# Apostolic Nunciature to Great Britain

The Apostolic Nunciature to Great Britain is the diplomatic office of the Holy See in Great Britain. It is headed by the Apostolic Nuncio, who has the rank of an ambassador (officially, the Apostolic Nuncio to the Court of St. James's). The parties agreed to exchange representatives at the ambassadorial level and Pope John Paul II erected the Nunciature to Great Britain on 17 January 1982. Before then, the interests of the Holy See in Great Britain had been represented by an Apostolic Delegate since 1938, though not granted diplomatic status until 1979. The decision to designate the nuncio to Great Britain rather than the United Kingdom reflected the complex and frequently antagonistic relationship between the Holy See and the British crown since they severed ties in the sixteenth century. British government sources said it had been agreed that the nuncio in London would concern himself with matters in England, Scotland and Wales, while the Apostolic Nuncio to Ireland, based in Dublin, would have within his purview the entire island of Ireland.
The office of the nunciature is in London, at 54 Parkside, in Wimbledon, lying within the Archdiocese of Southwark and overlooking Wimbledon Common. It was the only diplomatic mission in London located south of the river Thames until the United States Embassy opened its new premises in Vauxhall in 2018. The Nuncio to Great Britain is also the papal representative to Gibraltar.
The current nuncio as of April 2023 is Archbishop Miguel Maury Buendía.

## History

Formal diplomatic relations between the United Kingdom and the Holy See resumed in 1914 and an Apostolic Delegation to Great Britain was established on 21 November 1938. The Apostolic Delegation to Great Britain was promoted to the rank of an Apostolic Nunciature by Pope John Paul II in 1982.

## List of office holders

| Office | From | Until | Post Holder | Notes |
| Apostolic Delegate to Great Britain | 21 November 1938 | 10 November 1953 | William Godfrey | Previously, a priest in Liverpool. Left after being appointed Archbishop of Liverpool |
| Apostolic Delegate to Great Britain | 8 June 1954 | 16 July 1963 | Gerald Patrick Aloysius O'Hara | Previously, Apostolic Nuncio to Ireland. Died in office |
| Apostolic Delegate to Great Britain | 4 October 1963 | 19 April 1969 | Igino Eugenio Cardinale | Left after being appointed Apostolic Nuncio to Belgium |
| Apostolic Delegate to Great Britain | 26 April 1969 | 16 July 1973 | Domenico Enrici | Previously, Apostolic Delegate to Australia. Left after being appointed an official of the Secretariat of State |
| Apostolic Delegate to Great Britain | 16 July 1973 | 22 February 1982 | Bruno Bernard Heim | Previously Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to the Arab Republic of Egypt. Retired |
| Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Great Britain | 22 February 1982 | July 1985 | Bruno Bernard Heim | Previously Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to the Arab Republic of Egypt. Retired |
| Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Great Britain | 21 January 1986 | 13 April 1993 | Luigi Barbarito | Previously, Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Australia. Retired |
| Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain | 13 April 1993 | 31 July 1997 | Luigi Barbarito | Previously, Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Australia. Retired |
| Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain | 31 July 1997 | 23 October 2004 | Pablo Puente Buces | Previously, Apostolic Nuncio to Kuwait. Retired. |
| Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain | 11 December 2004 | 5 December 2010 | Faustino Sainz Muñoz | Previously, Apostolic Nuncio to European Community. Retired. |
| Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain | 18 December 2010 | 1 March 2017 | Antonio Mennini | Previously, Apostolic Nuncio to Uzbekistan. Subsequently appointed an official of the Secretariat of State |
| Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain | 8 April 2017 | 31 January 2020 | Edward Joseph Adams | Previously, Apostolic Nuncio to Greece. Retired. |
| Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain | 4 July 2020 | mid-January 2023 | Claudio Gugerotti | Previously, Apostolic Nuncio to Ukraine. Subsequently appointed Prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches |
| Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain | 13 April 2023 | | Miguel Maury Buendía | Previously, Apostolic Nuncio to Romania and Moldova. |