The first Archbishop of Canterbury was St. Augustine. He was Prior of St Andrew's Monastery in Rome and, in 596 AD, was dispatched by the then Pope, Gregory the Great, to re-establish the Church in England. When he reached France he wanted to turn back but, encouraged by letters from Gregory, finally landed in Kent in the summer of 597. He was received graciously and given every opportunity for his work. After a few months Christianity was formally adopted by Ethlebert, King of Kent, whose wife Bertha was already a Christian.

Christianity, of course had been present in Britain for some 300 years prior to Augustine's arrival, through the work of people such as St Columba and St Wilfrid of York.

1997 sees celebrations to mark the 1400th anniversary of the death of St Columba and the arrival of St Augustine in Kent.

Pope Gregory had given instructions that the island of Britain should be organised into two Provinces, one around London in the south and the second in York - "when it should become Christian", but in the end Canterbury, rather than London, became the historic base for the Southern Province.

By the 12th century there was much more cohesion in the state and it became important for the Archbishop of Canterbury to be near the King's Court when it was at Westminster. In 1197 the Manor of Lambeth was granted to Archbishop Walter in exchange for the Manor of Darenth in Kent. The deeds for the exchange of lands still exist and are in the Lambeth Palace Library. The building of Lambeth Palace began at this time and the Palace has been in continuous occupation since.

a) Diocesan Bishop

The Archbishop looks after the Diocese of Canterbury, in Kent. As his work takes him away from the diocese a great deal, he has two bishops who assist him. These are the Bishop of Dover and the Bishop of Maidstone. Although the Archbishop does not run the diocese on a day to day basis, he keeps in touch with the round of church life by confirming children and adults, visiting schools, encouraging clergy and ordaining new deacons and priests. Dr Carey preaches in Canterbury Cathedral at the major festivals such as Easter and Christmas. He also conducts teaching missions three times a year within the diocese.

b) Primate of All England

The heads of all Anglican Provinces are called Primates. As well as conducting confirmations and ordinations the Archbishop also consecrates new bishops in the Southern Province, as the Archbishop of York does in the Northern Province. The Archbishops of Canterbury and York are joint Presidents of the General Synod, the Church of England's governing body and joint Chairmen of the House of Bishops and the Crown Appointments Commission. (The Crown Appointments Commission makes recommendations to the Crown for the appointment of Diocesan Bishops and other senior appointments.) The Archbishop of Canterbury is also Chairman of the Church Commissioners for England. (The Commissioners are responsible for managing the Church's historic assets.)

c) 'Chaplain to the Nation'

The fact that the Archbishop is the most senior bishop in the Established Church in England gives him a special role in the nation.

This is exemplified at a coronation when, by tradition, it is the Archbishop of Canterbury who places the crown on the head of the Queen (or King) of England. It is symbolic of the long association between the Church and the Monarchy.

During the centuries when kings and queens actually governed the nation, bishops were usually their closest advisers. Monarchs continued to be crowned by archbishops, however, and to reign as �a Christian Sovereign by the Authority of Almighty God.'

As the political power of the House of Commons grew, that of the bishops lessened, though they still formed part of the House of Lords. Today the Archbishops of Canterbury and York and the 24 other most senior bishops have seats, as of right, in the House of Lords. The Archbishop has made a number of well-publicised speeches from the Bishops bench in the House of Lords. In July 1996, this included moving a much-publicized debate "to call attention to the importance of society's moral and spiritual well-being, and in particular the responsibility of schools."

There is always one bishop present in the Lords to say the opening prayers of the day and follow debates. Bishops spoke 106 times in 1996 on a wide range of matters including overseas aid, education, family law, human rights, the Asylum Bill, crime and the National Lottery. They are not aligned to any political party but do take part in debates and, where appropriate, vote on legislation.

The Archbishop is formally addressed as �Your Grace'. These days, however, he is most often addressed as Archbishop. On grand occasions, such as State banquets, the Archbishop of Canterbury is ranked immediately after the Royal Dukes and before the Lord Chancellor and Prime Minister.

The Archbishop is looked to by many as a particularly significant source of spiritual and moral reflections and is expected to voice the joys or sorrows of the nation at moments of national grief or rejoicing.

d) Leader of the Anglican Communion around the World

The Archbishop of Canterbury is primus inter pares (first among equals) among the Primates of the Anglican Communion. He does not rule the world's 70 million Anglicans and is not an 'Anglican Pope' but is expected to maintain the unity of the Communion through bonds of affection and shared belief which draw people together. Each Member Church or Province of the Anglican Communion is autonomous.

Once in every 10 years the Archbishop invites all the Anglican bishops to the Lambeth Conference. The first was held in 1867 and 76 bishops attended. The next one will be held in 1998 and the days are long gone when they all fitted into Lambeth Palace. Nowadays it takes over the whole campus of the University of Kent at Canterbury and there will be over 800 bishops (some with spouses) present. The Archbishop also, more frequently, meets the senior Archbishops of the Communion and travels around the world on pastoral and teaching visits.

e) The Ecumenical Role

The Archbishop's ecumenical role derives from his leadership of a world-wide Communion. As an obvious and identifiable spokesperson for, and representative of, Anglicanism he has a national and international ecumenical role. This involves him in widespread international ecumenical correspondence, contacts and occasional visits to leaders of other Christian churches. The visit to the Pope in December 1996 was part of this work.

f) The Inter-faith Role

An increasing role of Archbishops of Canterbury over the last few decades has been in their relationships with members of different faith communitites both in this country and overseas. Population changes, international travel, global political issues and the increased awareness by people of cultures and faiths different from their own have all made meetings between the leaders of the world's faiths both more possible and more neccessary than they used to be.

The Archbishop is in regular consultation with the Chief Rabbi as they are two of the Joint Presidents of the Council of Christians and Jews and also, on a more informal basis, meets regularly with members of the Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and Sikh communities amongst others.

When he travels abroad, he will usually meet with senior faith leaders of the country concerned to discuss matters of common interest and to develop mutual understanding. In recent years he has met with the Sheikh of Al Alizar in Cairo as well as the Dalai Lama whilst he was in this country amongst others.

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