| Bishopric of Chiemsee Bistum Chiemsee | |
| |
| 1216 - 1808 | |
| Capital Circle Bench |
Herrenchiemsee Bavarian until ? none |
| Established | 1216 |
| Abolished | 1808 |
The Bishopric of Chiemsee was a Roman Catholic diocese based on the islands of the Chiemsee in Bavaria, Germany.
History of the Bishopric (1216 - 1808)[]
The Bishopric of Chiemsee was established by the Archbishop of Salzburg, Eberard II of Truchsees, in 1215 after a large increase in size of the archdiocese on the islands of the Chiemsee, following the precedent set by his predecessor. Both the Holy Roman Emperor and the Pope gave their support to the establishment of the bishopric in 1213. All bishops of Chiemsee were selected by the Archbishops, and the bishops formed some of the most important supporters of the archbishops. Locally the real power in the bishopric rested in the archdeacons who supported by the Dukes of Bavaria prevented the bishops from residing in the bishopric. Therefore the Bishops never became prince-bishops of the Empire, unlike most other ecclesiarchs. In 1808 the bishopric was abolished and the diocesan territories attached to Salzburg after the last bishop waived his rights. In 1817, it passed to the Bishopric of Munich-Freising.
The bishopric was very small, consisting of 10 parishes when it was created, and 11 in 1804. The most famous bishop was Berthold Pürstinger (1508 - 1525) who twice used his influence to save innocent people from the bishops (the town-councillors in 1511, and peasants in 1524), and after retiring from office became a noted humanist.