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Bishop of Lausanne

The Bishop of Lausanne (French: Évêque de Lausanne) was the principal ecclesiastical authority of the Catholic Diocese of Lausanne (Latin: Dioecesis Lausannensis).

History

King Rudolphe I of Burgundy granted the Church of Lausanne the privilege of electing its own bishop on 28 January 895.

On 25 August 1011, at the request of Queen Ermengarde, Archbishop Burchard of Lyon (the king's brother), Bishop Hugues of Geneva, and Bishop Anselme of Aosta, the county of Vaud with all its rights and privileges was granted to Bishop Henri of Lausanne and his successors by King Rudolphe III of Burgundy.

It is claimed that the bishops of Lausanne were granted the title of Prince of the Holy Roman Empire in 1270. The deed of grant is published by Jean Joseph Hisely in his work on the comtes de Genevois, but it bears the date 28 September 1273, not 1270. It states that the grant was requested by Pope Gregory X in person, on the very day on which he presided at the consecration of the cathedral of Lausanne. On 28 September 1273, however, Pope Gregory was in Reggio Emiliana, on his way to France for the Second Council of Lyon. The cathedral of Lausanne was consecrated by Gregory X in 1275, not 1273, and on 20 October, not 28 September. The deed of grant has been labelled a forgery.

In the 15th century, the bishops of Lausanne still styled themselves episcopus et comes.

The Sovereign Council of Bern secularized the bishopric in 1536. Bishop Sébastien de Montfalcon fled into exile, first in Évian-les-Bains, and then in Burgundy.

Since 1924, the dioceses have been combined as the Catholic of Fribourg, Lausanne, and Geneva, which has its episcopal seat in Fribourg.

Bishops

Bishops of Avenches

Bishops of Lausanne 574-1814

To 1200

From 1200 to 1400

Aymon Séchal administrator (1394)

From 1400 to 1600

Barthélémy Chuet, administrator (1469-1472)

From 1600 to 1814

Bishops of Lausanne and Geneva 1821-1924

Bishops of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg from 1924

Notes and references

Bibliography

Reference works for bishops

Studies