CHUNGKING, ARCHDIOCESE of. - It is situated in the south-eastern part of the civil province of Szechwan (China); it originated on 2 Apr. 1856 and was called the apostolic vicariate of south-eastern Szechwan (v. CHENGTU), with the residence of the Ordinary at Chungking; on 24 Jan. 1860 it was divided into two: the apostolic vicariate of southern Szechwan (v. SUIFU) and the apostolic vicariate of eastern Szechwan. On 3 Dec. 1924 the latter took its name from C. and on 2 Aug. 1929 it was again divided, giving rise Wanhsien (v.).
As a result of the erection of the latter, the mission of C. remained divided into two non-contiguous territorial parts: that south-west of Wanhsien, dependent on C., and that north-east of Wanhsien, dependent on the city of Fengkheh. The whole territory is entrusted to the Society for the Foreign Missions of Paris. On 11 Apr. 1946 the apostolic vicariate was raised to an archdiocese, the metropolitan see of the ecclesiastical province of Szechwan.
Its area is approximately 80,000 sq. km.; the total population, as of 30 June 1947, was approximately 11,000,000, of whom 38,948 were Catholics and 1,572 catechumens; the missionary personnel, in addition to the archbishop, consisted of 24 foreign and 64 Chinese priests, and 6 Marist Brothers, of whom 5 were Chinese; there were 129 religious sisters, of whom 104 were Chinese. Among its institutions, besides the seminary, there were 2 orphanages, 3 hospitals, 5 medical dispensaries, and 1 printing press; the primary and secondary schools numbered 147, with 7,976 pupils.