Karlis Irbe (7 August 1861 – 23 March 1934) was a Latvian prelate of the

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia (, or LELB) is a Lutheranism, Lutheran Protestant church in Latvia. Latvia's Lutheran heritage dates back to the Protestant Reformation, Reformation. Both the Nazi and communist regimes persecuted the c ...

and the first bishop of the

from 1922 until his resignation in 1931.

Biography

Irbe was born in Lielsatiķu “Sīļos” (now Brocēni in Gaiķi Parish, Saldus Municipality) in the

Courland Governorate Courland Governorate, also known as the Province of Courland or Governorate of Kurland, and known from 1795 to 1796 as the Viceroyalty of Courland, was an administrative-territorial unit (''guberniya'') and one of the Baltic governorates of the ...

of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

. His father was Kristaps Irbe and his mother Lavīze (born Dišlere). He received his first education in Gaiķu and Aizupes primary schools and in Horna private school in Saldū. From 1881 to 1886 he studied Theology at the

University of Tartu The University of Tartu (UT; ; ) is a public research university located in the city of Tartu, Estonia. It is the national university of Estonia. It is also the largest and oldest university in the country.

. He was a member of student society "Lettonia". After completing his studies, he served in the parish of Smiltene. In 1887 he went to Moscow to continue his training and minister to the German community at the church of Sts Peter and Paul where he was ordained on April 13 of the same year. He was then appointed as pastor of Drustu draudzes parish where he remained till 1902. In 1902 he was elected Dean of the Cesis District however he resigned some time later. In 1905 he accepted a post at the Maldonian Girls' school in

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

. During the First World War he lived in Russia and Ukraine where in 1915 he became pastor in

Kharkiv Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

to the Latvian refugee congregation. In 1917 he returned to Moscow and founded the first Latvian Church in Moscow. In 1917 he also began work on the establishing the Latvian Lutheran Church. With the permission for the establishment of the Consistory, the Russian Ministry of Justice appointed Kārlis Irbis as the President of the Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Consistory with the right of the General Principle. In 1920 Irbe returned to Latvia and participated in the creation of the constitution of the Latvian church. The 2nd Sinode of Pastors and Presenters of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia took place in Riga between 21 and 24 February 1922. In a secret election, Irbe was elected bishop of the

with 347 votes in favor. He was consecrated bishop by the

Archbishop of Uppsala The Archbishop of Uppsala (spelled Upsala until the early 20th century) has been the primate of Sweden in an unbroken succession since 1164, first during the Catholic era, and from the 1530s and onward under the Lutheran church. Historical ove ...

Nathan Söderblom Lars Olof Jonathan Söderblom (; 15 January 1866 – 12 July 1931) was a Swedish bishop. He was the Church of Sweden Archbishop of Uppsala from 1914 to 1931, and recipient of the 1930 Nobel Peace Prize. He is commemorated in the Calendar of ...

on 16 July 1922 in St James's Church in Riga. During his time as bishop, Irbe accomplished a number of things notably the creation of the church's constitution, the creation of a new hymnal and the establishment of the liturgical calendar. Irbe was awarded the

Order of the Polar Star The Royal Order of the Polar Star (Swedish language, Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden''), sometimes translated as the Royal Order of the North Star, is a Swedish order of chivalry created by Frederick I of Sweden, King Frederick I on 23 F ...

. Nonetheless, Irbe encountered significant problems during his term as bishop notably the mutual intolerance and oppression of the German and Latvian Lutherans, the loss of the Church of St. James (since 1923 the Cathedral of the "new"

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Riga The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Riga, formerly the Diocese of Üxküll, is a Catholic archdiocese administered from the capital city of Riga in Latvia.Riga Cathedral Riga Cathedral (; ) formally The Cathedral Church of Saint Mary, is the Evangelical Lutheran cathedral in Riga, Latvia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Riga. The cathedral is one of the most recognizable landmarks in Latvia, and is featur ...

. Irbe actively, but unsuccessfully, opposed the return of the Church of St James to the Latvian Roman Catholic Church and the transfer of the Dome Church to the Latvian church from the German-speaking Lutherans. On 10 November 1931 Bishop Irbe convened an extraordinary synod in which he announced his resignation, the reason being that the government passed laws which interfered with church autonomy. He spent the last years actively working on the development of the youth industry. He died on 23 March 1934 at his desk in

. He was buried in Riga Forest Cemetery."Kārlis Irbe"
''LELB''. Retrieved on 1 January 2018.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Irbe, Karlis 1861 births 1934 deaths People from Saldus Municipality People from Courland Governorate Latvian Lutheran bishops 20th-century Lutheran archbishops Burials at Forest Cemetery, Riga