Trier

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(TREVIRENSIS)

Diocese; suffragan of Cologne; includes in thePrussian province of the Rhine the governmental department of Trier, with the exception of two districts administered by mayors, and the governmental department of Coblenz with the exception of ten such districts that belong to theArchdiocese of Cologne; it also includes the Principality of Birkenfeld belonging to the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg (see map to articleGERMANY). Thediocese is divided into 46 deaneries, each administered by a dean and a definitor. In 1911 it comprised 750parishes, 28parishes administered by vicars, 200 chaplaincies and similar offices, 70 administrative andschool offices. In 1912 there were 711parishpriests, 28parish vicars, 210chaplains andcurates, 122ecclesiastics in other positions (administration andschools), 65priests either retired or on leave of absence, 105clergy belonging to the orders, 1,249,700Catholics and 450,000persons of other faiths. In most of the country districts the population is nearly entirelyCatholic; in the mining and manufacturing districts on the Saar, as well as on the Hunsrück and in the valley of the Nahe River, theCatholicfaith is not so predominant. Thecathedral chapter has theright to elect thebishop; besides thebishop there is also anauxiliary bishop. The chapter consists of aprovost, a dean (theauxiliary bishop), 8cathedral canons, 4 honorary canons; 6curates are also attached to thecathedral. Theeducational institutions of thediocese for theclergy are the episcopal seminar forpriests at Trier, which has a regent, 7clerical professors, and 220 students, and the gymnasialseminaries for boys at Trier and Pr m.

Since the close of theKulturkampf thereligious orders have prospered greatly, and in 1911 there were in the diocese: aBenedictine Abbey atMaria-Laach containing 26 fathers, 80 brothers; aFranciscanmonastery on the Apollinarisberg at Reimagen, 9 fathers, 8 brothers; 2 houses of theCapuchins, 18 fathers, 12 brothers; 1 house of the Oblates, 5 fathers, 21 brothers; 2 houses of thePallotines, 9 fathers, 24 brothers; 1 house of theRedemptorists, 9 fathers, 8 brothers; 1 house of theWhite Fathers, 5 fathers, 5 brothers; 1 house of theFathers of the Divine Word, 21 fathers, 50 brothers; 126 Brothers of Charity in 4 houses, and 144 Brothers of St. Francis in 7 houses. Thefemale orders and congregations in the diocese in 1911 were:Benedictine Nuns of the Perpetual Adoration, 1 house with 37sisters;Sisters of St. Charles Borromeo, 71 houses with 500sisters; Servants of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, 4 houses, 41sisters; Serving-Maids ofChrist, 30 houses, 193sisters;Dominican Nuns, 2 houses, 69sisters; Sisters of St. Francis from the mother-houses atAachen, Heithuizen, Olpe, and Waldbreitbach, 94 houses, 476sisters;Capuchin Nuns, 1 house, 10sisters; Sisters of St. Clement, 1 house, 6sisters; Nuns of the Visitation, 1 house, 50sisters; Sisters of the Holy Spirit, 47 houses, 300sisters; Sisters of the Love of the Good Shepherd, 2 houses, 125sisters;Sisters of the Poor Child Jesus, 1 house, 9sisters;Sisters of St. Joseph, 1 house, 20sisters;Ursuline Nuns, 5 houses, 220 Sisters; Sisters ofSt. Vincent de Paul, 7 houses; 30 sisters. The most important church of thediocese is thecathedral, the oldest church of aChristianbishop on German soil. The oldest section of the building goes back to the Roman era and was a church as early as the fourth century. In the course oftime other parts were added which belong to all forms of architecture, although the Romanesque style preponderates. Thecathedral contains the remains of twenty-fivearchbishops and electors as well as those of the last fourbishops of Trier. The most precious of its numerous treasures is the Holy Coat ofChrist, which, according to legend, was given to theChurch of Trier by St. Helena. Two exhibitions of this venerablerelic are worthy of special note: that of 1844, connected with the rise of thesect of GermanCatholics, and the one held in 1891, which attracted over two millionpilgrims. Other noted churches in Trier are: theChurch of Our Lady, one of the most beautifulecclesiastical monuments ofGothic architecture, built 1227-43; the Church of St. Paulinus or of the Martyrs, the burial place of Bishop Paulinus, erected in 1734 inRococo style to replace the old church destroyed by the French in 1674; the thirteenth-century Romanesque church of the formerBenedictine Abbey of St. Matthias, containing the grave of St. Matthias, the only grave of an Apostle inGermany; it is much visited bypilgrims. Other noted churches of thediocese are: the churches of St. Castor and Our Lady at Coblenz, theabbey church ofMaria-Laach, the oldmonastery churches of Prüm, Münstermaifeld, and Merzig; the Church of St. Maria at Oberwesel, theGothicchurches of Andernach, Boppard, Remagen, Sinzig, and of other places on the Rhine and the Moselle.

History

The beginnings of thesee of Trier are obscure. From the time ofDiocletian reorganization of the divisions of the empire, Trier was the capital of Belgica Prima, the chief city of Gaul, and frequently the residence of the emperors. There wereChristians among its population as early as the second century, and there was probably as early as the third century abishop at Trier, which is the oldestepiscopal see inGermany. The first clearly authenticatedbishop is Agricius who took part in theCouncil of Arles in 314. His immediate successors wereSt. Maximinus who sheltered theexcommunicatedSt. Athanasius at Trier, and St. Paulinus, who was exiled to Phrygia on account of his opposition toArianism. Little is known of the laterbishops up to the reign ofCharlemagne; during this intervening period the most important ones wereSt. Nicetius (527-66) and Magnericus (d. 596), the confidant of the Merovingian king, Childebert II. Thebishops during the reign ofCharlemagne were: Wiomad (757-91), who accompanied the emperor on his campaign against the Avars; Richbod (792-804), one ofAlcuin's pupils; and Amalarius Fortunatus (809-14), sent byCharlemagne as ambassador to Constantinople, and the author ofliturgical writings.Charlemagne's will proves that Trier at this era was an archdiocese; Metz, Toul, and Verdun are mentioned as its suffragans. In 772Charlemagne granted Wiomad complete immunity from thejurisdiction of the ruling count for all the churches,monasteries, villages, and castles belonging to the Church of St. Peter at Trier. In 816 Louis the Pious confirmed to Archbishop Hetti (814-47) the privileges of protection and immunity granted by hisfather. At the partition of theFrankish empire atVerdun in 843, Trier fell to Lothair's empire; at the partition of Lothair's empire at Mersen in 870, it fell to the East-Frankish kingdom which later became theGerman Empire. However, after the death of Louis the Child, the lords ofLorraine separated from the East-Frankish Kingdom and became vassals of the West-Frankish ruler King Charles the Simple, until Henry I conquered the country forGermany again. Archbishop Ratbod (883-915) received in 898 complete immunity from all state taxes for the entire episcopal territory from the King of Lorraine andBurgundy, Swentibold, son of Emperor Arnulf. He obtained from Louis the Child the district and city of Trier, theright to have a mint and to impose customs-duties; from Charles the Simple he gained the right of a free election of theBishop of Trier. In this way the secular possessions of thebishops of Trier, which had sprung from the valuable donations of the Merovingian andCarlovingian rulers, were raised to a secular principality. Archbishop Ratbert (931-56), brother-in-law of King Henry I, was confirmed byOtto I in all the temporalrights gained by his predecessors.

Archbishop Poppo (1016-47), son of Margrave Leopold ofAustria, did much to enlarge the territory owned by the church of Trier. During the strife over Investiture, Engelbert of Ortenburg (1078-1101) and Bruno of Laufen (1102-24) belonged to the imperial party.Albero of Montreuil (1131-52) had, asArchdeacon ofMetz, opposed lay Investiture; during his administration thecathedralschool of Trier reached its highest fame. From about 1100 theArchbishop of Trier was the Arch-Chancellor of Gaul, for the German emperor, and thus became the possessor of an imperial office and an Elector of the German king and emperor. As thearchbishops of Trier were among the leading spiritual princes of the empire, they became involved in all the struggles betweenpope and emperor. While Hillin (1152-69) was a partisan ofFrederick Barbarossa, Arnold I (1169-83) made successful efforts to bring about a reconciliation between the emperor andpope (1177). John I (1190-1212) wasexcommunicated byInnocent III on account of his adherence to King Philip of Swabia; Bishop John increased the possessions of the archdiocese by gaining several countships and castles. Theodoric II of Wied (1212-42) belonged to the party ofFrederick II, while Arnold II of Isenburg (1242-59) opposed the emperor. Henry II of Vinstingen (1260-86) was the firstArchbishop of Trier who took part in the election of a German emperor as one of the seven Electors; the electoral dignity, together with theright to the first vote, was confirmed by the GoldenBull in 1356. As in other Germandioceses, so also in Trier, the rising cities, especially Trier and Coblenz, sought to rid themselves of the suzerainty of thebishop. Such attempts werecrowned with considerable success during the rule of Archbishop Diether of Nassau (1300-07), brother of King Adolph of Nassau. On the other hand, Baldwin of Luxembourg (1308-54), the most noted of themedievalarchbishops of Trier, was able to restore and raise the importance of the See of Trier by his wide-reaching activity both in secular and spiritual affairs. He brought the cities of Coblenz and Trier under his suzerainty again, and was the actual organizer of his possessions as an electoral state. Werner of Falkenstein (1388-1418), one of Baldwin's successors, acquired Limburg on the Lahn; during the greatWestern Schism he held loyally toGregory XII. After the death of Otto of Ziegenhain (1418-30), who labouredzealously for the reform of theChurch, there was a double election; upon thisPope Martin V appointed a thirdpersonarchbishop. During the struggle of the candidates to secure the diocese it suffered severely. James of Sierck (1439-56) sought to restore order in the confused finances of thediocese. He was deposed byEugenius IV as an adherent of the Council of Basle and of theAntipope Felix V, who was elected there. However, the deposition had no effect as the German Electors opposed it. John II, Margrave of Baden (1456-1503), promoted the reform of theChurch. He left the diocese heavily indebt, and thesedebts were increased by his great-nephew and successor, James II of Baden (1503-11).

TheReformation limited thespiritual jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Trier. Although the energetic Richard von Greiffenklau (1511-31) vigorously opposed theReformation, still he could not prevent the newdoctrine from gaining a foothold in the district of the Hunsruck, and in that on the right bank of the Rhine. He defeated the attacks of Franz von Sickingen upon the city of Trier, as well as the efforts of that city to become independent of thebishop. In 1512 he exhibited the Holy Coat for the first time and spent the donations of thepilgrims on thecathedral. John II von Metzenhausen (1531-40) attempted reforms which were frustrated by his death. John II von Hagen (1541-47) sent a representative to theCouncil of Trent and began earnest measures of reform. John V von Isenburg (1547-56) attended the council himself, but was recalled home by the incursion of Margrave Albrecht of Brandenburg-Ansbach into the archdiocese, which the margrave devastated horribly. John VI von der Leyen (1556-67) was able to regain Trier, but could not prevent the French from taking possession of his three suffragandioceses,Metz, Toul, andVerdun. He checked the further spread of the new doctrines by calling theJesuits into hisdiocese (1561). James III von Eltz (1567-81) and John VII von Schönenberg (1581-99) carried out in their possessions the reformatory decrees of theCouncil of Trent. The former secured the administration of the Abbey of Prüm, whereby the secular possessions of the archdiocese reached their final extent; the latter established twoseminaries at Coblenz and Trier. Lothair von Metternich (1599-1623) joined the Catholic League in order to secure the stability of theCatholicChurch inGermany. In this way hissee became involved in theThirty Years War. His successor, Philip Christopher von Stern (1623-52), withdrew from the League, formed an alliance withFrance, and permitted the French to garrison the fortress of Ehrenbreitstein. When he made advances to the Swedes he was captured by the Spanish troops in 1635 under suspicion ofheresy, and was kept aprisoner atVienna until 1645. In the struggle between the imperial troops and the French the archdiocese was often devastated. Charles Caspar von der Leyen (1652-76) had scarcely repaired the damage done by theThirty Years War by an excellent administration, when the maraudingwars ofLouis XIV of France brought fresh misery upon the country. John Hugo von Orsbeck (1676-1711) refused to recognize the seizure of some of his territories and their incorporation intoFrance byLouis XIV through what was called the "reunions", neither would take theoath of loyalty toLouis. Consequently, during the years 1684-97 large parts of thesee were garrisoned by French troops.

During the long period of peace in the eighteenth century the archdiocese had excellent rulers. Francis Louis von Pfalz-Neuburg (1716-29) gave particular attention to the organization of the administration ofjustice, and raised the decayinguniversity by establishing new professorships. Francis George von Schönborn (1729-56) encouraged learned studies and founded auniversitylibrary and building. The short administration of John Philip von Walderdorf (1756-68) was followed by the reign of the last Elector of Trier, Clement Wenceslaus, Duke of Saxony (1768-1812), who was alsoBishop ofAugsburg. He gained a reputation by improving theschools and reforming themonasteries, but, on the other hand, influenced by theideas of the "Enlightenment", he supportedFebronianism, shared in the labours of the Congress of Ems, and also was involved in the dispute about the nunciatures (seeNUNCIO). After the outbreak of theFrench Revolution the territories of Trier, especially Coblenz, became the gathering place of the Frenchémigrés. In 1794 Trier and Coblenz were besieged by the French. In 1797, by the Peace of Campo-Formio, the part of the archdiocese on the left bank of the Rhine was ceded toFrance; in 1797 theuniversity was suppressed. In 1801 the Peace of Lunéville gave toFrance, in addition, the fortress of Ehrenbreitstein. When the German Church was secularized in 1803, the section of the archdiocese on the right bank of the Rhine was also secularized and the greater part of it was incorporated into Nassau. Clemens Wenceslaus renounced hisrights in return for an annual pension of 100,000 gulden and withdrew to theDiocese of Augsburg. Anecclesiastical administration, which lasted until 1824, was established in Ehrenbreitstein for the part of the former archdiocese on the right bank of the Rhine. TheFrench Diocese of Trier was established in 1801 for the section of the former archdiocese which had been ceded toFrance. It embraced hardly a third of the old diocese and was made suffragan toMechlin. Its first and onlybishop was Charles Mannay (1802-16). The Congress ofVienna gave the territory included in thisdiocese once more toGermany, largely toPrussia and the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg. In 1816 Bishop Charles Mannay resigned his office and retired toFrance, where he died in 1824 asBishop ofRennes. For six years thesee remainedvacant, the administration being conducted in the interim by Hubert Anthony Corden asvicar-general, from 1818 asvicar Apostolic. On the reorganization of theCatholicChurch inPrussia in 1821, Trier was revived as a simple diocese by theBull "De salute animarum", made suffragan toCologne, and received about its present territory. In 1824 it contained 531parishes with 580,000Catholics.

The firstbishop of the newdiocese was Joseph von Hommer (1824-36). The election of his successor, William Arnoldi (1842-64) which took place in 1839 and was renewed in 1842, was not recognized by the Government until Frederick William IV ascended the throne. Arnoldi did a great deal for the reawakening ofCatholic consciousness inGermany. The exhibition of the Holy Coat, which he brought about in 1844, led to the forming of thesect called GermanCatholics. He was succeeded by Leopold Pelldram (1865-67), formerlychaplain general of thePrussian army, who was followed by Matthias Eberhard (1867-76), who enjoys the honours of a Confessor of the Faith. Eberhard was one of the first to suffer by theKulturkampf which broke out inPrussia. After being repeatedly condemned to pay heavy fines he was sentenced on 6 March, 1876, to ten monthsimprisonment. Trier was one of thedioceses that suffered the most during theKulturkampf. The number of itsparishes robbed of theirparishpriests amount to 197, while nearly 294,000Catholics lacked regular spiritual care. After the death of thebishop on 30 May, 1876, thesee was vacant for five years and had to be secretly administered by anApostolic Delegate. Finally in 1881, through the personal efforts ofLeo XIII, an agreement was made with thePrussian Government, and Mich l Felix Korum (cathedral canon andparishpriest of the minster atStrasburg) was appointedBishop of Trier by thepope,consecrated atRome on 19 August, andenthroned on 25 September. Up to the present day thebishop has sought to repair the damage inflicted upon hisdiocese by theKulturkampf, through the confessional, thepulpit, and religious associational life. He has founded religious institutions foreducation, and promoted the establishment of numerous houses of the orders. The exhibition of the Holy Coat in 1891 which he carried out was the occasion for impressive demonstrations ofCatholicfaith and life inGermany (cf. Korum, "Wunder und Gnadenerweise, die sich bei der Austellung 1891 zugetragen haben", Trier, 1894).

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