List of archbishops of Canterbury facts for kids

This list shows the archbishops of Canterbury up to Rowan Williams (2002–2012), in Canterbury Cathedral.

The archbishop of Canterbury is known as the "Primate of All England". This means they are the "first bishop" of England. They lead the Church of England, which is the official church of England. They are also a symbolic leader for the worldwide Anglican Communion, which is a group of churches connected to the Church of England.

For many centuries, from the 500s to the 1500s, the archbishops of Canterbury were closely connected to the Pope in Rome. During this time, eighteen archbishops were even made saints by the Roman Catholic Church. However, during the English Reformation, the English church separated from the Pope's authority. From then on, the English monarch became the main leader of the church in England.

In the past, choosing an archbishop could be complicated. Sometimes, the Canons of Canterbury Cathedral chose them. Other times, the English monarch or the Pope made the choice. Today, because the Church of England is a state church, the British Crown officially chooses the archbishop. This choice is made in the monarch's name by the prime minister of the United Kingdom. The prime minister picks from a list of two people chosen by a special committee called the Crown Nominations Commission.

What the Archbishop Does

The archbishop has four main jobs:

• They are the local diocesan bishop for the Diocese of Canterbury. This area covers the eastern part of Kent and a small part of north-east Surrey. This is the oldest bishopric (area led by a bishop) in the English church, started by Augustine of Canterbury in 597. Most of the daily work for this role is done by another bishop, the Bishop of Dover.
• They are the metropolitan bishop for the Province of Canterbury. This province includes 30 dioceses in the southern two-thirds of England. The other 14 dioceses in northern England are part of the Province of York, led by the archbishop of York. Four dioceses in Wales used to be part of the Province of Canterbury until 1920.
• As "Primate of All England," the archbishop is the most important religious figure in the Church of England. They are senior to the archbishop of York. The British monarch is the overall leader of the Church of England.
• As the symbolic head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop is seen as primus inter pares ("first among equals") among all Anglican primates. This means they are respected as the senior leader, but they don't have direct power over other Anglican leaders.

Symbols of the Archbishop: Heraldry

You can see many symbols related to the archbishops of Canterbury in the church of St Mary-at-Lambeth in London. This church is close to Lambeth Palace, which is where the archbishops live when they are in London. These symbols are called heraldry, which are special designs or coats of arms.

A Look at Past Archbishops

This section lists some of the important archbishops throughout history.

Archbishops from Old English Times

Archbishops After the Norman Conquest

From	Until	Incumbent	Notes
29 Aug 1070	28 May 1089	Lanfranc	He was an abbot from France and became archbishop after the Norman Conquest.
4 Dec 1093	21 Apr 1109	Anselm	He was an abbot from France and is now a saint.
3 Jun 1162	29 Dec 1170	Thomas Becket	He was a very famous archbishop who was killed in Canterbury Cathedral. He is a saint.
17 Jun 1207	9 Jul 1228	Cardinal Stephen Langton	He was made a cardinal in 1206. He played a key role in the creation of the Magna Carta.
2 Apr 1234	16 Nov 1240	Edmund of Abingdon	He was a church leader from Salisbury and is now a saint.
tr. 29 Nov 1503	22 Aug 1532	William Warham	He was moved from being Bishop of London and was Lord Chancellor until 1515.
30 Mar 1533	deprived 13 Nov 1555	Thomas Cranmer	He was the first Protestant archbishop. He was removed from his role and later executed.
22 Mar 1556	18/19 Nov 1558	Cardinal Reginald Pole	He was the last Roman Catholic archbishop of Canterbury.

Archbishops After the Elizabethan Settlement

This period began when Queen Elizabeth I established the Church of England as a Protestant church.

From	Until	Incumbent	Notes
17 Dec 1559	17 May 1575	Matthew Parker	He was the first archbishop after Queen Elizabeth I's religious changes.
nom. 6 Aug 1633	10 Jan 1645	William Laud	He was executed while in office.
1646	1660	The position of archbishop was removed during the time of the Commonwealth and the Protectorate.
nom. 2 Sep 1660	4 Jun 1663	William Juxon	He became archbishop after the monarchy was restored.
nom. 14 Jan 1903	res. 12 Nov 1928	Randall Davidson	He retired from his role.
nom. 13 Nov 1928	res. 31 Mar 1942	Cosmo Gordon Lang	He also retired from his role.
nom. 1 Apr 1942	26 Oct 1944	William Temple	He died while still in office.
nom. 12 Jan 1945	res. 31 May 1961	Geoffrey Fisher	He retired from his role.
nom. 1 Jun 1961	res. 15 Nov 1974	Michael Ramsey	He retired from his role.
nom. 18 Nov 1974	res. 25 Jan 1980	Donald Coggan	He retired from his role.
nom. 1 Feb 1980	res. 31 Jan 1991	Robert Runcie	He retired from his role.
enth. 19 Apr 1991	res. 31 Oct 2002	George Carey	He retired from his role.
el. conf. 2 Dec 2002	res. 31 Dec 2012	Rowan Williams	He was also the Archbishop of Wales. He retired and went back to teaching at Magdalene College, Cambridge.
el. conf. 4 Feb 2013		Justin Welby	He started his appointment in February 2013 and is the current Archbishop of Canterbury.