Robert Runcie

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Robert Runcie
Tomb of Robert Runcie near St. Albans

Robert Alexander Kennedy Runcie, Baron Runcie MC PC (born October 2, 1921 in Liverpool , † July 1, 2000 in St Albans ) was Archbishop of Canterbury and Primate of the Church of England from 1980 to 1991 .

Life

The son of an electrical engineer and former Presbyterian served as a tank commander in the Scots Guards during World War II and was awarded the Military Cross in 1945. He was ordained a priest in 1951 and made Bishop of St. Albans in 1970. Robert Runcie was a passionate pig farmer.

Archbishop of Canterbury

His election represented a break with tradition in that the Archbishop of York is usually elected to this office, but the then-holder of the post, Stuart Blanch , had turned down an election. During his tenure he ran into conflicts with Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government on several occasions . In addition to objections to chauvinistic tones in connection with the Falklands War , it was primarily his criticism of the liberal market reforms of the British government, especially at the time of the great miners' strike of 1984-85. In the church study Faith in the City , sponsored by Runcie , the Church of England called for a socio-political reversal in 1985 in order to curb the impoverishment and decay of the inner cities. In view of the extensive paralysis of the Labor Party as an opposition force, the Church of England was at times considered to be the most influential opponent of the Thatcher government, which in turn accused the Church of being too politically active.

International fame

He was best known beyond the borders of the Anglican Church when he led the marriage service of the Prince of Wales with Lady Diana Spencer on July 29, 1981 in London's St Paul's Cathedral .

House of Lords

Runcie was a spiritual lord in the House of Lords from 1973 to 1991 . After retiring from the office of Archbishop of Canterbury, he was promoted to life peer as Baron Runcie , of Cuddesdon in the County of Oxfordshire, in 1991 and remained a member of the House of Lords until his death in 2000.

literature

  • Humphrey Carpenter , Robert Runcie. The Reluctant Archbishop , London 1999. ISBN 978-0340571071 .
  • Peter Itzen, Warring Church. The Church of England before the challenges of modernity , Baden-Baden 2012.
  • Ernst Christian Schütt: Chronik 1979. Chronik Verlag, Gütersloh 1992, ISBN 3-611-00172-4 , p. 40

Web links

predecessor Office successor
Edward Jones Bishop of Saint Albans
1970–1980
John Bernard Taylor
Donald Coggan Archbishop of Canterbury
1980–1991
George Leonard Carey