom the purpose of which was to reform and modernise the courts system of England and Wales....
modernised the English courts system and abolished the Palatinate courts.
Since 1906, there has again been a suffragan bishop in the diocese – the Bishop of Jarrow
Bishop of Jarrow
The Bishop of Jarrow is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Durham, in the Province of York, England. The title takes its name after the former Anglo Saxon monastery in the town of Jarrow in Tyne and Wear....
. , the incumbent is the Rt Revd Mark Bryant.
Still, people born in Bedlington
Bedlington
Bedlington is a town in Northumberland, to the north of the Tyne and Wear urban area. It lies north of Newcastle and southeast of the county town of Morpeth. Other nearby places include Ashington to the north northeast, Blyth to the east and Cramlington to the south.The parish of Bedlington...
or the other parts of old North Durham, had birth certificates issued with the County Palatine of Durham printed on them, and the North Durham satellite areas governed their areas as Urban District Councils still under the rule of Durham. This prevailed until 1974, when administrative boundaries where changed and all of these areas, and other "autonomous" towns connected to Durham, lost their independence.
Seals
To differentiate his ecclesiastical and civil functions, the Bishops used two or more seals: the traditional almond-shaped seal of a cleric, and the oval seal of a nobleman. They also had a large round seal showing them seated administering justice on one side, and, on the other, armed and mounted on horseback. That design was, and still is, used by monarchs as the Great Seal of the RealmGreat Seal of the Realm
The Great Seal of the Realm or Great Seal of the United Kingdom is a seal that is used to symbolise the Sovereign's approval of important state documents...
.
Coat of arms
As a symbol of his palatine jurisdiction, the Bishop of Durham’s coat of arms was set against a crosier and a sword, instead of two crosiers, and the mitre above the coat of arms was encircled with a coronet, usually of the form known as a ‘crest coronet’ (and which is blazoned as a ‘ducal coronet’ though not actually the coronet of a duke). Although the jurisdiction was surrendered to the Crown in 1836, these heraldic symbols of their former power remain.Bishop's Palace
The bishop's palace is Auckland CastleAuckland Castle
Auckland Castle is a castle in the town of Bishop Auckland in County Durham, England....
in Bishop Auckland
Bishop Auckland
Bishop Auckland is a market town and civil parish in County Durham in north east England. It is located about northwest of Darlington and southwest of Durham at the confluence of the River Wear with its tributary the River Gaunless...
. Until the 1830s and the national mood at the time of the Great Reform Act, the Bishop had at least two more castles; Norham Castle
Norham Castle
Norham Castle is a partly ruined castle in Northumberland, England, overlooking the River Tweed, on the border between England and Scotland. It is a Grade I listed building and a Scheduled Ancient Monument...
in Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
and his main Palace at Durham Castle
Durham Castle
Durham Castle is a Norman castle in the city of Durham, England, which has been wholly occupied since 1840 by University College, Durham. It is open to the general public to visit, but only through guided tours, since it is in use as a working building and is home to over 100 students...
now occupied by Durham University
Durham University
The University of Durham, commonly known as Durham University, is a university in Durham, England. It was founded by Act of Parliament in 1832 and granted a Royal Charter in 1837...
. The Bishop still has the right to use "his" suite at Durham Castle, although the right he retained to stable his horses in buildings adjacent to Palace Green
Palace Green
Palace Green is a small area of grass in the centre of Durham, England, flanked by Durham Cathedral and Durham Castle. The Cathedral and Castle together form a UNESCO World Heritage Site....
in Durham has lapsed – it was noted in the preamble to University of Durham Act 1936 that the Bishop no longer kept horses.