The Diocese of Carlisle was created in 11 April 1132 by

Henry I Henry I may refer to: 876–1366 * Henry I the Fowler, King of Germany (876–936) * Henry I, Duke of Bavaria (died 955) * Henry I of Austria, Margrave of Austria (died 1018) * Henry I of France (1008–1060) * Henry I the Long, Margrave of the N ...

out of part of the

Diocese of Durham The Diocese of Durham is a Church of England diocese, based in Durham, and covering the historic county of Durham (and therefore including the part of Tyne and Wear south of the River Tyne, and excluding southern Teesdale). It was created in ...

, although many people of

Cumbric Cumbric was a variety of the Common Brittonic language spoken during the Early Middle Ages in the '' Hen Ogledd'' or "Old North" in what is now the counties of Westmorland, Cumberland and northern Lancashire in Northern England and the south ...

descent in the area looked to

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popu ...

for spiritual leadership. The first bishop was Æthelwold, who was the king's

confessor Confessor is a title used within Christianity in several ways. Confessor of the Faith Its oldest use is to indicate a saint who has suffered persecution and torture for the faith but not to the point of death.prior Prior (or prioress) is an ecclesiastical title for a superior in some religious orders. The word is derived from the Latin for "earlier" or "first". Its earlier generic usage referred to any monastic superior. In abbeys, a prior would be low ...

of the Augustinian

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or nuns (such as the Dominicans, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Carmelites), or monasteries of ...

at Nostell in

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers Eden, Caldew and Petteril. It is the administrative centre of the City ...

was thus the only

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

to be run by Augustinians instead of

Benedictines , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

. This only lasted until the reign of Henry III however, when the Augustinians in Carlisle joined the rebels who temporarily handed the city over to

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

and elected their own bishop. When the revolt was ended, the Augustinians were expelled. The seat of the diocese is the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity in Carlisle. The Diocese covers most of the

non-metropolitan county A non-metropolitan county, or colloquially, shire county, is a county-level entity in England that is not a metropolitan county. The counties typically have populations of 300,000 to 1.8 million. The term ''shire county'' is, however, an unoffi ...

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. ...

;

Alston Moor Alston Moor, formerly known as Alston with Garrigill, is a civil parish and electoral ward in Cumbria, England, based around the small town of Alston. It is set in the moorlands of the North Pennines, mostly at an altitude of over 1000 feet. T ...

is part of the

Diocese of Newcastle The Diocese of Newcastle is a Church of England diocese based in Newcastle upon Tyne, covering the historic county of Northumberland (and therefore including the part of Tyne and Wear north of the River Tyne), as well as the area of Alston Moo ...

. The diocese originally only covered the northern parts of

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic counties of England, historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th c ...

and

Westmorland Westmorland (, formerly also spelt ''Westmoreland'';R. Wilkinson The British Isles, Sheet The British IslesVision of Britain/ref> is a historic county in North West England spanning the southern Lake District and the northern Dales. It had an ...

, and expanded to cover almost the entirety of these, as well as the

Furness Furness ( ) is a peninsula and region of Cumbria in northwestern England. Together with the Cartmel Peninsula it forms North Lonsdale, historically an exclave of Lancashire. The Furness Peninsula, also known as Low Furness, is an area of vill ...

and Cartmel areas of

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

, in 1847, from part of the Diocese of Chester, although this did not take effect until 1856.

Organisation

Bishops

Alongside the diocesan

Bishop of Carlisle The Bishop of Carlisle is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Carlisle in the Province of York. The diocese covers the county of Cumbria except for Alston Moor and the former Sedbergh Rural District. The see is in the city of ...

( James Newcome), the Diocese has one suffragan bishop, the

Bishop of Penrith The Bishop of Penrith is an episcopal title which takes its name after the town of Penrith in Cumbria. The title was first mentioned (as Pereth) in the Suffragan Bishops Act 1534 (alongside a see for Penreth – now called Penrydd – in Pembro ...

(

Rob Saner-Haigh Robert James Saner-Haigh (born 1973) is a British Anglican bishop. He has been the Bishop of Penrith — the sole suffragan bishop of the Diocese of Carlisle — since 2022; he was previously a residentiary canon of Newcastle Cathedra ...

). There are five other retired bishops living in the diocese who are licensed as

honorary assistant bishop An assistant bishop in the Anglican Communion is a bishop appointed to assist a diocesan bishop. Church of England In the established Church of England, assistant bishops are usually retired (diocesan or suffragan) bishops – in which case they ...

s: *1994–present: George Hacker, a former Bishop suffragan of Penrith, lives in Milburn. *1999–present:

Hewlett Thompson Geoffrey Hewlett Thompson (called Hewlett; born 14 August 1929) is a retired Anglican bishop. He is a former Bishop of Exeter in the Church of England. Thompson was educated at Aldenham School and Trinity Hall, Cambridge. After National Servi ...

, retired

Bishop of Exeter The Bishop of Exeter is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. Since 30 April 2014 the ordinary has been Robert Atwell.

, lives in

Warcop Warcop is a village and civil parish in the Eden district of Cumbria, England. The parish had a population of 491 in the 2001 census, increasing to 532 at the Census 2011. It is near the A66 road and is north of Kirkby Stephen and about ...

. *2003–present: A retired Bishop suffragan of Bedford, John Richardson, is licensed in both Carlisle and Newcastle dioceses and lives in

Bewcastle Bewcastle is a large civil parish in the City of Carlisle district of Cumbria, England. It is in the historic county of Cumberland. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 411, reducing to 391 at the 2011 Census. The parish ...

. *2011–present: Richard Henderson, a former Bishop of Tuam, Killala and Achonry (in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

) served as a Team Vicar in the Heart of Eden team ministry between 2011 and 2012.Church Times, 5 October 2012 – Gazette, Resignations and Retirements
(Accessed 9 November 2013) Alternative episcopal oversight (for parishes in the diocese who reject the ministry of priests who are women) is provided by the

provincial episcopal visitor A provincial episcopal visitor (PEV), popularly known as a flying bishop, is a Church of England bishop assigned to minister to many of the clergy, laity and parishes who on grounds of theological conviction, "are unable to receive the ministry of ...

(PEV) the Bishop suffragan of Beverley, Glyn Webster. Until his retirement on 19 July 2014, AEO was provided by

John Goddard John Goddard may refer to: * John Goddard (engraver) (fl. 1645–1671), engraver *John Goddard (cricketer) (1919–1987), West Indian cricketer *Johnathan Goddard (1981–2008), American football player *John Goddard (adventurer) John Goddard (Ju ...

, Bishop suffragan of Burnley (from neighbouring Blackburn diocese), who was licensed as an honorary assistant bishop of the diocese in order to facilitate his work there.

Archdeaconries and deaneries

The diocese of Carlisle is divided into three

archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that of mo ...

ries, each divided into a number of rural deaneries. The data in this table is a summation of the statistics found in the list of churches. Carlisle deaneries & mission communities 4

Carlisle deaneries & mission communities 4

*includes Cathedral From 1889 to 1939, the diocese had one suffragan bishop, the

Bishop of Barrow-in-Furness The Bishop of Barrow-in-Furness was an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Carlisle, in the Province of York, England. The See was created by Order in Council on 6 April 1889 (under the Suffragans Nomi ...

, and from 1939 until 1944, two suffragans bishops (Penrith and Barrow), before the see of Barrow went into the abeyance in which it remains to date.

List of churches

References

Sources

Church of England Statistics 2002

Diocese of CarlisleCarlisle Diocese Youth Centre (St John's-in-the-Vale)
{{authority control 1133 establishments in England Carlisle, Cumbria Dioceses established in the 12th century

Religious organizations established in the 1130s