Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Germany
The Vicariate Apostolic of Northern Germany was known for most of its existence as the Vicariate Apostolic of the Northern Missions, established on 28 April 1667. It was a Roman Catholic missionary jurisdiction of a Vicar Apostolic in predominantly Protestant Northern Europe. On 7 August 1868, on the occasion of completing separate jurisdictions for all of Scandinavia, the vicariate only continued to comprise small areas in Northern Germany and was thus renamed. With the integration of these areas into other Roman Catholic dioceses the vicariate ceased to exist on 13 August 1930.
History
The Reformation in the 16th century caused the Roman Catholic Church to lose almost all of Northern Europe. In 1582 the stray Catholics of Denmark, Finland, Northern Germany, Norway, and Sweden were placed under the jurisdiction of an Apostolic Nuncio to Cologne. The Congregation de propaganda fide, on its establishment in 1622, took charge of the vast missionary field, which at its third session it divided among the nuncio of Brussels, the nuncio at Cologne and the nuncio of Poland.Following the organisational structure of the Church the apostolic vicariate included the diocesan areas of bishoprics, where Roman Catholic jurisdiction had effectively been abolished. This was partially due to secular rulers or governments repressing Catholic faith and clergy in their territories, which comprised the diocesan areas, due to the fact that incumbent bishops had converted to Lutheranism, or because the cathedral capitular canons, responsible for electing new bishops, had adopted Lutheranism and thus chose fellow faithful candidates, who thus de facto ascended the sees.
So while the area under the jurisdiction of the vicar apostolic followed originally the diocesan boundaries of the de facto defunct bishoprics, the boundaries of new jurisdictions followed mostly the political borders relevant at the time of their establishment.
The scattered Catholics in Northern Europe were placed under the pastoral care of the Jesuits, Franciscans and Dominicans. Catholics in many places had at their disposal only the chapels established in the houses of the diplomatic representatives of the Holy Roman Emperor and of other Catholic Powers, France and Spain. Sometimes admission even to these chapels was rendered difficult, or entirely prohibited to native Catholics.
In some districts the conversion of the monarchs, e.g. Duke John Frederick of Brunswick and Lunenburg, Prince of Calenberg and Duke Christian I Louis of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, brought Catholics some measure of freedom. The number of Catholics having increased in 1667, chiefly through the above-mentioned Prince of Calenberg, a vicariate Apostolic was established for Northern Germany.
The first vicar was Valerio Maccioni, titular Bishop of Morocco, who resided at Hanover. He died in 1676, and was succeeded by the celebrated Danish convert Nicolaus Steno, who in 1680 was obliged to leave Hanover, was made Auxiliary Bishop of Münster, and in 1683 returned to the Nordic Missions. He died at Schwerin in 1686, and was followed in the vicariate successively by Friedrich von Hörde, Auxiliary Bishop of Hildesheim and titular Bishop of Joppe, Jobst Edmund von Brabeck, Bishop of Hildesheim and Otto von Bronckhorst, Auxiliary Bishop of Osnabrück.
The Northern Missions, viewed in a wider sense, included also the Apostolic Prefectures of Schleswig-Holstein, coinciding with the Prussian province of that name, of Denmark and of Norway, which were placed under separate prelates in 1868. The vicariate and prefectures were under the permanent jurisdiction of the Bishop of Osnabrück as administrator Apostolic. In the vicariate, corresponding mostly to the Prussian province of Schleswig-Holstein, Catholics numbered about 79,400, under 47 secular priests having care of 17 parishes and 17 mission stations. The following religious congregations had houses in the vicariate: Sisters of Mercy of St. Charles Borromeo, 1; Sisters of St. Elizabeth, 5; Franciscan Sisters, 2; Ursulines, 2. The Prefecture Apostolic of Schleswig-Holstein had in 1909: 11 parishes, 31 mission stations, 34 secular priests, 35,900 Catholics, and 550,000 of other beliefs; 4 communities of Sisters of St. Elizabeth and 3 of Franciscan nuns.
In summer the Catholic population in the vicariate of Northern Germany and prefecture of Schleswig-Holstein was increased by 17,000 to 20,000 labourers from other parts of Germany, who returned to their homes at the beginning of the winter. The spiritual interests of the faithful were inadequately attended to owing to the extent of the parishes, the lack of priests, the poverty of the majority of the Catholics and in many places the hostility of the Protestant state or municipal governments. A more encouraging picture was presented by the numerous Catholic societies and by the maintenance of private Catholic schools, despite the fact that the Catholics were often obliged to contribute also to the support of the state and Protestant parish schools. A very fruitful activity has been developed in these missions by the Boniface Association.
The French Revolution and the Napoleonic regime brought great relief to Catholics in many cities and states; but the equality granted them by law in some countries was often merely theoretical.
At the reorganisation of Catholic affairs in Germany after the Napoleonic era, the greater part of the Northern Missions was added to adjacent bishoprics. The only districts remaining mission territory were the Kingdom of Saxony, the Principality of Anhalt, constituted separate vicariates Apostolic in 1816 and 1825 respectively, and the North, which in 1826 was placed temporarily under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Paderborn.
In 1839 Pope Gregory XVI wished to entrust the vicariate to a bishop with his see at Hamburg. Johann Theodor Laurent was appointed vicar and consecrated bishop. Lutheran opposition prevented the realisation of the plan and Laurent was denied to enter Hamburg. The pope thereupon gave the administration of the vicariate to the Auxiliary Bishop of Osnabrück, . The Bishop of Osnabrück has since then been the regular Vicar Apostolic of the Northern Missions, and administrator of the Prefecture Apostolic of Schleswig-Holstein since its separation from the vicariate in 1868. In 1869 Denmark and Norway were erected into apostolic prefectures of their own, and in 1892 into apostolic vicariates.
Defunct dioceses comprised in the vicariate
On its establishment the Apostolic Vicariate comprised first only the Diocese of Minden. The other former Catholic dioceses followed at three later dates. The date in the second column refers to the year, when last time a catholic bishop could effectively wield his pontificate, not an eventual later appointment or continued titulature in exile. Some last Catholic bishops had already been preceded by Lutheran incumbents.The list below records the bishoprics whose diocesan areas fell under the jurisdiction of the Nordic Missions. The list shows when the various diocesan areas left the jurisdiction of the Nordic Missions, to which Roman Catholic jurisdictions the areas used to belong afterwards, and to which jurisdictions they belong today. Today the areas of some defunct dioceses are partitioned among several modern dioceses. By clicking on the buttons the list can be ordered along the categories given in each column. The list does not claim to record the correct affiliations for every area of the former dioceses.
| Diocese / Archdiocese | Last Catholic episcopate ended in | Jurisdiction by Northern Missions | Later jurisdiction | Today's jurisdiction | Pre-Reformation ecclesiastical province; remarks |
| Minden | 1648 | 1667–1709, and again 1780–1821 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 | Paderborn since 1821 | |
| Halberstadt | 1552 | 1669–1709, and again 1780–1821 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Paderborn 1821–1994 | Magdeburg since 1994 | |
| Verden | 1631 | 1669–1709, and again 1780–1821/24 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Paderborn 1821–1994 | Hildesheim since 1824 Magdeburg since 1994 | |
| Bremen | 1566 | 1670–1821/24, partially till 1868 and 1930 | Schleswig-Holstein 1868–1930 Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hildesheim since 1824 Osnabrück since 1930 Münster since 1821 Hamburg since 1994 | |
| 1561 | 1670–1930 | Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hamburg since 1994 | ||
| Ratzeburg | 1554 | 1670–1930 | Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hamburg since 1994 | |
| Schwerin | 1533 | 1670–1930 | Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hamburg since 1994 | |
| Magdeburg | 1552 | 1670–1709, and again 1780–1821, Anhalt till 1825 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Paderborn 1821–1994 Anhalt 1825–1921 Paderborn 1921–1994 | Magdeburg since 1994 | |
| Brandenburg | 1539 | 1670–1709, and again 1780–1821 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Breslau's Prince-Episcopal Delegation for Brandenburg and Pomerania 1821–1930 | Berlin since 1930 | |
| Havelberg | 1548 | 1670–1709, and again 1780–1821 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Breslau's Prince-Episcopal Delegation for Brandenburg and Pomerania 1821–1930 | Berlin since 1930 | |
| Lebus | 1555 | 1670–1709, and again 1780–1821 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Breslau's Prince-Episcopal Delegation for Brandenburg and Pomerania 1821–1930 Berlin 1930–1951 Cammin, Lebus and Schneidemühl Prelature 1951–1972 | Berlin since 1930 Gorzów since 1972 | |
| Merseburg | 1544 | 1670–1709 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1743 Saxon Hereditary Lands 1743–1921 Saxon Hereditary Lands 1743–1821 Paderborn 1821–1994 | Magdeburg since 1994 | |
| Naumburg | 1564 | 1670–1709 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1743 Saxon Hereditary Lands 1743–1921 Saxon Hereditary Lands 1743–1821 Paderborn 1821–1994 | Magdeburg since 1994 | |
| Cammin | 1544 | 1688–1709, and again 1780–1821, M.-Strelitz till 1930 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Breslau's Prince-Episcopal Delegation for Brandenburg and Pomerania 1821–1930 Berlin 1930–1951 Cammin, Lebus and Schneidemühl Prelature 1951–1972 Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Berlin since 1930 Szczecin-Kamień since 1972 Koszalin-Kołobrzeg since 1972 Hamburg since 1994 | Cammin was an exempt diocese since 1140 |
| Lund | 1536 | 1688–1783, Bornholm till 1868 | 1783–1953 Denmark 1868–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 | Stockholm since 1953 Copenhagen since 1953 | |
| Aarhus | 1536 | 1688–1868 | Denmark 1868–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 | Copenhagen since 1953 | |
| 1536 | 1688–1868 | Denmark 1868–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 | Copenhagen since 1953 | ||
| Odense 1868–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 | Copenhagen since 1953 | ||||
| Ribe | 1536 | 1688–1868 | Denmark 1868–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 | Copenhagen since 1953 | |
| Roskilde | 1529 | 1688–1868, Rügen only till 1821 | Denmark 1868–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 Breslau's Prince-Episcopal Delegation for Brandenburg and Pomerania 1821–1930 | Copenhagen since 1953 Berlin since 1930 | |
| Schleswig | 1542 | 1688–1868 | Schleswig-Holstein 1868–1920 Schleswig-Holstein 1920–1930 Osnabrück 1930–1994 Denmark 1920–1953 | Copenhagen since 1953 Hamburg since 1994 | |
| Viborg | 1536 | 1688–1868 | Denmark 1868–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 | Copenhagen since 1953 | |
| Meissen | 1559/1581 | 1688–1709 | Meissen 1560–1567 Upper Lusatia 1567–1921 Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1743 Saxon Hereditary Lands 1743–1921 Breslau 1821–1972 Görlitz 1972–1994 | Görlitz since 1994 | Meissen was an exempt diocese, and since re-establishment in 1921, renamed to Dresden-Meissen in 1980, it is suffragan to Berlin since 1994. |
| Trondheim | 1546 | 1688–1834 | Sweden 1834–1855 1855–1869 Sweden 1855–1868 Norway 1868–1892 Norway 1892–1931 Missionary District of Central Norway 1931–1935 Central Norway 1935–1953 Central Norway 1953–1979 Missionary District of Northern Norway 1931–1944 Northern Norway 1944–1955 Northern Norway 1955–1979 | Trondheim since 1979 Tromsø since 1979 | |
| Bergen | 1535 | 1688–1834 | Sweden 1834–1868 Norway 1868–1892 Norway 1892–1931 Oslo 1931–1953 | Oslo since 1953 | |
| Faroe | 1538 | 1688–1855 | North Pole 1855–1869 Denmark 1869–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 | Copenhagen since 1953 | |
| Garðar | 1537 | 1688–1855 | North Pole 1855–1869 Denmark 1869–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 | Copenhagen since 1953 | |
| Hamar | 1537 | 1688–1834 | Sweden 1834–1868 Norway 1868–1892 Norway 1892–1931 Oslo 1931–1953 | Oslo since 1953 | |
| 1550 | 1688–1855 | North Pole 1855–1869 Denmark 1869–1892 Denmark 1892–1923 Iceland 1923–1929 Iceland 1929–1968. | Reykjavík since 1968 | ||
| Oslo | 1537 | 1688–1834 | Sweden 1834–1868 Norway 1868–1892 Norway 1892–1931 Oslo 1931–1953 | Oslo since 1953 | |
| 1541 | 1688–1855 | North Pole 1855–1869 Denmark 1869–1892 Denmark 1892–1923 Iceland 1923–1929 Iceland 1929–1968. | Reykjavík since 1968 | ||
| Stavanger | 1537 | 1688–1834 | Sweden 1834–1868 Norway 1868–1892 Norway 1892–1931 Oslo 1931–1953 | Oslo since 1953 | |
| Uppsala | 1524 | 1688–1783 | Sweden 1783–1953 | Stockholm since 1953 | |
| 1550 | 1688–1783 | Sweden 1783–1809 Mohilev 1809–1920 Finland 1920–1955 | Helsinki since 1955 | ||
| Linköping | 1527 | 1688–1783 | Sweden 1783–1953 | Stockholm since 1953 | |
| Skara | 1521 | 1688–1783 | Sweden 1783–1953 | Stockholm since 1953 | |
| 1536 | 1688–1783 | Sweden 1783–1953 | Stockholm since 1953 | ||
| 1534 | 1688–1783 | Sweden 1783–1953 | Stockholm since 1953 | ||
| 1530 | 1688–1783 | Sweden 1783–1953 | Stockholm since 1953 |
States and territories covered by the vicariate
The states and territories covered by the vicariate altered over the long duration of its existence. So the table below tries to present those states and territories which were part of the vicariate before it was territorially reduced for the first time on 6 April 1709.Owing to its vast extent, Pope Clement XI divided the old Vicariate Apostolic into two vicariates: the Vicariate Apostolic of Upper and Lower Saxony, embracing the portions of the old vicariate situated in the Palatinate and in Lower Saxon Electoral Hanover and the Duchy of Bremen, as well as in Upper Saxon Anhalt, Electoral Brandenburg, Swedish Hither Pomerania, and Electoral Saxony. This new Apostolic Vicariate was seated in Hanover city. It was placed in charge of Agostino Steffani, Bishop of Spiga and minister of the Elector Palatine, as vicar Apostolic.
So the rest of the original vicariate, comprising all of Northern Europe north of the Elbe, and Bremen, remained with the Nordic Missions, which retained the title of Vicariate of the North. It was placed under the Auxiliary Bishop of Osnabrück. Since 1743 the Roman Catholics in the Wettin-held imperial fief of Electorate of Saxony were subject to the Apostolic Vicariate of the Saxon Hereditary Lands, later also acceded by Reuss Elder Line, Reuss Younger Line, and Saxe-Altenburg. Saxon Hereditary Lands merged with the Apostolic Prefecture of Upper Lusatia into the new Diocese of Meissen on 24 June 1921.
The division between the Nordic Missions and the Upper and Lower Saxon vicariate lasted until 1779/80, when Friedrich Wilhelm von Westphalen, Prince-Bishop of Hildesheim, reunited under his administration the vicariates. On 11 February 1780 the territorially lessened Vicariate of Upper and Lower Saxony remerged into the Nordic Missions. Three years later the Apostolic Vicariate of Sweden was established, then competent for Roman Catholics in the Swedish Empire with Finland and Sweden proper. The Swedish-held imperial fief in Hither Pomerania remained with the Nordic Missions, also after it became Prussian in 1815.
With Pomerania and the March of Brandenburg having ceased to be parts of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, but become provinces of Prussia, the latter agreed with the Holy See to place the Prussian part of the Nordic Missions under the jurisdictions of neighbouring Prussian dioceses as of 16 August 1821. Thus the Prince-Bishop of Breslau took direct responsibility for the now Prussian-held part of Meissen's former diocesan areas in then Brandenburgian Lower Lusatia and then Silesian Upper Lusatia. Breslau wielded its indirect jurisdiction in the remainder of Brandenburg and most of Pomerania by its new Prince-Episcopal Delegation for Brandenburg and Pomerania. The diocesan areas of the defunct bishoprics in Prussian Saxony came under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Paderborn, as was the case with the diocesan area of defunct Minden in Prussian Westphalia.
Also in the Kingdom of Hanover the diocesan areas of defunct bishoprics were assigned to the neighbouring existing dioceses of Hildesheim and of Osnabrück on 26 March 1824.
Also Brunswick and meanwhile only tripartite Anhalt left the Nordic Missions in 1825, but without a persisting domestic Catholic diocese and only few domestic Catholics they formed an Apostolic Vicariate of their own, also acceded by Saxe-Gotha, Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. In 1834 Brunswick, leaving Anhalt apostolic vicariate, merged into the jurisdiction of neighbouring Hanoveran Hildesheim diocese and Norway, leaving the Nordic Missions, became part of the Swedish vicariate the same year. In 1855 northern Norway switched to the, while the rest of Norway remained with Sweden until 1868. At this time all of Northern Europe formed separate Roman Catholic jurisdictions and had left the Nordic Missions:
- Apostolic Vicariate of Sweden
- Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mohilev
- Apostolic Prefecture of Schleswig-Holstein,
- Apostolic Prefecture of Denmark
- Apostolic Prefecture of Norway
The table below shows the territories and states at the beginning of the 18th century and how new jurisdictions developed over the centuries. The table can be sorted by the territories and states, the empires they used to belonged to, the years they belonged to the Apostolic Vicariate of the Nordic Missions, and the names of the present jurisdictions by clicking on the buttons.
| Territory or state | Defunct dioceses comprised | Jurisdiction by Northern Missions | Later jurisdiction | Today's jurisdiction | In early 18th century affiliated with |
| Anhalt-Bernburg | Halberstadt Magdeburg | 1669–1709, 1670–1709 and both again 1780–1825 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Anhalt 1825–1921 Paderborn 1921–1994 | Magdeburg since 1994 | |
| Anhalt-Dessau | Halberstadt Magdeburg | 1669–1709, 1670–1709 and both again 1780–1825 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Anhalt 1825–1921 Paderborn 1921–1994 | Magdeburg since 1994 | |
| Anhalt-Köthen | Halberstadt Magdeburg | 1669–1709, 1670–1709 and both again 1780–1825 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Anhalt 1825–1921 Paderborn 1921–1994 | Magdeburg since 1994 | |
| Anhalt-Zerbst | Bremen Halberstadt Magdeburg | 1669–1709, 1670–1709 and both again 1780–1821/25 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Anhalt 1825–1921 Paderborn 1921–1994 | Münster since 1821 Magdeburg since 1994 | |
| Brandenburg, , in personal union with Prussia | Brandenburg Cammin Havelberg Lebus Verden | 1670–1709, 1688–1708, and all again 1780–1821 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Breslau's Prince-Episcopal Delegation for Brandenburg and Pomerania 1821–1930 Cammin, Lebus and Schneidemühl Prelature 1951–1972 | Berlin since 1930 Gorzów since 1972 Szczecin-Kamień since 1972 Koszalin-Kołobrzeg since 1972 | |
| Bremen, free imperial city | Bremen | 1670–1709, and again 1780–1930 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 | Osnabrück since 1930 | |
| Bremen, duchy, in personal union with Sweden | Verden Bremen | 1669–1721, 1670–1721, and both again 1780–1824 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 | Hildesheim since 1824 | |
| Brunswick and Lunenburg, electorate, in personal union with Great Britain | Verden Halberstadt | 1669–1709, 1670–1709, and both again 1780–1824 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 | Hildesheim since 1824 | |
| Brunswick and Lunenburg, duchy | Minden Halberstadt Hildesheim's , jurisdiction denied since 1568 Mainz' , jurisdiction denied since 1568 Paderborn's , jurisdiction denied since 1568 | 1667–1709, 1669–1709, and all again 1780–1834 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 | Hildesheim since 1834 | |
| Denmark | Aarhus Børglum Lund Odense Ribe Roskilde Viborg | 1688–1868 | Denmark 1868–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 | Copenhagen since 1953 | |
| Faroe Islands | Faroe | 1688–1855 | North Pole 1855–1869 Denmark 1869–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 | Copenhagen since 1953 | |
| Finland | 1688–1783 | Sweden 1783–1809 Mohilev 1809–1920 Finland 1920–1955 | Helsinki since 1955 | ||
| Greenland | Garðar | 1688–1855 | North Pole 1855–1869 Denmark 1869–1892 Denmark 1892–1953 | Copenhagen since 1953 | |
| Hamburg, free imperial city | Bremen | 1670–1709; and again 1780–1930 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hamburg since 1994 | |
| Holstein, a royal Danish-ducal Gottorpian condominium | Bremen | 1670–1868 | Schleswig-Holstein 1868–1930 Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hamburg since 1994 | |
| Iceland | 1688–1855 | North Pole 1855–1869 Denmark 1869–1892 Denmark 1892–1923 Iceland 1923–1929 Iceland 1929–1968. | Reykjavík since 1968 | ||
| 1670–1930 | Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hamburg since 1994 | |||
| 1670–1930 | Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hamburg since 1994 | |||
| Mecklenburg-Schwerin | Ratzeburg Schwerin ? | 1670–1930 | Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hamburg since 1994 | |
| Mecklenburg-Strelitz | Ratzeburg Cammin | 1670–1930 1688–1930 | Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hamburg since 1994 | |
| Norway | Bergen Hamar Oslo Stavanger Trondheim | 1688–1834 | Sweden 1834–1855 North Pole 1855–1869 Sweden 1855–1868 Norway 1868–1892 Norway 1892–1931 Oslo 1931–1953 Missionary District of Central Norway 1931–1935 Central Norway 1935–1953 Central Norway 1953–1979 Missionary District of Northern Norway 1931–1944 Northern Norway 1944–1955 Northern Norway 1955–1979 | Oslo since 1953 Trondheim since 1979 Tromsø since 1979 | |
| Oldenburg, duchy, in personal union with Denmark-Norway | Bremen | 1670–1709, and again 1780–1821 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 | Münster since 1821 | |
| Pomerania, Swedish, in personal union with Sweden | Cammin Roskilde | 1688–1709, and again 1780–1821 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 Breslau's Prince-Episcopal Delegation for Brandenburg and Pomerania 1821–1930 | Berlin since 1930 | |
| Saxe-Lauenburg, in personal union with Hanover-Britain | Ratzeburg | 1670–1930 | Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hamburg since 1994 | |
| Saxony, electorate | Meissen Merseburg Naumburg | 1677–1709, 1688–1709, and all again 1780–1821 | Meissen 1560–1567 Upper Lusatia 1567–1921 Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1743 Saxon Hereditary Lands 1743–1921 Breslau 1821–1972 Görlitz 1972–1994 Paderborn 1821–1994 | Görlitz since 1994 Magdeburg since 1994 | |
| Schaumburg-Lippe | Minden | 1667–1930 | Osnabrück 1930–1965 | Hildesheim since 1965 | |
| Schleswig, duchy | Schleswig | 1688–1868 | Schleswig-Holstein 1868–1920 Schleswig-Holstein 1920–1930 Osnabrück 1930–1994 Denmark 1920–1953 | Hamburg since 1994 Copenhagen since 1953 | |
| Sweden | Linköping Lund Skara Strängnäs Uppsala Västerås Växjö | 1688–1783 | Sweden 1783–1953 | Stockholm since 1953 | |
| Verden, principality, in personal union with Sweden | Verden | 1669–1721, and again 1780–1824 | Upper and Lower Saxony 1709–1780 | Hildesheim since 1824 | |
| Wismar, in personal union with Sweden | Ratzeburg | 1670–1930 | Osnabrück 1930–1994 | Hamburg since 1994 |
Vicars Apostolic
- Francis of Wartenberg
Vicars Apostolic for the Nordic Missions
- 1667–1676:
- 1677–1686: Nicolas Steno
- * 1680–1683: Ferdinand von Fürstenberg, simultaneously Prince-Bishop of Paderborn and Münster
- 1687–1696: Friedrich von Tietzen called Schlüter
- 1697–1702:, simultaneously Prince-Bishop of Hildesheim
- 1702–1713:
- 1713–1715: Sede vacante
- 1715–1716:
- 1716–1718: Sede vacante
- 1718–1719: , simultaneously auxiliary bishop of Osnabrück and bishop of the titular see of Heliopolis in Augustamnica
- 1719–1722: Sede vacante
- 1722–1761:, simultaneously canon at Osnabrück's St. Peter's Cathedral and bishop of the titular see of Flaviopolis
- 1761–1774:
- 1775–1789:, simultaneously Prince-Bishop of Hildesheim and Paderborn
- 1789–1825:, simultaneously Prince-Bishop of Hildesheim and Paderborn
- 1825–1839: Sede vacante
- 1839–1841: Jean-Théodore Laurent, simultaneously bishop of the titular see of Chersonesus in Creta, Vicar Apostolic of Luxembourg
- 1841–1921: Sede vacante
- * 1858–1895: Paulus Melchers as provicar per pro
- * 1899–1914: as provicar per pro, simultaneously Bishop of Osnabrück
- * 1914–1921: as provicar per pro
- 1921–1930: Hermann Wilhelm Berning, simultaneously Bishop of Osnabrück
Vicars Apostolic for Upper and Lower Saxony
- 1709–1722: Agostino Steffani
- 1722–1726: Sede vacante
- * 1722–1723: Ludolf Wilhelm von Majus as provicar per pro
- 1726–1728: Agostino Steffani
- 1730–1745: Leopold Heinrich Wilhelm von Schorror
- 1745–1757: Johann Wilhelm von Twickel
- 1757–1760: Sede vacante
- * 1757–1759: Volradus Christian Müller as provicar per pro
- * 1759–1760: Jodokus Joseph Walmer as provicar per pro
- 1760–1779:
- 1779–1780: Sede vacante
Vicars Apostolic for the Saxon Hereditary Lands
In 1743 the Vicariate Apostolic for Saxon Hereditary Lands was disentangled from the Upper and Lower Saxony vicariate.- 1743–1749: Ludwig Ligeritz
- 1749–1763: Leo Rauch
- 1763–1764: Augustin Eggs
- 1764–1800: Franz Herz
- 1801–1818:, bishop of the titular see of Argos
- 1819–1841: , simultaneously bishop of the titular see of Pella, also Apostolic Prefect of Upper Lusatia
- 1841–1845: , simultaneously bishop of the titular see of Rama
- 1846–1853: , simultaneously Apostolic Prefect of Upper Lusatia, and bishop of the titular see of Corycus.
- 1854–1875: , simultaneously Apostolic Prefect of Upper Lusatia, and bishop of the titular see of Leontopolis in Augustamnica.
- 1876–1890: , simultaneously Apostolic Prefect of Upper Lusatia, and bishop of the titular see of Azotus
- 1890–1900: , simultaneously Apostolic Prefect of Upper Lusatia, and bishop of the titular see of Cucusus
- 1900–1903: Sede vacante
- * 1900–1903: Carl Maaz as provicar per pro
- 1903–1905:, simultaneously bishop of the titular see of Samos, further Apostolic Prefect of Upper Lusatia
- 1906–1914:
- 1915–1920:
- 1920–1921: Sede vacante
- * 1920–1921: as provicar per pro, simultaneously Apostolic Prefect of Upper Lusatia