The Archdeacon of Canterbury is a senior office-holder in the Diocese of Canterbury (a division of the Church of England Province of Canterbury). Like other archdeacons, they are an administrator in the diocese at large (having oversight of parishes in roughly one-third of the diocese) and is a canon residentiary of the cathedral.
History The Archdeacon of Canterbury has an additional role, traditionally serving as the Archbishop of Canterbury's representative at enthronement ceremonies for new diocesan bishops in her province. At these services, the archdeacon reads the archbishop's mandate and, taking the new bishops by the hand, conducts them to their episcopal throne.
The archdeaconry and archdeacon of Canterbury have been in constant existence since the 11th century. There was one short-lived attempt to split the role in the 12th century. In modern times, the archdeaconry has been split twice: creating Maidstone archdeaconry in 1841 and Ashford archdeaconry in 2011.
Composition The archdeaconry covers approximately the north-east corner of the diocese. , the archdeaconry of Canterbury consists the following deaneries in the Diocese of Canterbury: Deanery of Canterbury Deanery of East Bridge Deanery of Reculver Deanery of Thanet Deanery of Stour Valley
List of archdeacons
Pre-Norman Conquest 798: Wulfred 844: Beornoth 853: Athelweald 864: Ealstan 866: Sigifrith 866: Liaving 890: Werbeald bef. 1054: Brinstan 1054: Haimo
High Medieval bef. –aft. : Valerius bef. 1075–aft. 1086: Ansketil bef. 1099–aft. 1108: William 1115–May 1125 (res.): John bef. 1126–1138: Helewise bef. –March 1148 (res.): Walter aft. 1148–October 1154 (res.): Roger de Pont L'Évêque aft. 1154–1163 (res.): Thomas Becket (also Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162) bef. 1163–October 1174 (res.): Geoffrey Ridel 1175–June 1194 (res.): Herbert Poore bef. 1194–aft. 1195 (res.): Philip of Poitou bef. 1196–aft. 1206: Henry de Castilion bef. 1213–May 1227 (res.): Henry Sandford 14 May 1227 – 1248 (d.): Simon Langton 28 January 1232–?: Richard de Sancto Johanne (ineffective royal appointment) bef. 1248–July 1269 (d.): Stephen de Monte Luelli (aka of Vienne) aft. July 1269–9 October 1275 (d.): Hugh de Mortuo Mari October 1275–May 1278 (res.): William Middleton 1278–bef. 1280 (d.): Robert of Gernemue aft. 1280–1299 (res.): Richard de Ferings 29 June 1299–September 1305 (res.): John de Langeton
Late Medieval 22 September 1305–bef. 1306 (res.): Simon de Faversham 13 February 1306 – 22 November 1310 (res.): Bernard Ezius de le Breto 3 December 1310–bef. 1319 (res.): Guichard de le Breto 1 May 1319–bef. 1323 (d.): Simon of Comminges (Simon Convenis), son of Bernard VII, Count of Comminges and brother of Bernard VIII, Count of Comminges 18 April 1323 – 1323 (dep.): John Bruton 23 April 1323–November 1325 (d.): Raymond de Roux 13 March 1326 – 1332 (res.): Hugh de Angoulême 15 July 1332 – 1333 (res.): Simon de Montacute 1334–1337 (res.): Robert de Stratford bef. 1338–bef. 1343 (d.): Bernard Sistre 25 June 1343–bef. 1370 (res.): Pierre Roger (became Pope Gregory XI) 28 June 1343–bef. 1348 (res.): Simon Islip (royal grant; set aside) bef. 1372–28 April 1374 (d.): William Cardinal de la Jugee(cardinal-priest of St Clement) 6 June 1374 – 12 September 1375 (res.): Henry de Wakefield aft. 1375–3 June 1379 (deprived): Aymar Roche adt. 1379–9 September 1381 (res.): John de Fordham 20 September 1381–bef. 1390 (d.): William Pakington 28 July 1390 – 23 February 1397 (exch.): Adam Mottrum 26 August 1390 – 1390: Thomas Butiller (ineffective royal grant) 23 February 1397 – 1400 (res.): Richard Clifford 7 April 1400 – 12 May 1406 (res.): Robert Hallam 28 October 1406 – 31 May 1408 (d.): Angelo Cardinal Acciaioli, Dean of theCollege of Cardinals & cardinal-bishop of Ostia and Velletri (obedience of Rome) 13 July 1408 – 1415 (res.): John Wakering
5 June 1416–bef. 1420 (d.): Henry Rumworth (or Circeter) 3 October 1420–bef. 1424 (d.): William Chichele 10 June 1424–bef. 1434 (res.): Prospero Cardinal Colonna(cardinal-deacon of St George in Velabro) 14 December 1434 – 26 January 1467 (d.): Thomas Chichele bef. 1467–bef. 1479 (d.): Thomas Winterbourne February 1479–bef. 1495 (d.): John Bourgchier 26 November 1495 – 25 July 1504 (d.): Hugh Peynthwyn aft. 1505–bef. 1534 (res.): William Warham 9 March 1534 – 15 March 1554 (deprived): Edmund Cranmer
Early modern March 1554–bef. 1559 (deprived): Nicholas Harpsfield November 1559–bef. 1571 (res.): Edmund Gheast, Bishop of Rochester aft. 1572–aft. 1575 (res.): Edmund Freke, Bishop of Rochester 17 May 1576 – 1595 (res.): William Redman January 1595–29 March 1619 (d.): Charles Fotherby (also Dean of Canterbury from 1615) 10 April 1619 – 29 January 1648 (d.): William Kingsley 1648–1660: See suspended during the Commonwealth of England August 1660–23 August 1668 (d.): George Hall (also Bishop of Chester from 1662) 7 October 1668 – 1670 (res.): William Sancroft 18 November 1672 – 20 March 1688 (d.): Samuel Parker (also Bishop of Oxford from 1686) 22 March 1688 – 10 October 1708 (d.): John Battely 28 October 1708 – 1721 (res.): Thomas Green 7 November 1721 – 23 August 1724 (d.): Thomas Bowers (also Bishop of Chichester from 1722) 1 September 1724 – 1748 (res.): Samuel Lisle (also Bishop of St Asaph from 1744) April 1748–4 December 1769 (d.): John Head (became Sir John Head, 5th Baronet from 1768) 13 December 1769 – 29 September 1788 (d.): William Backhouse 7 November 1788 – 1 May 1803 (d.): John Lynch 19 May 1803 – 8 April 1822 (d.): Houstonne Radcliffe 26 April 1822–bef. 1825 (res.): Hugh Percy 18 June 1825 – 9 May 1869 (d.): James Croft
Late modern 1869–November 1890 (ret.): Edward Parry (also Bishop suffragan of Dover from 1870) 1890–1897 (res.): Rodney Eden (also Bishop suffragan of Dover from 1890) bef. 1898–17 October 1918 (d.): William Walsh (also Bishop suffragan of Dover from 1898) 1918–1924 (res.): Leonard White-Thomson 1924–1939 (ret.): Edward Hardcastle (afterwards archdeacon emeritus) 1939–1942 (ret.): Karl Sopwith (afterwards archdeacon emeritus) 1942–1968 (ret.): Alexander Sargent 1967–1972 (res.): Michael Nott 1972–1981 (ret.): Bernard Pawley (afterwards archdeacon emeritus) 1981–1986 (res.): John Simpson 1986–1996 (res.): Michael Till 1996–2001 (res.): John Pritchard 2002–2007 (ret.): Patrick Evans (afterwards archdeacon emeritus) April 20076 January 2016 (res.): Sheila Watson 6 December 201522 January 2017: Philip Down and Stephen Taylor, Joint Acting Archdeacons of Canterbury.Diocese of Canterbury — Notices about people and places (Accessed 10 January 2016) 22 January 20174 December 2021 (res.): Jo Kelly-MooreCanterbury Cathedral — New Archdeacon of Canterbury (Accessed 8 February 2017) 18 July 2022present: William Adam
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