The Bishop of Down and Connor is an episcopal title which takes its name from the town of Downpatrick (located in County Down) and the village of Connor (located in

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

) in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. The title is still used by the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

for the diocese of that name, but in the

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the secon ...

it has been modified into other bishoprics.

History

The sees of Down and Connor were established at the

Synod of Rathbreasail A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word ''synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin word meani ...

in 1111. For a brief period in the early 12th-century, they were united under Máel Máedóc Ua Morgair (

Saint Malachy Malachy (}; Modern ga, Maelmhaedhoc Ó Morgair; ) (1094 – 2 November 1148) is an Irish saint who was Archbishop of Armagh, to whom were attributed several miracles and an alleged vision of 112 popes later attributed to the apocryphal ...

), who also became Archbishop of Armagh. On 29 July 1438, plans for a permanent union of the sees of Down and Connor were submitted to

King Henry VI of England Henry VI (6 December 1421 – 21 May 1471) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. The only child of Henry V, he succeeded to the English throne at ...

for his sanction. Exactly twelve months later, 29 July 1439,

Pope Eugene IV Pope Eugene IV ( la, Eugenius IV; it, Eugenio IV; 1383 – 23 February 1447), born Gabriele Condulmer, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 3 March 1431 to his death in February 1447. Condulmer was a Venetian, and ...

issued a papal bull stating that Down and Connor were to be united on the death or resignation of either bishop. In 1442, Bishop John Sely of Down was deprived of his see by Pope Eugene IV, thereby effecting the union of the two dioceses. John Fossade, who had been

bishop of Connor The Bishop of Connor is an episcopal title which takes its name after the village of Connor in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The title is currently used by the Church of Ireland, but in the Roman Catholic Church it has been united with anoth ...

since 1431, became the bishop of the united see of Down and Connor in late 1442. However, due to strong opposition to the union in the diocese of Down, three more bishops of Down were appointed, two whilst Fossade was alive and one after his death. It was not until the appointment of Thomas Knight that the two sees were finally united under one bishop. Following the upheaval of the 16th century

Reformation in Ireland The Reformation in Ireland was a movement for the reform of religious life and institutions that was introduced into Ireland by the English administration at the behest of King Henry VIII of England. His desire for an annulment of his marriage ...

, there were parallel apostolic successions. In the

, Down and Connor merged with Dromore in 1842 to form the bishopric of Down, Connor and Dromore. This arrangement continued until 1945 when the dioceses were separated into the bishoprics of Down & Dromore and Connor., ''Handbook of British Chronology'', pp. 388–389., ''The Province of Connaught'', pp. 202–218. In the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, the see of Down and Connor continues to the present day. Since the first half of the nineteenth century the bishop has lived in Belfast rather than the Downpatrick area. The incumbent is the Most Reverend Noel Treanor, Bishop of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Down and Connor The Diocese of Down and Connor, ( ga, Deoise an Dúin agus Chonaire) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Northern Ireland. It is one of eight suffragan dioceses in the ecclesiastical province of the me ...

, who was appointed by the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

on 22 February 2008 and ordained bishop on 29 June 2008.Bishops of Down and Connor
''Roman Catholic Diocese of Down and Connor''. Retrieved 26 August 2009.

Lists of bishops

Pre-Reformation bishops

Post-Reformation Church of Ireland bishops

Post-Reformation Roman Catholic bishops

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bishop of Down And Connor Down and Connor Down and Connor Bishops Religion in County Antrim Religion in County Down Bishops Bishops of Down or Connor or of Dromore Bishop