Sarah Mullally has been formally installed as archbishop of Canterbury, marking the start of her public ministry as the first woman to lead the Church of England.
The former nurse on Wednesday took her seat on the 13th-century Chair of St Augustine at Canterbury Cathedral before 2,000 guests that included heir to the British throne Prince William and his wife Catherine, as well as Prime Minister Keir Starmer and religious leaders.
She will serve as the spiritual head of the global Anglican Communion, which has about 85 million members worldwide. The Church of England ordained its first female priests in 1994 and its first female bishop in 2015.
Although she legally took up the role in January, Wednesday’s installation marked the symbolic start of her ministry.
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“As I begin my ministry today as archbishop of Canterbury, I say again to God: ‘Here I am’,” she told the congregation as she delivered her inaugural sermon.
Wearing a golden mitre, Mullally prayed for “peace to prevail” in war-ravaged regions of the world, including parts of the Middle East, Ukraine, Sudan and Myanmar.
The 63-year-old acknowledged the sufferings caused by the church’s past safeguarding failures, one of which caused her predecessor Justin Welby to resign, stressing the need to “remain committed to truth, compassion, justice and action”. Welby stepped down in 2024 following a child abuse cover-up scandal.
At the start of the ceremony, Mullally knocked on the cathedral’s west door, wearing a cope secured by a clasp modelled on the belt she wore as a National Health Service nurse. She was then greeted by children, as prayers and readings in multiple languages, including Urdu, rang through the cathedral during the service.
