Archbishop of Canterbury

In the Anglican Church, the Archbishop of Canterbury is the Primate of England and Leader of the World Anglican Communion. The current Archbishop of Canterbury is Dr Rowan Williams (2002-), who is seen as a theological liberal.

Peerage

The Archbishop is a Lord Spiritual in the House of Lords as long as he holds his position. The practice has developed of appointing retired archbishops as peers so that they continue to sit in the Lords after their retirement.

Present and former Archbishops

The present Archbishop is Dr Rowan Williams (2002-), a former academic theologian who had previously served as Archbishop of Wales. He is seen as being a theological liberal.

Archbishop Williams was preceded by the Rt. Rev. George Carey (1991-2002). Carey rose through the church from working-class origins, and was seen as being on the Church of England's evangelical wing.

Carey was preceded by Archbishop Robert Runcie (1980-1991). Runcie was seen as a fully-paid-up member of the British Establishment, whose contacts and knowledge of protocol were markedly superior to those of the more naive, working-class Archbishop Carey. His natural home was the High Church wing of the Church of England, whose beliefs and practices have some affinities with Roman Catholicism.