The Electorate of Cologne, sometimes referred to as Electoral Cologne, was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire that existed from the 10th to the early 19th century. It consisted of the Hochstift — the temporal possessions — of the Archbishop of Cologne, and was ruled by him in his capacity as prince-elector. There were only two other ecclesiastical prince-electors in the Empire: the Electorate of Mainz and the Electorate of Trier. The Archbishop-Elector of Cologne was also Arch-chancellor of Italy and, as such, ranked second among all ecclesiastical and secular princes of the Empire, after the Archbishop-Elector of Mainz, and before that of Trier.
The Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen — not to be confused with the modern Archdiocese of Hamburg, founded in 1994 — was an ecclesiastical principality (787–1566/1648) of the Holy Roman Empire, which after its definitive secularization in 1648, became the hereditary Duchy of Bremen. The prince-archbishopric, which was under the secular rule of the archbishop, consisted of about a third of the diocesan territory. The city of Bremen was de facto and de jure not part of the prince-archbishopric. Most of the prince-archbishopric lay rather in the area to the north of the city of Bremen, between the Weser and Elbe rivers. Even more confusingly, parts of the prince-archbishopric belonged in religious respect to the neighbouring diocese of Verden, making up 10% of its diocesan territory.
Friedrich Wetter is a German cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was Archbishop of Munich and Freising, Germany, from 1982 to 2007. He was Bishop of Speyer from 1968 to 1982. Pope John Paul II made him a cardinal in 1985.
Baron Clemens August von Droste zu Vischering was an Archbishop of Cologne. His clashes with the Prussian government personified the conflict relationship between the Catholic Church and the Prussian-Protestant state power in the 19th century Germany.
The Diocese of Osnabrück is a diocese of the Catholic church in Germany; which was founded around 800. It should not be confused with the smaller Prince-Bishopric of Osnabrück – an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire until 1803 – over which the bishop, as prince-bishop, exercised both temporal and spiritual authority.
Hubertus Brandenburg was a Catholic bishop of Stockholm. He was ordained priest in Osnabrück on 20 December 1952. On 12 December 1974, he was appointed by Pope Paul VI as auxiliary bishop of Osnabrück. On 21 November 1977, he was appointed as Bishop of Stockholm. He resigned in 1998, and was succeeded by Bishop Anders Arborelius.
Joseph Höffner was a German cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the Archbishop of Cologne from 1969 to 1987 and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1969.
The Archdiocese of Hamburg is a diocese in the north of Germany and covers the Federal States of Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein as well as the Mecklenburgian part of the Federal State of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. In terms of surface area it is the largest in Germany. It is characterized by its situation as a diocese in the Diaspora. Seat of the archbishop is the New St. Mary's Cathedral in Sankt Georg, Hamburg. On January 26, 2015 Stefan Heße, Generalvikar of the Archdiocese of Cologne, was appointed Archbishop of Hamburg.
Ludwig Averkamp was a German prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Osnabrück from 1987 to 1994, and Archbishop of Hamburg from 1994 to 2002.
The Diocese of Münster is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. It is a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Cologne. Bishop Felix Genn is the current bishop of the Diocese of Münster. He was ordained to the priesthood on 11 July 1976 and was appointed to the See of Münster on 19 December 2008.
Paul Josef Cordes is a German Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as President of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum (1995–2010), and was elevated to the rank of cardinal in 2007.
The Prince-Bishopric of Paderborn was an ecclesiastical principality (Hochstift) of the Holy Roman Empire from 1281 to 1802.
The Lübeck Martyrs were three Roman Catholic priests – Johannes Prassek, Eduard Müller and Hermann Lange – and the Evangelical-Lutheran pastor Karl Friedrich Stellbrink. All four were executed by beheading on 10 November 1943 less than 3 minutes apart from each other at Hamburg's Holstenglacis Prison. Eyewitnesses reported that the blood of the four clergymen literally ran together on the guillotine and on the floor. This impressed contemporaries as a symbol of the ecumenical character of the men's work and witness. That interpretation is supported by their last letters from prison, and statements they themselves made during their time of suffering, torture and imprisonment. "We are like brothers," Hermann Lange said.
Rainer Maria Woelki is a German Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He has been Archbishop of Cologne since his installation on 20 September 2014 following his election by the Cathedral Chapter to succeed Joachim Meisner in that position. He previously served as Archbishop of Berlin.
Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst is a German prelate of the Catholic Church and theologian. He was a vicar and an auxiliary bishop in Münster before becoming the Bishop of Limburg in January 2008. Pope Francis removed him from the exercise of his episcopal office on 23 October 2013 and on 26 March 2014 accepted his resignation as Bishop of Limburg, following a long-standing public dispute about the costs and financing of a diocesan construction project.
Stefan Heße is a German prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He has been Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Hamburg since 26 January 2015. The youngest diocesan bishop in Germany, he has often been outspoken on social and religious topics.
Luis Zapata de Cárdenas, O.F.M. Rec. was a Roman Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Santafé en Nueva Granada (1570–1590).
Peter Kohlgraf is a German Roman Catholic bishop. He is the current Bishop of Mainz.
