The Diocese of Ross was an ecclesiastical territory or

diocese 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 associ ...

in the Highland region of

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 ...

during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

and Early modern period. The Diocese was led by the Bishop of Ross, and the

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 ...

was, latterly, at

Fortrose Fortrose (; gd, A' Chananaich, sco, Chainry) is a town and former royal burgh in Highland, Scotland, United Kingdom. It is on the Moray Firth, about north-east of Inverness. The burgh is a popular location for trying to spot bottlenose dolp ...

. The bishops of the Early Church were located at

Rosemarkie Rosemarkie ( sco, Rossmartnie, from gd, Ros Mhaircnidh meaning "promontory of the horse stream") is a village on the south coast of the Black Isle peninsula in Ross-shire (Ross and Cromarty), northern Scotland. Geography Rosemarkie lies a quart ...

. The diocese had only one

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 ...

, the

Archdeacon of Ross The Archdeacon of Ross was the only archdeacon in the medieval Diocese of Ross, acting as a deputy of the Bishop of Ross. The following is a list of archdeacons: List of archdeacons of Ross * Robert, x 1223-1249 x 1250 * Robert de Fyvie, x 1269 ...

, first attested in 1223 with the appearance of Archdeacon

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

, who was consecrated bishop of Ross on 21 June 1249 x 20 June 1250. There is only one known Dean of Christianty (sic.) (

rural dean In the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion as well as some Lutheran denominations, a rural dean is a member of clergy who presides over a "rural deanery" (often referred to as a deanery); "ruridecanal" is the corresponding adjectiv ...

), one Donald Reid called the dean of christianty of

Dingwall Dingwall ( sco, Dingwal, gd, Inbhir Pheofharain ) is a town and a royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It has a population of 5,491. It was an east-coast harbour that now lies inland. Dingwall Castle was once the biggest cas ...

on 12 June 1530. A dean of the

cathedral chapter According to both Catholic and Anglican canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics ( chapter) formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese during the vacancy. ...

(Henry) is first recorded in 1212 x 1213; a

Subdean {{Unreferenced, date=June 2019 A sub-dean is a person who acts as an assistant to a dean either in church circuit as a priest or minister or an academic institution. They are, however, not a vice-dean. A vice-dean is a person who can deputize a de ...

(William de Balvin) in 1356. A

Precentor A precentor is a person who helps facilitate worship. The details vary depending on the religion, denomination, and era in question. The Latin derivation is ''præcentor'', from cantor, meaning "the one who sings before" (or alternatively, "first ...

, sometimes in Scotland called Chanter, (Adam de Darlington) is attested in 1255, a

Succentor The succentor ("under-singer") is the assistant to the precentor, typically in an ancient cathedral foundation, helping with the preparation and conduct of the liturgy including psalms, preces and responses. In English cathedrals today, the prie ...

(Matthew) in 1255. A

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

(Maurice) is attested for the first time in 1212 x 1213, a

Treasurer A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance. Government The treasury ...

(William) in 1227. Following the

Scottish Reformation The Scottish Reformation was the process by which Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland broke with the Pope, Papacy and developed a predominantly Calvinist national Church of Scotland, Kirk (church), which was strongly Presbyterianism, Presbyterian in ...

of 1560, the

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their n ...

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Reformation of 1560, when it split from the Catholic Church ...

abolished the episcopacy in the diocese. 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 ...

continued to appoint bishops in communion with 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 ...

. Bishop

John Lesley John Lesley (or Leslie) (29 September 1527 – 31 May 1596) was a Scottish Roman Catholic bishop and historian. His father was Gavin Lesley, rector of Kingussie, Badenoch. Early career He was educated at the University of Aberdeen, where ...

, however, was a post-reformation bishop who remained catholic.

Episcopacy A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

was abolished in the

between 1638 and 1661, when it was restored under the " Restoration Episcopate". After the

Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution; gd, Rèabhlaid Ghlòrmhor; cy, Chwyldro Gogoneddus , also known as the ''Glorieuze Overtocht'' or ''Glorious Crossing'' in the Netherlands, is the sequence of events leading to the deposition of King James II and ...

of 1688, Scottish bishoprics again came under threat until in 1689 Episcopacy was permanently abolished in the established church in Scotland. From the early 18th century, the

Scottish Episcopal Church The Scottish Episcopal Church ( gd, Eaglais Easbaigeach na h-Alba; sco, Scots Episcopal(ian) Kirk) is the ecclesiastical province of the Anglican Communion in Scotland. A continuation of the Church of Scotland as intended by King James VI, and ...

appointed bishops. In the twelfth century, the diocese is usually called "Rosemarkie", but thereafter it is called Ross. The diocese covered, roughly, the old county of Ross (also called

Ross-shire Ross-shire (; gd, Siorrachd Rois) is a historic county in the Scottish Highlands. The county borders Sutherland to the north and Inverness-shire to the south, as well as having a complex border with Cromartyshire – a county consisting ...

List of parishes

Titular Catholic see Rosemarkie

In 1973, it was nominally restored as a Catholic

Titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...

of the lowest (Episcopal ) rank, under the name Rosemarkie. It has had three incumbents

Bibliography

* Cowan, Ian B., ''The Parishes of Medieval Scotland'', Scottish Records Society Vol. 93, (Edinburgh, 1967) * McNeill, Peter G.B. & MacQueen, Hector L. (eds), ''Atlas of Scottish History to 1707'', (Edinburgh, 1996) * Watt, D.E.R., ''Fasti Ecclesiae Scotinanae Medii Aevi ad annum 1638'', 2nd Draft, (St Andrews, 1969) {{Scottish dioceses History of the Scottish Highlands Ross Religion in Highland (council area) Ross and Cromarty Ross (Scotland)