# List of archbishops of Canterbury

The Archbishop of Canterbury is the "Primate of All England", effectively serving as the head of the established Church of England and, symbolically, of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Before the Reformation, the archbishop served as a prelate of the Catholic Church.

## History

From the 6th century to the 16th century, the archbishops of Canterbury were in full communion with the Bishops of Rome, the Popes. Eighteen such pre-Reformation archbishops have been canonised by the Catholic Church. During the English Reformation, the English Church broke away from the authority of the pope, at first temporarily, later permanently, recognising only the English monarch as a source of superior temporal authority.
In the Middle Ages there was considerable variation in the nomination procedure of the archbishop and other bishops. At various times the nomination was made by the Canons of Canterbury Cathedral, the English monarch, or the Pope. Since the Reformation, the church is explicitly a state church and nomination is legally that of the British crown; today it is made in the name of the monarch by the prime minister of the United Kingdom, from a shortlist of two selected by the Crown Nominations Commission, an ad hoc committee.
Today the archbishop has four main roles:
* They are the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury, which covers the east of the County of Kent and the extreme north-east of Surrey. Founded by Augustine of Canterbury in 597, it is the oldest bishopric in the English church. The main duties of this role are delegated to the suffragan Bishop of Dover (who in this capacity is called the "Bishop in Canterbury").
* They are the metropolitan bishop of the Province of Canterbury, encompassing 30 dioceses in the southern two-thirds of England. The remaining 14 dioceses in the north of England fall within the Province of York, under the authority of the archbishop of York. Four dioceses in Wales were under the Province of Canterbury until they were transferred to the dis-established Church in Wales in 1920.
* As "Primate of All England", they are the chief "religious" figure in the Church of England (senior to the archbishop of York, who is styled the "Primate of England"). The British sovereign is the supreme governor of the Church of England.
* As symbolic head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop is recognised as primus inter pares ("first among equals") of all Anglican primates.

## Heraldry

Much heraldry relating to archbishops of Canterbury is displayed in the church of St Mary-at-Lambeth in London, near to Lambeth Palace the London seat of the archbishops.

## List of archbishops

Key to abbreviations in tables below :
| bet. | between |
| c. | circa |
| dep. | deposed |
| deprived | deprived |
| el. | elected |
| enth. | enthroned |
| nom. | nominated |
| pos. | postulated |
| tr. | translated |
| res. | resigned |

### Old English period

| From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
| 597 | 26 May 604 or 605 | Augustine | Canonised: St Augustine of Canterbury. |
| c. 604 | 2 Feb 619 | Laurence | (Laurentius, Lawrence) Canonised: St Laurence of Canterbury. |
| 619 | 24 Apr 624 | Mellitus | Translated from London; canonised: St Mellitus. |
| 624 | 10 Nov bet. 627 and 631 | Justus | Translated from Rochester; canonised: St Justus. |
| 627 | 30 Sep 653 | Honorius | Canonised: St Honorius. |
| Mar 655 | 14 Jul 664 | Deusdedit | Canonised: St Deusdedit. |
| 14 Jul 664 | c. 666 | See vacant | See vacant |
| c. 666 | 668 | (Wighard) | (Wigheard) Died of plague before consecration. |
| 26 Mar 668 | 19 Sep 690 | Theodore | Canonised: St Theodore of Tarsus. |
| 29 Jun 693 | 13 Jan 731 | Berhtwald | (Brihtwald, Beorhtweald, Bertwald, Berthwald, Beorhtwald, or Beretuald) Abbot of Reculver; canonised: St Berhtwald. |
| 10 Jun 731 | 30 Jul 734 | Tatwine | (Tatwin, Tatuini, or Tadwinus) Canonised: St Tatwine. |
| 735 | 17 Oct 739 | Nothhelm | (Nothelm) Canonised: St Nothelm. |
| c. 740 | 26 Oct 760 | Cuthbert | Canonised: Possibly translated from Hereford. |
| 27 Sep 761 | 764 | Bregowine | (Bregwine or Bregwin) Canonised: St Bregwin. |
| 2 Feb 765 | 11/12 Aug 792 | Jænberht | (Jambert, Jaenbeorht, Jænbert, Jaenberht, Jaenbert, or Jaenberht) Abbot of St Augustine's, Canterbury. |
| 21 Jul 793 | 12 May 805 | Æthelhard | (Ethelhard, Æthilheard, or Aethelheard) |
| c. Oct 805 | 21 Mar 832 | Wulfred | |
| 8 Jun 832 | 30 Aug 832 | Feologild | (Feologeld) Abbot of an unknown monastery before election. |
| c. 27 Jul 833 | 4 Feb 870 | Ceolnoth | |
| 870 | 30 Jun 888 | Æthelred | (Ethelred) |
| 890 | 2 Aug 923 | Plegmund | (Plegemund) Clerk to King Alfred. |
| bet. 923 and 925 | 8 Jan 926 | Athelm | (Æðelhelm) Translated from Wells. |
| c. 926 | 12 Feb 941 | Wulfhelm | Translated from Wells. |
| 941 | 2 Jun 958 | Oda | (Odo, Oda the Severe) Translated from Ramsbury; canonised: St Oda. |
| 958 | 959 | Ælfsige | (Aelfsige) |
| 959 | dep. 959 | Byrhthelm | (Beorhthelm or Birthelm) Translated from Wells, deposed & returned to Wells. |
| 959 | 19 May 988 | Dunstan | Translated from London; canonised: St Dunstan. |
| 988 | Feb 990 | Æthelgar | Translated from Selsey. |
| 990 | 28 Oct 994 | Sigeric | Translated from Ramsbury. |
| el. 21 Apr 995 | 16 Nov 1005 | Ælfric of Abingdon | (Ælfric of Wessex) Translated from Winchester; canonised: St Aelfric. |
| 1006 | 19 Apr 1012 | Ælfheah | (Alphege, Elphege, Alfege, or Godwine) Translated from Winchester; captured by Viking raiders and killed at Greenwich; canonised: St Alphege. |
| 1013 | 12 Jun 1020 | Lyfing | Translated from Wells. |
| 13 Nov 1020 | c. 29 Oct 1038 | Æthelnoth | (Aethelnoth, Ethelnoth, Egelnodus, or Ednodus) Formerly Dean of Canterbury. |
| 1038 | 29 Oct 1050 | Eadsige | (Eadsige, Eadsimus, or Eadsin) |
| Mar 1051 | dep. Sep 1052 | Robert of Jumièges | (Robert Chambert or Robert Champart) Deposed. |
| 1052 | deprived 11 Apr 1070 | Stigand | Concurrently Bishop of Winchester; deprived of both sees. |
| Source(s): ||||

### After the Norman conquest

| From | Until | Incumbent | Notes | Arms |
| 29 Aug 1070 | 28 May 1089 | Lanfranc | Abbot of St. Étienne, Caen. |
| 28 May 1089 | 4 Dec 1093 | See vacant | See vacant |
| 4 Dec 1093 | 21 Apr 1109 | Anselm | Abbot of Bec; Canonised: St Anselm. |
| 21 Apr 1109 | 26 Apr 1114 | See vacant | See vacant |
| el. 26 Apr 1114 | 2 Oct 1122 | Ralph d'Escures | Translated from Rochester. |
| 18 Feb 1123 | 21 Nov 1136 | William de Corbeil | (William of Corbeil) Prior of St Osyth. |
| 21 Nov 1136 | 8 Jan 1139 | See vacant | See vacant |
| 8 Jan 1139 | 18 Apr 1161 | Theobald of Bec | (Tedbald) Abbot of Bec. |
| 18 Apr 1161 | 3 Jun 1162 | See vacant | See vacant |
| 3 Jun 1162 | 29 Dec 1170 | Thomas Becket | (Thomas of London, Thomas à Becket) Previously Archdeacon of Canterbury and Lord Chancellor; assassinated; canonised: St Thomas of Canterbury. |
| 1173 | 1173 | (Roger de Bailleul) | Abbot of Le Bec-Hellouin; elected but declined the see. |
| 7 Apr 1174 | 16 Feb 1184 | Richard | (Richard of Dover) Prior of Dover. |
| tr. Dec 1184 | Nov 1190 | Baldwin of Forde | Translated from Worcester. |
| el. 27 Nov 1191 | 26 Dec 1191 | (Reginald Fitz Jocelin) | (Reginald Italus, Richard the Lombard, or Reginald Lombardus) Translated from Wells; elected, however, appeals against it were sent to Pope Celestine III, but Reginald died before they were heard. |
| 26 Dec 1191 | 29 May 1193 | See vacant | See vacant |
| tr. 29 May 1193 | 13 Jul 1205 | Hubert Walter | Translated from Salisbury; Lord Chancellor; Chief Justiciar. |
| el. bet. Jul and Oct 1205 | bet. Oct and Dec 1206 | (Reginald) | Sub-prior, elected but set aside by Innocent III. |
| pos. 11 Dec 1205 | c. 30 Mar 1206 | (John de Gray) | Bishop of Norwich; chosen by the monks but set aside by Pope Innocent III. |
| 17 Jun 1207 | 9 Jul 1228 | Cardinal Stephen Langton | Created a cardinal in 1206. | Arms of Langton: Argent, a cross quarter-pierced gules (start of heraldic era circa 1215) |
| el. 3 Aug 1228 | Jan 1229 | (Walter d'Eynsham) | (Walter de Hempsham) Elected but set aside by King Henry III of England and Pope Gregory IX. |
| 10 Jun 1229 | 3 Aug 1231 | Richard le Grant | (Richard Grant or Richard Wethershed) Formerly Chancellor of the see of Lincoln. |
| pos. 22 Sep 1231 | 20 Dec 1231 | (Ralph Neville) | (Ralf Nevill) Bishop of Chichester, election quashed by Pope Gregory IX. |
| el. 16 Mar 1232 | 12 Jun 1232 | (John of Sittingbourne) | election quashed by Pope Gregory IX. |
| el. 26 Aug 1232 | 1 Jun 1233 | (John Blund) | (Johannes Blund, Iohannes Blondus, Iohannes Blundus) election quashed by Pope Gregory IX. |
| 2 Apr 1234 | 16 Nov 1240 | Edmund of Abingdon | Prebendary of Salisbury; canonised as: St Edmund of Abingdon. | Arms of Saint Edmund of Abingdon: Or, a cross patonce gules between four Cornish choughs proper (now used by St Edmund Hall, Oxford) |
| el. 1 Feb 1241 | 14 Jul 1270 | Boniface of Savoy | Translated from Belley in France | Arms of Savoy: Gules, a cross argent |
| el. 9 Sep 1270 | summer 1272 | (William Chillenden) | (Adam of Chillenden) Prior of Christ Church, Canterbury; elected but set aside by Pope Gregory X. |
| 26 Feb 1273 | res. 5 Jun 1278 | Cardinal Robert Kilwardby OP | Created a cardinal in 1278; and resigned. |
| pos. Jun or Jul 1278 | Jan 1279 | (Robert Burnell) | (Robert Burnel) Bishop of Bath & Wells; elected but set aside by Pope Nicholas III. |
| 19 Feb 1279 | 8 Dec 1292 | John Peckham OFM | (John Pecham) English Provincial of the Franciscan Order. |
| 12 Sep 1294 | 11 May 1313 | Robert Winchelsey | (Robert Winchelsea) Formerly Archdeacon of Essex; Chancellor of Oxford |
| el. 28 May 1313 | 1 Oct 1313 | (Thomas Cobham) | Election quashed. |
| tr. 1 Oct 1313 | 16 Nov 1327 | Walter Reynolds | Translated from Worcester; Lord Chancellor; Lord Treasurer. |
| 5 Jun 1328 | 12 Oct 1333 | Simon Mepeham | (Simon Meopham) Prebendary of Chichester Cathedral; excommunicated. |
| pos. 3 Nov 1333 | 23 Aug 1348 | John de Stratford | Translated from Winchester; Lord Chancellor. | Arms of Stratford: Barry of ten argent and azure, a lion rampant gules langued or |
| nom. 24 Sep 1348 | 20 May 1349 | (John de Ufford) | Dean of Lincoln; Lord Chancellor; died of plague before consecration. | Arms of Ufford: Sable, a cross engrailed or in chief two escallops argent |
| 19 Jul 1349 | 26 Aug 1349 | Thomas Bradwardine | Died of plague | Arms of Bradwardine: Barry of six ermine and ermines |
| 20 Dec 1349 | 26 Apr 1366 | Simon Islip | Prebendary of St Paul's; secretary to the king and keeper of the Privy Seal. |
| 1366 | 1366 | (William Edington) | (William Edendon) Bishop of Winchester; elected but refused the see. |
| tr. 24 Jul 1366 | res. 28 Nov 1368 | Cardinal Simon Langham | Translated from Ely; created a cardinal in 1368; and resigned the see. He was elected a second time in 1374, but Pope Gregory XI refused to confirm the election. |
| tr. 11 Oct 1368 | Jun 1374 | William Whittlesey | (William Wittlesey) Translated from Worcester. |
| tr. 4 May 1375 | 14 Jun 1381 | Simon Sudbury | (Simon de Sudbury; Simon Tibold; Simon Theobold) Translated from London; Lord Chancellor; beheaded during the Peasants' Revolt. |
| tr. 31 Jul 1381 | 31 Jul 1396 | William Courtenay | Translated from London; Lord Chancellor. | Arms of Courtenay: Or, three torteaux a label azure |
| tr. 25 Sep 1396 | dep. 1397 | Thomas Arundel | (Thomas Fitz-Alan) Translated from York; Lord Chancellor; charged with high treason under Richard II, fled but restored later. | Arms of FitzAlan: Gules, a lion rampant or |
| nom. 8 Nov 1397 | deprived 19 Oct 1399 | Roger Walden | Deprived. |
| restored 19 Oct 1399 | 19 Feb 1414 | Thomas Arundel (again) | (Thomas Fitz-Alan) Restored by Henry IV. |
| tr. 12 Mar 1414 | 12 Apr 1443 | Henry Chichele | (Henry Chicheley; Henry Checheley) Translated from St David's. | Arms of Chichele: Or, a chevron between three cinquefoils gules |
| tr. 13 May 1443 | 25 May 1452 | John Stafford | Translated from Bath & Wells; Lord Chancellor; Lord Treasurer. | Arms of Stafford: Or, a chevron gules |
| tr. 21 Jul 1452 | 22 Mar 1454 | Cardinal John Kemp | Created a cardinal in 1439; Translated from York; Lord Chancellor |
| tr. 23 Apr 1454 | 30 Mar 1486 | Cardinal Thomas Bourchier | Translated from Ely; Lord Chancellor; created a cardinal in 1467. | Arms of Bourchier: Argent, a cross engrailed gules between four water bougets sable |
| tr. 6 Oct 1486 | 15 Sep 1500 | Cardinal John Morton | Translated from Ely; Lord Chancellor. created a cardinal in 1493. | Arms of Morton: Quarterly 1st & 4th: Gules, a goat's head erased armed argent; 2nd & 3rd: Ermine |
| 22 Jan 1501 | 27 Jan 1501 | (Thomas Langton) | Bishop of Winchester; died 5 days after being chosen. |
| tr. 26 Apr 1501 | 15/17 Feb 1503 | Henry Deane | (Henry Dean; Henry Dene) Translated from Salisbury. |
| tr. 29 Nov 1503 | 22 Aug 1532 | William Warham | Translated from London; Lord Chancellor until 1515. | Arms of Warham: Gules, a fess or in chief a goat's head couped argent attired or in base three escallops two and one of the third |
| 30 Mar 1533 | deprived 13 Nov 1555 | Thomas Cranmer | Archdeacon of Taunton; first Protestant archbishop; excommunicated by Rome and deprived for heresy 1553; put to death by burning, 21 March 1556. | Arms of Bishop Cranmer: Argent, on a chevron azure between three pelicans sable vulning themselves proper as many cinquefoils or |
| 22 Mar 1556 | 18/19 Nov 1558 | Cardinal Reginald Pole | Dean of Exeter; created a cardinal in 1536; diocesan administrator since 11 December 1555; last Roman Catholic archbishop | Arms of Pole (2nd quarter): Per pale or and sable, a saltire engrailed counterchanged |
| Source(s): ||||

### After the Elizabethan Settlement

| From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
| 17 Dec 1559 | 17 May 1575 | Matthew Parker | Dean of Lincoln. |
| tr. 29 Dec 1575 | 6 Jul 1583 | Edmund Grindal | Translated from York. |
| nom. 14 Aug 1583 | 29 Feb 1604 | John Whitgift | Translated from Worcester. |
| nom. 9 Oct 1604 | 2 Nov 1610 | Richard Bancroft | Translated from London. |
| nom. 4 Mar 1611 | 4 Aug 1633 | George Abbot | Translated from London. |
| nom. 6 Aug 1633 | 10 Jan 1645 | William Laud | Translated from London; executed in office; commemorated in the Church of England and the Episcopal Church in the USA. |
| 10 Jan 1645 | 9 October 1646 | See vacant | See vacant |
| 1646 | 1660 | The see was abolished during the Commonwealth and the Protectorate. | The see was abolished during the Commonwealth and the Protectorate. |
| nom. 2 Sep 1660 | 4 Jun 1663 | William Juxon | Translated from London. |
| nom. 16 June 1663 | 9 Nov 1677 | Gilbert Sheldon | Translated from London. |
| 27 Jan 1678 | deprived 1 Feb 1690 | William Sancroft | Dean of St Paul's; deprived for not taking oaths to William and Mary; died 24 Nov 1693. |
| 31 May 1691 | 22 Nov 1694 | John Tillotson | Dean of St Paul's. |
| nom. 6 Dec 1694 | 14 Dec 1715 | Thomas Tenison | Translated from Lincoln. |
| nom. 17 Dec 1715 | 24 Jan 1737 | William Wake | Translated from Lincoln. |
| nom. 9 Feb 1737 | 10 Oct 1747 | John Potter | Translated from Oxford. |
| nom. 21 Oct 1747 | 13 Mar 1757 | Thomas Herring | Translated from York. |
| nom. 29 Mar 1757 | 19 Mar 1758 | Matthew Hutton | Translated from York. |
| nom. 8 Mar 1758 | 3 Aug 1768 | Thomas Secker | Translated from Oxford. |
| nom. 12 Aug 1768 | 19 Mar 1783 | Frederick Cornwallis | Translated from Lichfield & Coventry. |
| nom. 31 Mar 1783 | 18 Jan 1805 | John Moore | Translated from Bangor. |
| nom. 1 Feb 1805 | 21 Jul 1828 | Charles Manners-Sutton | Translated from Norwich. |
| nom. 6 Aug 1828 | 11 Feb 1848 | William Howley | Translated from London. |
| nom. 17 Feb 1848 | 6 Sep 1862 | John Bird Sumner | Translated from Chester. |
| nom. 20 Oct 1862 | 28 Oct 1868 | Charles Longley | Translated from York. |
| nom. 28 Nov 1868 | 1 Dec 1882 | Archibald Campbell Tait | Translated from London. |
| nom. 13 Jan 1883 | 11 Oct 1896 | Edward White Benson | Translated from Truro. |
| nom. 9 Nov 1896 | 22 Dec 1902 | Frederick Temple | Translated from London. |
| nom. 14 Jan 1903 | res. 12 Nov 1928 | Randall Davidson | Translated from Winchester; retired; died 25 May 1930. |
| nom. 13 Nov 1928 | res. 31 Mar 1942 | Cosmo Gordon Lang | Translated from York; retired; died 5 December 1945. |
| nom. 1 Apr 1942 | 26 Oct 1944 | William Temple | Translated from York. Died in office. |
| nom. 12 Jan 1945 | res. 31 May 1961 | Geoffrey Fisher | Translated from London; retired; died 1972. |
| nom. 1 Jun 1961 | res. 15 Nov 1974 | Michael Ramsey | Translated from York; retired; died 23 April 1988. |
| nom. 18 Nov 1974 | res. 25 Jan 1980 | Donald Coggan | Translated from York; retired; died 17 May 2000. |
| nom. 1 Feb 1980 | res. 31 Jan 1991 | Robert Runcie | Translated from St Albans; retired; died 11 Jul 2000. |
| enth. 19 Apr 1991 | res. 31 Oct 2002 | George Carey | Translated from Bath & Wells; retired. |
| el. conf. 2 Dec 2002 | res. 31 Dec 2012 | Rowan Williams | Translated from Monmouth. He was also Archbishop of Wales. His resignation was announced on 16 March 2012 and took effect at the end of 2012. He then returned to academia as Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge. |
| el. conf. 4 Feb 2013 | res. 6 Jan 2025 | Justin Welby | Translated from Durham. His appointment began in February 2013. On 12 November 2024 he announced his decision to resign. |

## Assistant bishops

Those who have assisted the diocesan archbishop have included:
Two coadjutors – called Bishop of St Martin's — to Saxon archbishops:
* 1035–1038: Eadsige, who succeeded as Archbishop
* c. 1052 – c. 1061 (d.): Godwin
Lanfranc declared that appointments to that See would cease, and the Bishop of Rochester would deputise instead.
* 1044–1048 (res.): Siward, coadjutor-archbishop/suffragan bishop, probably titular Bishop of Uppsala
* 15 July 1469 – ?: Henry, consecrated to the titular see of Ioppe
* 1469: Thomas Scrope, absentee Bishop of Dromore and assistant Bishop of Norwich (1450–1477)
* 1480: William Westkarre, Prior of Mottisfont, titular bishop of Zeitun and assistant Bishop of Winchester (1457–1486)
* 1526–?: Thomas Chetham was consecrated titular bishop of Sidon on 19 January 1526 to serve as an assistant to the Archbishop of Canterbury and became an assistant to the Bishop of London in 1553
Modern assistant bishops have included:
* 1928–1939 (d.): Arthur Knight, Rector of Lyminge and former Bishop of Rangoon
* 1935–1941 (ret.): Edward Bidwell, Vicar of Sellindge and former Bishop of Ontario
* 1942–1955 (ret.): Basil Roberts, Warden of St Augustine's College and former Bishop of Singapore
* 1960–1961 (res.): Denis Hall, Vicar of Thornton Heath and former Assistant Bishop on the Niger
* 1994–1997 (res.): David Evans, Gen. Sec. of SAMS and former Bishop in Peru