Archbishop of Canterbury

Origins

It has been suggested that the Roman province of Britannia had four archbishops, seated at Londinium (London), Eboracum (York), Lindum Colonia (Lincoln) and Corinium Dobunnorum (Cirencester). However, in the 5th and 6th centuries Britannia began to be overrun by pagan, Germanic peoples who came to be known collectively as the Anglo-Saxons. Of the kingdoms they created, Kent arguably had the closest links with European politics, trade and culture, because it was conveniently situated for communication with continental Europe. In the late 6th century, King Æthelberht of Kent married a Christian Frankish princess named Bertha, possibly before becoming king, and certainly a number of years before the arrival of the first Christian mission to England. He permitted the preaching of Christianity.

The first archbishop of Canterbury was Saint Augustine of Canterbury (not to be confused with Saint Augustine of Hippo), who arrived in Kent in 597 AD, having been sent by Pope Gregory I on a mission to the English. He was accepted by King Æthelbert, on his conversion to Christianity, about the year 598. It seems that Pope Gregory, ignorant of recent developments in the former Roman province, including the spread of the Pelagian heresy, had intended the new archiepiscopal sees for England to be established in London and York. In the event, Canterbury was chosen instead of London, owing to political circumstances. Since then the archbishops of Canterbury have been referred to as occupying the Chair of St. Augustine.

A gospel book believed to be directly associated with St Augustine's mission survives in the Parker Library, Corpus Christi College, University of Cambridge, England. Catalogued as Cambridge Manuscript 286, it has been positively dated to 6th-century Italy and this bound book, the St Augustine Gospels, is still used during the swearing-in ceremony of new archbishops of Canterbury.

Before the break with papal authority in the 16th century, the Church of England was an integral part of the Western European church. Since the break the Church of England, an established national church, still considers itself part of the broader Western Catholic tradition (although this is not accepted by the Roman Catholic Church which regards Anglicanism as schismatic and does not accept Anglican holy orders as valid) as well as being the "mother church" of the worldwide Anglican Communion.

The Report of the Commissioners appointed by his Majesty to inquire into the Ecclesiastical Revenues of England and Wales (1835) noted the net annual revenue for the Canterbury see was £19,182.

Province and Diocese of Canterbury

The archbishop of Canterbury exercises metropolitical (or supervisory) jurisdiction over the Province of Canterbury, which encompasses thirty of the forty-two dioceses of the Church of England, with the rest falling within the Province of York. The four Welsh dioceses were also under the province of Canterbury until 1920 when they were transferred from the established church of England to the disestablished Church in Wales.

The archbishop of Canterbury has a ceremonial provincial curia, or court, consisting of some of the senior bishops of their province. The bishop of London — the most senior cleric of the church with the exception of the two archbishops — serves as Canterbury's provincial dean, the bishop of Winchester as chancellor, the bishop of Lincoln as vice-chancellor, the bishop of Salisbury as precentor, the bishop of Worcester as chaplain and the bishop of Rochester as cross-bearer.

Along with primacy over the archbishop of York, the archbishop of Canterbury also has a precedence of honour over the other bishops of the Anglican Communion. They are recognised as primus inter pares, or first amongst equals. They do not, however, exercise any direct authority in the provinces outside England, except in certain minor roles dictated by Canon in those provinces (for example, they are the judge in the event of an ecclesiastical prosecution against the archbishop of Wales). They do hold metropolitical authority over several extra-provincial Anglican churches, and they serve as ex officio bishop of the Falkland Islands.

As of 2024 the archbishop has four suffragan bishops:

• The bishop of Dover is given the additional title of "bishop in Canterbury" and empowered to act almost as if the bishop of Dover were the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury, since the archbishop is so frequently away fulfilling national and international duties.
• Two further suffragans, the bishop of Ebbsfleet and the bishop of Richborough, are provincial episcopal visitors for the whole Province of Canterbury, licensed by the archbishop as "flying bishops" to provide oversight throughout the province to parishes which for conscience' sake cannot accept that women can be ordained in the Sacrament of Ordination in the Church of England.
• The bishop of Maidstone provides alternative episcopal oversight for the province of Canterbury for particular members who take a conservative evangelical view of male headship. On 23 September 2015, Rod Thomas was consecrated bishop of Maidstone. Previously the bishop of Maidstone was an actual suffragan bishop working in the diocese, until it was decided at the diocesan synod of November 2010 that a new bishop would not be appointed.

Styles and privileges

The archbishops of Canterbury and York are both styled as "The Most Reverend"; retired archbishops are styled as "The Right Reverend". The archbishop is, by convention, appointed to the Privy Council and may, therefore, also use the style of "The Right Honourable" for life, unless later removed from the council. In formal documents, the archbishop of Canterbury is referred to as "The Most Reverend Forenames, by Divine Providence Lord Archbishop of Canterbury, Primate of All England and Metropolitan". In debates in the House of Lords, the archbishop is referred to as "The Most Reverend Primate, the Archbishop of Canterbury". "The Right Honourable" is not used in either instance. They may also be formally addressed as "Your Grace" or, more informally, as "Archbishop".

The surname of the archbishop of Canterbury is not always used in formal documents; often only the first name and see are mentioned. The archbishop is legally entitled to sign their name as "Cantuar" (the Latin for Canterbury). The right to use a title as a legal signature is only permitted to bishops, peers of the Realm and peers by courtesy. Justin Welby as archbishop of Canterbury usually signed as "+Justin Cantuar:".

In the English and Welsh order of precedence, the archbishop of Canterbury is ranked above all individuals in the realm, with the exception of the sovereign and members of the royal family. Immediately below them is the lord chancellor and then the archbishop of York.

The archbishop of Canterbury awards academic degrees, commonly called "Lambeth degrees".

Residences

The archbishop of Canterbury's official residence and office in London is Lambeth Palace. They also have an apartment within the Old Palace, next to Canterbury Cathedral which incorporates some 13th-century fabric of the medieval Archbishop's Palace.

Former seats of the archbishops include:

• Croydon Palace: the summer residence of the archbishops from the 15th to the 18th centuries.
• Addington Palace: purchased as a replacement for Croydon Palace in 1807; sold in 1897.
• Archbishop's Palace, Maidstone: constructed in the 1390s, the palace was seized by the Crown at the time of the Reformation.
• Otford Palace: a medieval palace, rebuilt by Archbishop Warham c. 1515 and forfeited to the Crown by Thomas Cranmer in 1537.
• Archbishop's Palace, Charing: a palace existed from at least the 13th century; seized by the Crown after the Dissolution. Remnants survive as a farmhouse.
• Knole House: built by Archbishop Bourchier in the second half of the 15th century, it was forfeited to the Crown by Archbishop Cranmer in 1538.

List of recent archbishops

Since 1900, the following have served as archbishop of Canterbury:

• 1896–1902: Frederick Temple
• 1903–1928: Randall Davidson
• 1928–1942: Cosmo Gordon Lang
• 1942–1944: William Temple
• 1945–1961: Geoffrey Fisher
• 1961–1974: Michael Ramsey
• 1974–1980: Donald Coggan
• 1980–1991: Robert Runcie
• 1991–2002: George Carey
• 2002–2012: Rowan Williams
• 2013–2025: Justin Welby
• 2026–present: Sarah Mullally

Archbishops who became peers

From 1660 to 1902, all the archbishops of Canterbury died in office. In 1928, two years before his death, Randall Davidson became the first to voluntarily resign his office. All his successors except William Temple (who died in office in 1944) have also resigned their office before death.

Until 2025, all archbishops who retired were immediately given peerages: initially hereditary baronies (although both recipients of such titles died without male heirs and so their titles became extinct on their deaths), and life peerages after the enactment of the Life Peerages Act 1958. Such titles have allowed retired archbishops to retain the seats in the House of Lords which they held ex officio before their retirement. Justin Welby, who resigned in January 2025, has not received a peerage.