Archbishop of Cardiff
# Archbishop of Cardiff

The Archbishop of Cardiff is the ordinary of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cardiff.

The archdiocese covers an area of 1,183 square miles (3,060 $km^2)$ and spans the historic counties of Monmouthshire, Herefordshire and eastern Glamorganshire. The metropolitan see is in the city of Cardiff where the archbishop's seat is located at the Metropolitan Cathedral Church of St David.

With the exception of the second archbishop, Francis Mostyn, born in Flintshire and of local descent, the Welsh connections of the archbishops have been extremely weak. Ireland, London and the English provinces have supplied a majority.

The see is currently held by Mark O'Toole, 8th Archbishop of Cardiff, who was appointed by the Holy See on 27 April 2022 and installed at St David's Cathedral, Cardiff on 20 June 2022.

## History

The Vicariate Apostolic of the Welsh District was created out of the Western District of England and Wales in 1840. The Welsh District covered all of the principality of Wales and the English county of Herefordshire. On the restoration of the Catholic hierarchy in England and Wales in 1850, the Welsh District was divided. The southern half became the Diocese of Newport and Menevia and the northern half became part of the Diocese of Shrewsbury. In 1895, the diocese lost territory on the creation of the Vicariate Apostolic of Wales, which became the diocese of Menevia in 1898. As a result, the see changed its name to simply the diocese of Newport. Following further reorganisation of the Catholic Church in Wales in 1916, the diocese of Newport was elevated to an ecclesiastical province and changed its name to the archdiocese of Cardiff. The archbishop has jurisdiction over the bishops of Menevia and Wrexham.

## Office holders

The following is a list of the archbishops of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cardiff and its precursor offices.

### Vicars Apostolic of the Welsh District

Vicars Apostolic of the Welsh District :

| From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
| - | - | - | - |
| 1840 | 1850 | Thomas Joseph Brown | Appointed Vicar Apostolic of the Wales District and Titular Bishop of Apollonia on 5 June 1840 and consecrated on 28 October 1840. Appointed Bishop of Newport and Menevia on 29 September 1850. |
| In 1850, the southern half of the Welsh district became the diocese of Newport and Menevia. ||||

### Bishops of Newport and Menevia

In 1895, the episcopal title became simply the Bishop of Newport.

Bishops of Newport and Menevia :

| From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
| - | - | - | - |
| 1850 | 1880 | Thomas Joseph Brown | Hitherto Vicar Apostolic of the Welsh District. Appointed Bishop of Newport and Menevia on 29 September 1850. Died in office on 12 April 1880. |
| 1881 | 1915 | John Cuthbert Hedley | Formerly an auxiliary bishop of Newport and Menevia (1873–1881). Appointed bishop on 18 February 1881. His episcopal title changed to Bishop of Newport in 1895. Died in office on 11 November 1915. |
| In 1916, the see was elevated to an archdiocese and changed its name to Cardiff. ||||

### Archbishops of Cardiff

Roman Catholic Archbishops of Cardiff :

| From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
| - | - | - | - |
| 1916 | 1920 | James Romanus Bilsborrow | Formerly Bishop of Port-Louis, Mauritius (1910–1916). Appointed archbishop on 7 February 1916. Resigned on 16 December 1920 and appointed Titular Archbishop of Cius. Died on 19 June 1931. |
| 1921 | 1939 | Francis Edward Joseph Mostyn | Formerly Bishop of Menevia (1898–1921). Appointed archbishop on 7 March 1921. Died in office on 25 October 1939. |
| 1940 | 1961 | Michael Joseph McGrath | Formerly Bishop of Menevia (1935–1940). Appointed archbishop on 20 June 1940. Died in office on 28 February 1961. |
| 1961 | 1983 | John Aloysius Murphy | Formerly Bishop of Shrewsbury (1949–1961). Appointed archbishop on 22 August 1961. Retired on 25 March 1983 and died on 18 November 1995. |
| 1983 | 2001 | John Aloysius Ward | Formerly Bishop of Menevia (1981–1983). Appointed archbishop on 25 March 1983. Removed by the Pope on 26 October 2001 and died on 27 March 2007. |
| 2001 | 2010 | Peter David Smith | Formerly Bishop of East Anglia (1995–2001). Appointed archbishop on 26 October 2001. Translated to the archbishopric of Southwark on 10 June 2010. |
| 2011 | 2022 | George Stack | Formerly an auxiliary bishop of Westminster. Appointed archbishop on 19 April 2011 and installed on 20 June 2011. Retired on 20 June 2022. |
