SUIYUAN, ARCHDIOCESE of. — Situated in the central part of Inner Mongolia, it comprises nine subprefectures of the civil province of S. and several other Mongolian territories, with a total area of approximately 150,000 sq. km. and a population of approximately 951,169 inhabitants.
On 11 Dec. 1883, by separation from the apostolic vicariate of Mongolia, the vicariate of South-Western Mongolia was established, which, in turn, on 14 March 1922 was divided into the two vicariates of Ningsia and S., the latter receiving part of the territory of the apostolic vicariate of Central Mongolia (present-day diocese of Siwantze). On 11 April 1946, with the establishment of the ecclesiastical hierarchy in China, the vicariate of S. was raised to a metropolitan archdiocese, comprising four suffragan dioceses, namely Ningsia, Siwantze, Tsinging, and Chihfeng. On 8 Jan. 1948, the entire territory of the civil subprefecture of Paotow was detached from the neighboring diocese of Ningsia and incorporated into the archdiocese of S.
In 1840 the French Lazarist fathers began their evangelizing work in the region situated north of the Great Chinese Wall, geographically known as Inner Mongolia, which today comprises the provinces of Jehol, Chagar, S., and Ningsia. They were succeeded by the missionaries of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (Scheut), who arrived in Mongolia on 6 Dec. 1875. The few thousand Christians in 1883 had increased to 14,000, and six Chinese priests became the first collaborators of the Scheut Fathers. In 1900 the Boxer movement caused the death of the apostolic vicar, Msgr. Ferdinando Hamer, of eight missionaries, of the indigenous priest Giacomo Lou, and of several thousand Christians, as well as the almost complete destruction of all educational and charitable works. During the last war, the entire mission territory was occupied by the Japanese, who, on 21 March 1943, interned the foreign missionaries in the province of Shantung. On 19 Aug. 1951 the archdiocese passed to the Chinese secular clergy, while, shortly thereafter, the Communist authorities decreed the expulsion of the European missionaries.
According to statistical data for 1948–49, the spiritual condition was as follows: 40,880 Catholics with 1,773 catechumens; 10,000 Protestants; 20,000 Muslims; the others were Buddhists or followers of various superstitions; 36 national and 45 foreign priests; 44 sisters, of whom 26 were Chinese; 12 major and 32 minor seminarians; 125 catechists; 86 male and 107 female teachers; 2 physicians and 40 nurses; 1 hospital; 19 pharmacies; 36 orphanages; 3 homes for the elderly; 58 elementary schools; 3 secondary schools; 105 sacred buildings; 6 rural deaneries; 37 primary stations and 53 secondary stations. The Ordinary’s see is Kwei-hwa-ting.