The Roman Catholic Diocese of Agen is a Latin Rite Roman Catholic 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...

 in France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

.

The diocese comprises the Département of Lot and Garonne, in the Region

Régions of France

France is divided into 27 administrative regions , 22 of which are in Metropolitan France, and five of which are overseas. Corsica is a territorial collectivity , but is considered a region in mainstream usage, and is even shown as such on the INSEE website...

 of Aquitaine

Aquitaine

Aquitaine , archaic Guyenne/Guienne , is one of the 27 regions of France, in the south-western part of metropolitan France, along the Atlantic Ocean and the Pyrenees mountain range on the border with Spain. It comprises the 5 departments of Dordogne, :Lot et Garonne, :Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Landes...

. It has been successively suffragan to the archdioceses of Bordeaux

Bordeaux

Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...

 (under the old regime), Toulouse

Toulouse

Toulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...

 (1802–22), and Bordeaux again (since 1822).

Legends which do not antedate the ninth century concerning Saint Caprasius

Caprasius of Agen

Saint Caprasius of Agen is venerated as a Christian martyr and saint of the fourth century. Relics associated with him were discovered at Agen in the fifth century...

, martyred with St. Fides by Dacianus, Prefect of the Gauls, during the persecution of Diocletian

Diocletian

Diocletian |latinized]] upon his accession to Diocletian . c. 22 December 244  – 3 December 311), was a Roman Emperor from 284 to 305....

, and the story of Vincentius, a Christian martyr (written about 520), furnish no foundation for later traditions which make these two saints early bishops of Agen.

Bishops

The first bishop of Agen known to history is St. Phoebadius or Phébade, friend of St. Hilary, who published (in 357) a treatise against the Arians

Arianism

Arianism is the theological teaching attributed to Arius , a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt, concerning the relationship of the entities of the Trinity and the precise nature of the Son of God as being a subordinate entity to God the Father...

 and figured prominently at the Council of Rimini

Council of Rimini

The Council of Rimini was an early Christian church synod held in Ariminum ....

 in 359.

• c.303?: Saint Caprais (?)
• c.313: Saint Vincent (?)
• Auxibius (?)
• c.348: Saint Phébade
• c.400: Saint Dulcide
• Lupus (?)
• c.549: Bébien
• c.573: Polémius
• c.580: Sugillarius
• c.585: Antidius
• c.615: Flavardus
• c.629: Sallustius
• c.642: Sebastianus
• c.670: Siboaldus
• c.850: Concordius
• c.977: Gombaud
• c.982: Arnaud I.
• c.1000: Hugo
• Sanctius
• Simon I.
• Arénat (?)
• Adebert (?)
• Arnaud II. de Beauville
• c.1049: Bernard I. de Beauville
• Osius (?)
• Regino (?)
• c.1061: Wilhelm I.
• Arnaud III.
• c.1080: Donald
• c.1083: Elie I. (?)
• c.1083: Simon II.
• c.1101?: Géraud I.
• c.1105: Isarad
• c.1105: Gausbert
• c.1118: Aldebert
• c.1128: Raymond-Bernard du Fossat
• c.1149: Elie II. de Castillon
• c.1180: Peter I.
• c.1182: Bertrand I. de Béceyras
• c.1209: Arnaud IV. de Rovinha
• c.1228: Arnaud V.
• c.1231: Géraud II.
• 1232–1235: Raoul de Peyrinis or de Peyrines or de Pinis (also Archbishop of Lyon)
• c.1235: Arnaud VI. de Galard
• c.1245: Pierre II. de Reims
• c.1248: Wilhelm II, sent by Pope Urban IV
  Pope Urban IV
  Pope Urban IV , born Jacques Pantaléon, was Pope, from 1261 to 1264. He was not a cardinal, and there have been several Popes since him who have not been Cardinals, including Urban V and Urban VI.-Biography:...
  
   (1261–64) to King St. Louis in 1262 to ask his aid in favor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople
• c.1263: Wilhelm III.
• c.1264: Pierre III. Jerlandi
• c.1271: Arnaud VII. de Got
• c.1281: Jean I. Jerlandi
• c.1291: Bertrand II. de Got, Bertrand de Goth, whose uncle of the same name was raised from the Archbishopric of Bordeaux
  Archbishopric of Bordeaux
  The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bordeaux, the full name of which since 20 November 1937 has been the Archdiocese of Bordeaux-Bazas, is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic church in France. The episcopal seat is located in Bordeaux, Aquitaine...
  
   to the Papal See under the name of Clement V (1305–14), and during his pontificate visited the city of Agen
• c.1306: Bernard II. de Fargis
• c.1313: Amanieu de Fargis
• c.1357: Déodat de Rotbald
• c.1364: Raymond de Salg
• c.1367: Richard (?)
• c.1375: Jean II. Belveti
• c.1379: Jean III.
• c.1382: Simon de Cramaut, Simon of Cramaud
• c.1383: Jean IV.
• c.1398: Bernard III.
• c.1398: Imbert de Saint-Laurent
• c.1438: Jean V. Borgia
• c.1460: Pierre IV. de Bérard
• c.1477: Jean VI. de Monchenu
• c.1478: Galéas de La Rovère
• c.1487: Cardinal Léonard de La Rovère
• c.1519: Marc-Antoine de La Rovère
• c.1538 to 18 May 1550: Cardinal Jean de Lorraine
• c.1550: Mathieu Bandel
  Matteo Bandello
  -Biography:Matteo Bandello was born at Castelnuovo Scrivia, near Tortona , c. 1480 or 1485. He received a good education, and entered the church, but does not seem to have been very interested in theology. For many years he lived at Mantua, and superintended the education of the celebrated Lucrezia...
  
  
• c.1555: Janus Frégose (or Fregoso)
• c.1586: Pierre V. Donault
• c.1587: Nicolas de Villars
• c.1608: Claude I. de Gélas
• c.1631: Gaspard de Daillon du Lude
• c.1636: Barthélémi d'Elbène
• c.1664: Claude II. Joly
• c.1679: Jules Mascaron
  Jules Mascaron
  Jules Mascaron was a popular French preacher. He was born in Marseille as the son of a barrister at Aix-en-Provence. He entered the French Oratory early and became reputed as a preacher...
  
  , Oratorian and celebrated preacher, transferred from the see of Tulle
• c.1703: François Hébert, curé
  Cure
  A cure is a completely effective treatment for a disease.The Cure is an English rock band.Cure, or similar, may also refer to:-Film and television:* The Cure , a short film starring Charlie Chaplin...
  
   of Versailles
  Versailles
  Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
  
  , contributed to the withdrawal of Madame de Montespan from the royal court, and who when appointed Bishop of Agen had as vicar-general until 1709 the celebrated Belsunce
• c.1729: Jean d'Yse de Saléon, d'Ise de Saléon
• 1735–1767: Jean-Gaspard-Gilbert de Chabannes
• c.1767: Jean-Louis d'Usson de Bonnac, who in the parliamentary session of 3 January 1792, was the first to refuse to sign the constitutional oath.
• c.1791: André Constant
• 1802–1840: Jean IX. Jacoupy
• 1841–1867: Jean-Aimé de Levezou de Vezins
• 1871–1874: Hector-Albert Chaulet d'Outremont
• 1874–1884: Jean-Emile Fonteneau
• 1884–1905: Charles-Evariste-Joseph Coeuret-Varin
• 1906–1937: Charles-Paul Sagot du Vauroux
• 1938–1956: Jean-Marcel Rodié
• 1956–1976: Roger Johan
• 1976–1996: Sabin-Marie Saint-Gaudens
• 1996–2004: Jean-Charles Marie Descubes
• 2005–present: Hubert Marie Michel Marcel Herbreteau

Cathedral

Agen Cathedral was formerly the church of St. Caprasius, and is a splendid specimen of Romance architecture, dating from the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. It was made the cathedral in place of the church of St. Etienne, which was unfortunately destroyed during the French Revolution

French Revolution

The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...

.