Parishes 506 Phone +44 1392 272686 Church 625 Ecclesiastical province Province of Canterbury | Churches 625 Bishop Robert Atwell Cathedral Exeter Cathedral | |
Archdeaconries Barnstaple, Exeter, Plymouth, Totnes Archdeacons Ian Chandler, Archdeacon of Plymouth
Christopher Futcher, Archdeacon of Exeter
Mark Butchers, Archdeacon of Barnstaple
Douglas Dettmer, Archdeacon of Totnes Address The Old Deanery, Cathedral Cl, Exeter EX1 1HS, UK Suffragans Nick McKinnel, Sarah Mullally Similar Exeter Cathedral, St Michael and All Angels C, St Andrews Church - Plymouth, Coronation Chair, Crediton Parish Church Profiles | ||
Bishop robert sets out his priorities for the diocese of exeter over the coming months
The Diocese of Exeter is a Church of England diocese covering the county of Devon. It is one of the largest dioceses in England. The Cathedral Church of St Peter in Exeter is the seat of the diocesan Bishop of Exeter. It is part of the Province of Canterbury. The diocesan bishop (Robert Atwell since 30 April 2014) is assisted by two suffragan bishops, the Bishop of Crediton and the Bishop of Plymouth. The See of Crediton was created in 1897 and the See of Plymouth in 1923.
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History
The Diocese of Crediton was created out of the Diocese of Sherborne in AD 909 to cover the area of Devon and Cornwall. Crediton was chosen as the site for its cathedral, possibly due it having been the birthplace of Saint Boniface and also the existence of a monastery there.
In 1046, Leofric became the Bishop of Crediton: following his appointment he decided that the see should be moved to the larger, more culturally significant and defensible walled town of Exeter. In 1050, King Edward the Confessor authorised that Exeter was to be the seat of the bishop for Devon and Cornwall and that a cathedral was to be built there for the bishop's throne. Thus, Leofric became the last diocesan Bishop of Crediton and the first Bishop of Exeter.
The diocese remained unchanged until 1876, when the former Archdeaconry of Cornwall became the independent Diocese of Truro.
Bishops
The current diocesan Bishop of Exeter is Robert Atwell, who is assisted by Nick McKinnel, Bishop suffragan of Plymouth (which see was created in 1923) and Sarah Mullally, Bishop suffragan of Crediton (which see was erected in 1897.) The provincial episcopal visitor (for parishes in this diocese – among twelve others in the western part of the Province of Canterbury – which do not accept the ordination of women as priests, since 1994) is Jonathan Goodall, Bishop suffragan of Ebbsfleet (for traditional Anglo-Catholics , and Rod Thomas, Bishop of Maidstone (for Conservative Evangelicals); they are licensed as honorary assistant bishops in the diocese.
There are three former bishops licensed as honorary assistant bishops in the diocese:
Archdeaconries
The diocese is divided into four archdeaconries. The Bishop suffragan of Crediton generally oversees the Archdeaconries of Barnstaple and Exeter and the Bishop suffragan of Plymouth the Archdeaconries of Plymouth and Totnes.
Archdeaconry of Exeter (est. bef. 1083; Archdeacon: Christopher Futcher)
Archdeaconry of Totnes (est. bef. 1140; Archdeacon: Douglas Dettmer)
Archdeaconry of Barnstaple (est. bef. 1143; Archdeacon: Mark Butchers)
Archdeaconry of Plymouth (est. 1918; Archdeacon: Ian Chandler)
Coat of arms
The arms of the diocese are Gules two keys in saltire Or a sword hilt downwards in pale Argent with hilt Or surmounted by a mitre. The charges are emblems of Saints Peter (keys) and Paul (sword) who are the patron saints of the cathedral.