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Archbishop of Canterbury

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   The Archbishop of Canterbury is the head of the Church of England and
   of the worldwide Anglican Communion. He is the direct successor of St
   Augustine, the first Archbishop from AD 597 to 605. The present
   incumbent is Rowan Williams.

Present roles and status

   Today the archbishop fills four main roles:
    1. he is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury, which
       covers the east of the County of Kent and extreme north-east
       Surrey. Founded in 597, it is the oldest bishopric in the English
       church.
    2. he is the metropolitan archbishop of the Province of Canterbury,
       which covers the southern two-thirds of England.
    3. as Primate of All England, he is the chief religious figure in the
       Church of England (the British sovereign is the " Supreme governor"
       of the church). Power in the church is not highly centralised, so
       the archbishop (along with his "junior" colleague the Archbishop of
       York) must usually lead through persuasion. He plays an important
       part in national ceremonies such as coronations; thanks to his high
       public profile, his opinions are often in demand by the news media.
    4. as symbolic head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop is
       recognized as primus inter pares ("first among equals") of all
       Anglican primates. Since 1867 he has convened more or less
       decennial meetings of worldwide Anglican bishops, the Lambeth
       Conferences.

   The Archbishop's main residence is Lambeth Palace in the London Borough
   of Lambeth. He also has lodgings in the Old Palace, Canterbury, located
   beside Canterbury Cathedral, where his cathedra sits.

   As holder of one of the "five great sees" (along with those of York,
   London, Durham and Winchester), the Archbishop of Canterbury is ex
   officio one of the Lords Spiritual of the House of Lords. He is one of
   the highest-ranking men in England, ranking directly below the Royal
   Family.

   Since Henry VIII broke with Rome the Archbishops of Canterbury have
   been selected by the English (latterly British) monarch. Today the
   choice is made in the name of the Sovereign by the prime minister, from
   a shortlist of two selected by an ad-hoc committee called the Crown
   Nominations Commission. As the current archbishop, the Most Reverend
   and Right Honourable Dr Rowan Douglas Williams, the 104th Lord
   Archbishop of Canterbury and Primate of All England was enthroned at
   Canterbury Cathedral on 27 February 2003; he signs himself Rowan
   Cantuar. He was previously Archbishop of Wales and Bishop of Monmouth.

Additional roles

   In addition to his religious roles, the Archbishop also holds a number
   of other positions ex officio. Amongst there are:
     * Visitor for the University of Kent (whose main campus is located at
       Canterbury)

Origins

   Records suggest that the Roman Britons had three Archbishops, seated in
   London, York, and Caerleon, an ancient city of South Wales. However, in
   the fifth and sixth centuries the country was overrun by the pagan
   Anglo-Saxons. Of the kingdoms they set up there, Kent had the closest
   ties to European trade and culture.

   The first Archbishop of Canterbury was Saint Augustine who arrived in
   Kent in 597, sent by Pope Gregory the Great on a mission to the
   English. He was accepted by King Ethelbert, on his conversion to
   Christianity, about the year 598. Since then the Archbishops of
   Canterbury have been referred to as occupying the Chair of St Augustine

   Before the break with Papal authority in the 16th Century, the Church
   of England was an integral part of the continental Western European
   Church. Since the break, the Church of England, an established national
   church, still considers itself part of the broader Western Catholic
   tradition as well as being the "mother church" of the worldwide
   Anglican Communion, though no longer in communion with the See of Rome.

Province and Diocese

   The Archbishop of Canterbury exercises metropolitical (or supervisory)
   jurisdiction over the Province of Canterbury, which encompasses thirty
   of the forty-four dioceses of the Church of England. (The remaining
   fourteen dioceses, in northern England, fall within the Province of
   York.) Formerly, the four dioceses of Wales were also under the
   Province of Canterbury; in 1920, however, the Welsh dioceses
   transferred from the established Church of England to the
   disestablished Church in Wales.
   View of Canterbury Cathedral from the north west circa 1890-1900.
   Enlarge
   View of Canterbury Cathedral from the north west circa 1890-1900.

   The Archbishop of Canterbury has a ceremonial provincial curia, or
   court, consisting of some of the senior bishops of his 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
   Worcestor as Chaplain and the Bishop of Rochester as Cross-Bearer.

   The question of whether the Archbishop of Canterbury or the Archbishop
   of York should take precedence was once a cause of a long struggle. The
   dispute was temporarily resolved in 1071 after Lanfranc, Archbishop of
   Canterbury, and Thomas of Bayeux, Archbishop of York, submitted the
   matter to the Pope. Pope Alexander II decided that Canterbury was to
   have precedence, and that future Archbishops of York would have to be
   consecrated by, and swear allegiance to, the Archbishop of Canterbury.

   In 1119, however, the Archbishop-Elect of York, Thurstan, refused to
   acknowledge the pre-eminence of Canterbury. As a consequence, the
   Archbishop of Canterbury, Ralph d'Escures, refused to consecrate him.
   When Thurstan appealed to Rome, Pope Callixtus II not only personally
   consecrated him, but also issued a papal bull repudiating the supremacy
   of Canterbury. The matter was finally settled by Pope Innocent VI
   during the fourteenth century. Under Pope Innocent's arrangement, which
   lasts to this day, the Archbishop of Canterbury would be recognised as
   superior to the Archbishop of York. The former would be acknowledged as
   "Primate of All England", and the latter as "Primate of England". The
   pre-eminence of the Archbishop of Canterbury is acknowledged by an Act
   of Parliament passed during the reign of Henry VIII.

   The Archbishop of Canterbury also has a precedence of honour over the
   other archbishops of the Anglican Communion. He is recognised as primus
   inter pares, or first amongst equals. The Archbishop of Canterbury,
   however, does not exercise any direct authority in the provinces
   outside England.

   The Archbishop at the present time has four suffragan bishops. One of
   these, the Suffragan Bishop of Dover, is given the additional title of
   "Bishop in Canterbury" and empowered to act almost as if he were the
   diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury, since the Archbishop is
   so frequently away fulfilling national and international duties. The
   Suffragan Bishop of Maidstone is a second assistant working in the
   diocese. The suffragan bishops of Ebbsfleet and Richborough, on the
   other hand, are provincial episcopal visitors for the whole Province of
   Canterbury, licensed by the Archbishop as "flying bishops" to visit
   parishes throughout the province who are uncomfortable with the
   ministrations of their local bishop who has participated in the
   ordination of women.

Style and privileges

   Both the Archbishops of Canterbury and York are styled "The Most
   Reverend"; retired Archbishops as "The Right Reverend". Archbishops
   are, by convention, appointed to the Privy Council, and may therefore
   also use " The Right Honourable" for life (unless they are later
   removed from the Council). In formal documents, the Archbishop of
   Canterbury is referred to as "The Most Reverend Father in God,
   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.
   He may also be formally addressed as "Your Grace" - or, more often
   these days, simply as "Archbishop", "Father" or (in the current
   instance) "Dr Williams".

   The surname of the Archbishop of Canterbury is not used in formal
   documents; only the forenames and see are mentioned. The Archbishop is
   legally permitted to sign his name as "Cantuar" (from the Latin for
   Canterbury). He shares the right to use only a title in the signature
   with the Archbishop of York, other bishops, and Peers of the Realm.

   In the 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 him is the Lord
   Chancellor, and then the Archbishop of York.
   The Archbishop of Canterbury's official London residence is Lambeth
   Palace, photographed looking east across the River Thames.
   Enlarge
   The Archbishop of Canterbury's official London residence is Lambeth
   Palace, photographed looking east across the River Thames.

   The Archbishop of Canterbury's official residence in London is Lambeth
   Palace. Until the 19th century, the Archbishops also had major
   residences at Croydon Palace and Addington Palace. There are also the
   ruins of a Palace at Otford.

   The following Archbishops have died at Lambeth: Wittlesey, in 1375;
   Kemp, 1453; Dean, 1504; all buried in Canterbury Cathedral: Cardinal
   Pole, the last Roman Catholic archbishop, 1558, after lying in state
   here 40 days was buried at Canterbury; Parker, 1575, buried in Lambeth
   Chapel; Whitgift, 1604, buried at Croydon; Bancroft, 1610, buried at
   Lambeth; Juxon, 1663, buried in the chapel of St. John's College,
   Oxford; Sheldon, 1667, buried at Croydon; Tillotson, 1694, buried in
   the church of St. Laurence Jewry, London; Tennison, 1715; and Potter,
   1747, both buried at Croydon; Seeker, 1768; Cornwallis, 1783, and
   Moore, 1805, all buried at Lambeth. Of the mediæval archbishops, in
   1381 Simon of Sudbury fell a victim to Wat Tyler and his followers when
   they attacked Lambeth Palace.

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