The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bangkok ( la, Archidiœcesis Bangkokensis, th, อัครสังฆมณฑลกรุงเทพฯ) is a Latin

archdiocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

. The bishop's seat is the is the

Assumption Cathedral, Bangkok The Assumption Cathedral ( th, อาสนวิหารอัสสัมชัญ) is the principal Roman Catholic church of Thailand, located at 23 Oriental Avenue, New Road, in the Bang Rak District of Bangkok. It is the main church of ...

History

It dates back to 1662, when the Apostolic Vicariate of Siam was created Catholic Hierarchy: "Archdiocese of Bangkok"
retrieved November 8, 2015 on territory split off from the

Apostolic Vicariate of Cochinchina Apostolic may refer to: The Apostles An Apostle meaning one sent on a mission: *The Twelve Apostles of Jesus, or something related to them, such as the Church of the Holy Apostles * Apostolic succession, the doctrine connecting the Christian Chur ...

(in Vietnam). It was renamed Apostolic Vicariate of Eastern Siam (Siam Orientale) on 10 September 1841, having lost territory to establish the

Apostolic Vicariate of Western Siam Apostolic may refer to: The Apostles An Apostle meaning one sent on a mission: *The Apostles in the New Testament, Twelve Apostles of Jesus, or something related to them, such as the Church of the Holy Apostles *Apostolic succession, the doctrine ...

. On 5 May 1899 it lost more territory to establish the

Apostolic Vicariate of Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR or LPDR),french: République démocratique populaire Lao (RDP Lao or RDPL) is a socialist state and the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. At the heart of ...

. It was renamed Apostolic Vicariate of Bangkok on 3 December 1924. It lost more territories: on 30 June 1930 to establish Mission sui juris of Rajaburi, on 11 May 1944 to establish the Apostolic Vicariate of Chantaburi and on 17 November 1959 to establish the

Apostolic Prefecture of Chieng-Mai Apostolic may refer to: The Apostles An Apostle meaning one sent on a mission: *The Apostles in the New Testament, Twelve Apostles of Jesus, or something related to them, such as the Church of the Holy Apostles *Apostolic succession, the doctrine ...

, both now its suffragan. On 18 December 1965, it was elevated to the rank of a Metropolitan archdiocese. On 9 February 1967 it lost territory to establish the Diocese of Nakhon Sawan, as its suffragan. It enjoyed a papal visit from

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

in May 1984.

Extent

The archdiocese covers an area of 18,831 km², and as of 2002 it is responsible for 81,646 Catholic Christians, 0.7% of the about 12 million living in the area. It covers the administrative provinces

Ayutthaya Ayutthaya, Ayudhya, or Ayuthia may refer to: * Ayutthaya Kingdom, a Thai kingdom that existed from 1350 to 1767 ** Ayutthaya Historical Park, the ruins of the old capital city of the Ayutthaya Kingdom * Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province (locally ...

, Bangkok,

Nakhon Pathom Nakhon Pathom ( th, นครปฐม, ) is a city (''thesaban nakhon'') in central Thailand, the former capital of Nakhon Pathom province. One of the most important landmarks is the giant Phra Pathommachedi. The city is also home to Thailand's ...

, Nonthaburi,

Pathum Thani Pathum Thani ( th, ปทุมธานี, ) is a town (''thesaban mueang'') in central Thailand, directly north of Bangkok. It is the capital of the Pathum Thani province, Thailand as well as the Mueang Pathum Thani district. As of 2005, it ha ...

, Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon and

Suphanburi Suphan Buri () is a town (''thesaban mueang'') in central Thailand. It covers ''tambon'' Tha Philiang and parts of ''tambons'' Rua Yai and Tha Rahat, all within the Mueang Suphan Buri District. As of 2006 it had a population of 26,656. The town ...

; also the parts west of the

Bang Pa Kong River The Bang Pakong ( th, แม่น้ำบางปะกง, , ) is a river in east Thailand. The river originates at the confluence of the Phra Prong River and the Hanuman River near Kabin Buri, Prachinburi Province. It empties after 231 k ...

of Chachoengsao and

Amphoe Ban Na Ban Na ( th, บ้านนา, ) is a district (''amphoe'') in the western part of Nakhon Nayok province, central Thailand. History In the Ayutthaya era, the people of Tambon Pa Kha were elephant catchers (กองโพนช้าง), cat ...

Nakhon Nayok Nakhon Nayok City is a capital of Nakhon Nayok province in the central region of Thailand. The city (''thesaban mueang'') covers ''tambon'' Nakhon Nayok and parts of Tha Chang, Ban Yai, Wang Krachom, and Phrom Ni of Mueang Nakhon Nayok distric ...

belong to the diocese.

Ordinaries

Apostolic Vicars of Siam

Louis Laneau Louis Laneau (31 May 1637 in Mondoubleau16 March 1696 in Ayutthaya) was a French bishop of the 17th century who was active as a missionary in the kingdom of Siam (modern Thailand). He was a member of the Paris Foreign Missions Society. He was ini ...

M.E.P. The Society of Foreign Missions of Paris (french: Société des Missions Etrangères de Paris, short M.E.P.) is a Roman Catholic missionary organization. It is not a religious institute, but an organization of secular priests and lay persons ...

(1669-1696) * Louis Champion de Cicé, M.E.P (1700-1727) * Jean-Jacques Tessier de Quéralay, M.E.P. (1727-1736) * Jean de Lolière-Puycontat, M.E.P. (1738-1755) *

Pierre Brigot Pierre Brigot (1 September 1713 – 8 November 1791) was a missionary of the Paris Foreign Missions Society and was the first Superior of Karnatic Mission headquartered at Pondicherry which later became the Archdiocese of Pondicherry and Cud ...

, M.E.P. (1755-1776), appointed Ecclesiastical Superior of the

Coromandel Coast The Coromandel Coast is the southeastern coastal region of the Indian subcontinent, bounded by the Utkal Plains to the north, the Bay of Bengal to the east, the Kaveri delta to the south, and the Eastern Ghats to the west, extending over an ...

(India) * Olivier-Simon Le Bon, M.E.P. (1776-1780) * Joseph-Louis Coudé, M.E.P. (1782-1785) * Arnaud-Antoine Garnault, M.E.P. (1786-1811) *

Esprit-Marie-Joseph Florens Esprit-Marie-Joseph Florens (June 4, 1762 – March 30, 1834) was the Vicar Apostolic of Siam. Biography Esprit-Marie-Joseph Florens was born in Lagnes, France on 4 Jun 1762. In 1786, he was ordained a priest in La Société des Missions Etran ...

, M.E.P. (1811-1834) * Jean-Paul-Hilaire-Michel Courvezy, M.E.P. (1834-1841)

Apostolic Vicars of Eastern Siam

* Jean-Baptiste Pallegoix, M.E.P. (1841-1862) * Ferdinand-Aimé-Augustin-Joseph Dupond, M.E.P. (1864-1872) * Jean-Louis Vey, M.E.P. (1875-1909) * René-Marie-Joseph Perros, M.E.P. (1909-1924)

Apostolic Vicars of Bangkok

* René-Marie-Joseph Perros, M.E.P. (1924-1947) * Louis-August-Clément Chorin, M.E.P. (1947-1965) * Joseph Khiamsun Nittayo (1965)

Archbishops of Bangkok

* Joseph Khiamsun Nittayo (1965-1972) * Cardinal

Michael Michai Kitbunchu Michael Michai Kitbunchu ( th, ไมเกิ้ล มีชัย กิจบุญชู, ; born 25 January 1929) is a Thai prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Bangkok from 1973 to 2009 and was elevated to the car ...

(1972-2009) * Cardinal

Kriengsak Kovitvanit Francis Xavier Kriengsak Kovitvanit ( th, ฟรังซิสเซเวียร์ เกรียงศักดิ์ โกวิทวาณิช, , ; born 27 May 1949) is a Thai Catholic prelate and cardinal who has served as Archb ...

(2009–present)

Coadjutor Bishops

* Jean-Jacques Tessier de Quéralay,

(1717-1727) *

(1755) * Olivier-Simon Le Bon, M.E.P. (1764-1776) *

(1810-1811) *

Barthélemy Bruguière Barthélemy Bruguière (February 12, 1792 – October 20, 1835) was the first Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seoul#Apostolic Vicars of Korea, Apostolic Vicar of Korea and former Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bangkok#Vicariate Apostolic of Siam, Coa ...

(1828-1831), appointed Apostolic Vicar of Korea * Jean-Paul-Hilaire-Michel Courvezy,

(1832-1834) * Jean-Baptiste Pallegoix,

(1838-1841) * Joseph Khiamsun Nittayo (1963-1965)

Province

Its

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United State ...

comprises the Metropolitan's own archdiocese and these five

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdictiona ...

bishoprics : * Roman Catholic Diocese of Chanthaburi *

Roman Catholic Diocese of Chiang Mai The Roman Catholic Diocese of Chiang Mai (''Dioecesis Chiangmaiensis'', Thai: สังฆมณฑลเชียงใหม่) in northern Thailand is a suffragan diocese of the archdiocese of Bangkok. Bishop Francis Xavier Vira Arpondrat ...

Roman Catholic Diocese of Chiang Rai The Roman Catholic Diocese of Chiang Rai (''Dioecesis Chiangraiensis'') is in northern Thailand. It is a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Bangkok. The diocese covers an area of 37,839 km2, covering four provinces: Chiang Rai, Nan, Ph ...

Roman Catholic Diocese of Nakhon Sawan The (Roman Catholic) Diocese of Nakhon Sawan (''Dioecesis Nakhonsauanensis'', th, สังฆมณฑลนครสวรรค์) is located in central Thailand. It is a suffragan diocese of the archdiocese of Bangkok. The diocese covers ...

Roman Catholic Diocese of Ratchaburi The (Roman Catholic) Diocese of Ratchaburi (''Diœcesis Ratchaburensis'', th, สังฆมณฑลราชบุรี) is a Latin suffragan diocese of the archdiocese of Bangkok in western central Thailand. The diocese covers an area of , ...

* Roman Catholic Diocese of Surat Thani

References

Citations

Sources

GigaCatholic with incumbent biography links

External links

* {{authority control 1662 establishments in Thailand

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...