The Church of England is set to make history with the enthronement of its first female Archbishop of Canterbury.
Dame Sarah Mullally will be formally installed at Canterbury Cathedral on Wednesday.
A former chief nursing officer for England and bishop of London, she was named to the role in October.
Dame Sarah replaces Justin Welby, who resigned in 2024 over failures in handling a church safeguarding scandal.
Legally an archbishop since a service at St Paul’s Cathedral in January, the Canterbury ceremony marks the symbolic start of her ministry.
Here is what to know about the service.
What is happening on Wednesday?
Dame Sarah will deliver her first sermon as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury.
Having walked to Canterbury from London on a six-day pilgrimage – which ended on Sunday – Dame Sarah will knock on the cathedral’s West Door seeking admission and will be greeted by children from John Wallis Academy in Ashford, a local school in the diocese.
The 90-minute ceremony will feature a mandate sent from the King – who will not be in attendance – instructing officials to proceed to the installation or, as it has historically been known, enthronement.
As part of the service, Dame Sarah will renew her vows and commitments to ministry, and make an oath on the scriptures, using the St John’s Bible which was given to the cathedral in 2023.
During the service she will first be placed into the Diocesan cathedra, known as the Bishop’s Chair, which dates from 1844, and then installed in the ancient Chair of St Augustine – dating from the early 13th century – in which archbishops have been installed for many centuries.
Who will be at the service?
Some 2,000 guests are expected at the ceremony, including the Prince and Princess of Wales.
William, who as heir to the throne will one day replace his father as Supreme Governor of the Church of England, will represent the King on Wednesday.
Also in attendance will be Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Conservative party leader Kemi Badenoch.
Some 32 out of a total of 42 Provinces of the Anglican Communion – all of whom were invited – are expected to be represented.
While the royals are not set to play an active role in the service, they will be greeted by the Archbishop at the end of the ceremony outside the West Door.
Among other guests will be bishops and clergy from across the Church of England, and other faith leaders such as Cardinal Kurt Koch, representing the Pope, Imam Qari Asim from the British Muslim Network and Board of Deputies of British Jews president Phil Rosenberg.
Charity representatives, healthcare workers – including those working in hospitals and hospices in Canterbury – and schoolchildren will also attend.
Are there any other special elements to the service?
Six languages including English will feature, in nods to the diversity of the Anglican Communion. Among them will be singing in Urdu, a Gospel reading in Spanish and a prayer in the Bemba language of Zambia.
Five of the so-called “Africa Six” – the first female Anglican bishops from across Africa – will process through the Cathedral’s nave in their robes.
In celebration of the contribution of female scholars, musicians and writers through the years to the Church, choral music will range from the Renaissance to contemporary, including the anthem All Shall Be Well by British composer Joanna Marsh.
The oath Dame Sarah will take will be sworn for the first time on the St John’s Bible – a copy of the first Benedictine, hand-illuminated Bible for more than 500 years, which was given to the cathedral in 2023.
The Augustine Gospels, which were used between 1945 and 2013, when the last archbishop was sworn in, are said to be fragile and not easily moved.
A clasp on the cloak – known as a cope – Dame Sarah will don is made from the belt buckle she wore as a nurse while serving in the NHS, while the staff she will be presented with during the service is the same one used by the last bishop of London to become Archbishop of Canterbury – Geoffrey Fisher.
First woman to be enthroned as Archbishop of Canterbury in historic ceremony
First female Archbishop of Canterbury tasked to unite divided church
Archbishop of Canterbury ‘relieved’ to complete six-day pilgrimage
First female Archbishop of Canterbury faces challenge to unite divided church
Archbishop of Canterbury ‘relieved’ to complete six-day pilgrimage
Prince William to ‘draw line in sand’ on questions over his commitment to Church of England
Thousands to gather for enthronement of first female Archbishop of Canterbury
New Archbishop of Canterbury undertakes ‘deeply humbling’ pilgrimage ahead of enthronement
