Diocese of Skara

Diocese of Skara Skara stift
Arms of the diocese of Skara
Location
Country	Sweden
Deaneries	11 kontrakt
Coordinates	58°23′11″N 13°26′21″E / 58.38639°N 13.43917°E / 58.38639; 13.43917Coordinates: 58°23′11″N 13°26′21″E / 58.38639°N 13.43917°E / 58.38639; 13.43917
Statistics
Parishes	51
Congregations	124
Information
Denomination	Church of Sweden
Established	11th century
Cathedral	Skara Cathedral
Current leadership
Bishop	Åke Bonnier
Map
Website
svenskakyrkan.se/skarastift

The Diocese of Skara is the oldest existing diocese in Sweden, originally a Latin bishopric of the Roman Catholic church, and since Protestant reformation a Lutheran diocese of the Church of Sweden (the former state church of Sweden), with its seat at Skara in Västergötland (Skara Cathedral). In 2014, it celebrated its 1000-year anniversary as a full diocese.

It was suffragan to the Archdiocese of Hamburg-Bremen (990-1104), to the Archdiocese of Lund (1104–64), and finally to the Archdiocese of Uppsala (1164-1530). This diocese, the most ancient in Sweden, included the provinces of Västergötland and Värmland.

It was founded about 990 at Skara, the capital of the country of the Geats (Gauthiod), the whole of which it embraced until about 1100, when the eastern portion of the Diocese of Skara was formed into that of Linköping. At the beginning there was no strict division of the country into dioceses, and the missionary bishops went about preaching wherever they would. Thus it is that, though Odinkar Hvite the Elder was apparently the first bishop stationed at Skara about 990, Sigurd, a court bishop of King Olaf Tryggveson of Norway, is named as the first Bishop of Skara in the list of bishops written down about 1325 as an appendix to the Laws os the Western Geats (Västgötalagen). It is added that he founded three churches in Västergötland, and he also seems to have baptized Olof Skötkonung, first Christian King of Sweden, at Husaby near Skara in 1008. Odinkar's successor was Thurgaut, first diocesan Bishop of Skara (about 1012-30). He was nominally succeeded by Gotskalk, a monk of the Benedictine abbey at Lüneburg, who never left his abbey, although he had been consecrated to the See of Skara by Archbishop Liavizo of Hamburg (1030–32). Meanwhile, Sigurd, or Sigfrid, an Englishman of Scandinavian origin and a monk of Glastonbury (?), took possession of the See of Skara about 1031, and remained there till after 1043. Although he entered into communication with Bremen and sent his relative and successor Osmund to be educated there, both Sigurd and Osmund seem to have been regarded as intruders by the Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen. Osmund was consecrated in Poland, and refused to acknowledge the primacy of Hamburg. In this refusal he was supported by King Anund Jacob. Consequently, when Adalvard the Elder, subdean of Bremen, who had been consecrated Bishop of Skara by Archbishop Adalbert on the death of Bishop Gotskalk, came to Skara about 1050 to take possession of his see, he was prevented from doing so, and had to wait for Osmund's departure for England in 1057 (?) before he could become Bishop of Skara de facto. Adalvard the Elder died in 1060 and was buried near the first Cathedral of St. Mary, which he had built. Acelin, dean of Bremen, was consecrated bishop in 1061, but never took possession of the see. Adalvard the younger, who had visited and buried his elder namesake in 1060, was invited on his expulsion from the See of Sigtuna in 1067 to become Bishop of Skara, but was recalled to Bremen by Archbishop Adalbert.