# List of bishops of Hildesheim

This list records the incumbents of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hildesheim (German: Bistum Hildesheim). Between 1235 and 1803 the bishops simultaneously officiating as rulers of princely rank (prince-bishop) in the Prince-Bishopric of Hildesheim (German: Hochstift Hildesheim), a state of imperial immediacy within the Holy Roman Empire. Hildesheim is the seat of the bishops and the cathedral chapter.

## Titles of the incumbents of the Hildesheim See

Between 1235 and 1803 the elected and papally confirmed bishops of the Hildesheim See were additionally imperially invested princely power as prince-bishops. In 1235 part of the Hildesheim diocesan territory, the episcopal and capitular temporalities (Stift) were disentangled from the Duchy of Brunswick and Lunenburg and became an own territory of imperial immediacy called Prince-Bishopric of Brunswick and Lunenburg (German: Hochstift Hildesheim), a vassal of the Holy Roman Empire. The prince-bishopric was an elective monarchy, with the monarch being the respective bishop usually elected by the Hildesheim Cathedral chapter and confirmed by the Holy See, or exceptionally only appointed by the Holy See. Papally confirmed bishops were then invested by the emperor with the princely regalia, thus the title prince-bishop. However, sometimes the respective incumbent of the see never gained a papal confirmation as bishop (lacking canonical qualification; e.g. Ferdinand of Bavaria and Frederick of Denmark), but was still invested the princely regalia. The respective incumbents of the see bore the following titles:
The respective incumbents of the see bore the following titles:
* Bishop of Hildesheim from 815 to 1235
* Prince-bishop of Hildesheim from 1235 to 1803
* Bishop of Hildesheim since 1803

## Bishops of Hildesheim till 1235

This is the list of bishops of the Diocese of Hildesheim :
| Name | From | To | Remarks |
| Gunthar | 815 | 834 | |
| Rembert | 834 | 835 | |
| Ebbo | 835 | 847 | Archbishop of Reims 816–835 |
| Altfrid | 847 | 874 | |
| Ludolf | 874 | 874 | |
| Marquard | 874 | 880 | |
| Wigbert | 880 | 908 | |
| Waldbert | 908 | 919 | |
| Sehard | 919 | 928 | |
| Diethard | 928 | 954 | |
| Otwin | 954 | 984 | |
| Osdag | 985 | 989 | |
| Gerdag | 990 | 992 | |
| Bernward | 993 | 1022 | |
| Godehard | 1022 | 1038 | |
| Thietmar | 1038 | 1044 | |
| Azelin | 1044 | 1054 | |
| Hezilo | 1054 | 1079 | |
| Udo of Gleichen-Rheinhausen | 1079 | 1114 | |
| Bruning | 1115 | 1119 | canonically irregular, not consecrated but imperially invested |
| Berthold I of Alvensleben | 1119 | 1130 | |
| Bernard I | 1130 | 1153 | |
| Bruno | 1153 | 1161 | |
| Herrmann of Wennerde | 1162 | 1170 | |
| Adelog of Dorstadt | 1171 | 1190 | |
| Berno | 1190 | 1194 | |
| Conrad I of Querfurt | 1194 | 1199 | Prince-Bishop of Würzburg 1198–1202 |
| Heribert of Dahlem | 1199 | 1216 | |
| Siegfried I of Lichtenberg | 1216 | 1221 | |
| Conrad II of Reifenberg | 1221 | 1246 | |

## Prince-bishops of Hildesheim between 1235 and 1803

This is the list of prince-bishops of Diocese and Prince-Bishopric of Hildesheim :
| Name | From | To | Remarks |
| Conrad II of Reifenberg | 1221 | 1246 | imperially recognised as bishop of princely rank in 1235 |
| Henry I of Rusteberg | 1247 | 1257 | |
| John I of Brakel | 1257 | 1260 | |
| Otto I of Braunschweig-Lüneburg | 1260 | 1279 | |
| Siegfried II of Querfurt | 1279 | 1310 | |
| Heinrich II of Woldenberg | 1310 | 1318 | |
| Otto II of Woldenberg | 1318 | 1331 | |
| Henry III of Brunswick and Lunenburg | 1331 | 1363 | |
| Erich I of Schauenburg | 1332 | 1349 | |
| Johann II Schadland | 1363 | 1365 | Bishop of Culm 1359–1363; Prince-Bishop of Worms 1365–1370; Prince-Bishop of Augsburg 1371–1372; Administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Constance 1371–1372 |
| Gerhard of Berg | 1365 | 1398 | Prince-Bishop of Verden 1363–1365 |
| John III of Hoya | 1398 | 1424 | Prince-Bishop of Paderborn 1394–1399 |
| Magnus of Saxe-Lauenburg | 1424 | 1452 | Prince-Bishop of Cammin 1410–1424 |
| Bernhard III of Brunschwick and Lunenburg | 1452 | 1458 | Prince of Lunenburg 1457–1464 |
| Ernst I of Schauenburg | 1458 | 1471 | |
| Henning of Haus | 1471 | 1481 | |
| Berthold II of Landsberg | 1481 | 1502 | Prince-Bishop of Verden 1470–1502 |
| Eric II of Saxe-Lauenburg | 1503 | 1504 | Prince-Bishop of Münster 1508–1522 |
| John IV of Saxe-Lauenburg | 1504 | 1527 | |
| Balthasar Merklin | 1527 | 1531 | Prince-Bishop of Constance 1530–1531 |
| Otto III of Schauenburg | 1531 | 1537 | Count of Schauenburg and Holstein-Pinneberg 1544–1576 |
| Valentin of Teutleben | 1537 | 1551 | |
| Frederick of Denmark | 1551 | 1556 | not consecrated for being Lutheran; also Bishop of Schleswig 1551–1556 |
| Burkhard of Oberg | 1557 | 1573 | |
| Ernest II of Bavaria | 1573 | 1612 | Prince-Bishop of Freising 1566–1612; Prince-Bishop of Liège 1581–1612; Prince-Abbot of Stablo-Malmedy 1581–1612; Elector- Archbishop of Cologne 1583–1612; Prince-Bishop of Münster 1584–1612 |
| Ferdinand of Bavaria | 1612 | 1650 | Administrator only, due to lack of canonical qualification; Administrator of the Berchtesgaden Provostry 1594–1650; Elector of Cologne and Administrator of the Archdiocese of Cologne 1612–1650; Administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège 1612–1650; Administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster 1612–1650; Administrator of the Imperial Abbey of Stablo-Malmedy 1612–1650; Administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Paderborn 1618–1650 |
| Maximilian Henry of Bavaria | 1650 | 1688 | Elector- Archbishop of Cologne 1650–1688; Prince-Bishop of Liège 1650–1688; Prince-Provost of Berchtesgaden 1650–1688; Prince-Abbot of Stablo-Malmedy 1657; Prince-Bishop of Münster 1683–1688 |
| Jobst Edmund of Brabeck | 1688 | 1702 | |
| Joseph Clemens of Bavaria | 1702 | 1723 | Prince-Bishop of Regensburg 1685–1716; Elector- Archbishop of Cologne 1688–1723; Prince-Bishop of Freising 1685–1694; Prince-Bishop of Liège 1694–1723; Prince-Provost of Berchtesgaden 1688–1723 |
| Clemens August of Bavaria | 1723 | 1761 | Prince-Bishop of Regensburg 1716–1719; Elector- Archbishop of Cologne 1723–1761; Prince-Bishop of Münster 1719–1761; Prince-Bishop of Paderborn 1719–1761; Prince-Bishop of Osnabrück 1728–1761 |
| Sede vacante | 1761 | 1763 | |
| Friedrich Wilhelm von Westphalen | 1763 | 1789 | Prince-Bishop of Paderborn 1782–1789 |
| Franz Egon von Fürstenberg | 1789 | 1825 | Prince-Bishop of Paderborn 1789–1803 |

## Bishops of Hildesheim since 1803

This is the list of Bishops of the Diocese of Hildesheim :
| Name | From | To | Remarks |
| Franz Egon of Fürstenberg | 1789 | 1825 | Bishop of Paderborn 1789–1825 |
| Karl of Gruben | 1825 | 1829 | administrator |
| Gotthard Joseph Osthaus | 1829 | 1835 | |
| Franz Ferdinand Friedrich Fritz | 1836 | 1840 | |
| Jakob Joseph Wandt | 1842 | 1849 | |
| Eduard Jakob Wedekin | 1850 | 1870 | Administrator of Osnabrück 1855–1857 |
| Daniel Wilhelm Sommerwerck | 1871 | 1905 | |
| Adolf Bertram | 1906 | 1914 | Archbishop of Breslau 1914–1945 |
| Joseph Ernst | 1915 | 1928 | |
| Nikolaus Bares | 1929 | 1934 | Bishop of Berlin 1933–1935 |
| Joseph Godehard Machens | 1934 | 1956 | |
| Heinrich Maria Janssen | 1957 | 1983 | |
| Josef Homeyer | 1983 | 2004 | |
| Sede vacante | 2004 | 2006 | |
| Norbert Trelle | 2006 | 2017 | |
| Heiner Wilmer | 2018 | | |

## Auxiliary bishops

* Johann Christiani von Schleppegrell, O.S.A. (7 Jun 1428 to 8 Oct 1468)
* Johann Anguli Wilkelmann, O.F.M. (28 November 1436)
* Johannes Tideln, O.P. (7 Feb 1477 to 28 Jul 1501)
* Ludwig von Siegen (bishop), O.F.M. (20 May 1502 to 13 Feb 1508)
* Balthasar Fannemann (Waneman) (26 Aug 1540 to 8 Oct 1561)
* Nikolaus Arresdorf, O.F.M. Conv. (23 Nov 1592 to 28 Mar 1620)
* Johannes Pelking (Pelcking), O.F.M. Conv. (16 Dec 1619 to 28 Dec 1642)
* Adam Adami, O.S.B. (16 Dec 1652 to 19 Feb 1663)
* Johann Heinrich von Anethan (6 Jul 1665 to 13 Nov 1676)
* Friedrich von Tietzen-Schlütter (12 Dec 1677 to 4 Nov 1696)
* Maximilian Heinrich von Weichs zu Rösberg (1 Oct 1703 to 20 Sep 1723)
* Ernst Friedrich von Twickel (27 Sep 1724 to 17 Jan 1734)
* Johann Wilhelm von Twickel (27 Jun 1735 to 10 Sep 1757)
* Ludwig Hatteisen, O.S.B. (2 Oct 1758 to 3 Apr 1771)
* Johannes Bydolek (10 Sep 1949 to 18 Oct 1957)
* Heinrich Pachowiak (27 May 1958 to 24 Aug 1992)
* Adolf Kindermann (11 Jul 1966 to 23 Oct 1974)
* Heinrich Machens (24 Mar 1976 to 11 Feb 1994)
* Hans-Georg Koitz 24 Aug 1992 to 4 Dec 2010)
* Nikolaus Schwerdtfeger (19 Jun 1995 -)
* Heinz-Günter Bongartz (4 Dec 2010 -)