Lambeth Palace is the official

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

residence of the

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

. It is situated in north

Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, which today also gives its name to the (much larger) London Borough of Lambeth. Lambeth itself was an ancient parish in the county of Surrey. It is situated 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Charin ...

, London, on the south bank of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...

, south-east of the

Palace of Westminster The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative ch ...

, which houses

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

, on the opposite bank. Close to

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

and the

City A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

, the estate was first acquired by the archdiocese for the archbishop (who also has a residence at Old Palace, Canterbury) around 1200.

History

While the original residence of the archbishop of Canterbury was in his

episcopal see An episcopal see is the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, making it synonymous with ''diocese'' ...

, Canterbury, Kent, a site originally called the Manor of Lambeth or Lambeth House was acquired by the

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, prov ...

around AD 1200 (though Archbishop Anselm had a house there a century earlier) and has since served as the archbishop's London residence. The site was chosen for its convenient proximity to the royal palace and government seat of Westminster, just across the Thames. The site is bounded by Lambeth Palace Road to the west and Lambeth Road to the south, but it is excluded from the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of North Lambeth which encompasses all other surrounding land. The garden park is listed and resembles Archbishop's Park, a neighbouring public park; however, it was a larger area with a notable

orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit tree, fruit- or nut (fruit), nut-producing trees that are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also so ...

until the early 19th century. The former church in front of its entrance has been converted to the Garden Museum. The south bank of the Thames along this reach, not part of historic London, developed slowly because the land was low and sodden: it was called Lambeth Marsh, as far downriver as the present Blackfriars Road. The origins of the name of Lambeth come from its first record in 1062 as ''Lambehitha'', meaning 'landing place for lambs' ('hitha' or 'hithe' referring to a landing on the river): archbishops came and went by water, as did

John Wycliffe John Wycliffe (; also spelled Wyclif, Wickliffe, and other variants; 1328 – 31 December 1384) was an English scholastic philosopher, Christianity, Christian reformer, Catholic priest, and a theology professor at the University of Oxfor ...

, who was tried here for

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, particularly the accepted beliefs or religious law of a religious organization. A heretic is a proponent of heresy. Heresy in Heresy in Christian ...

in 1378. In the

Peasants' Revolt The Peasants' Revolt, also named Wat Tyler's Rebellion or the Great Rising, was a major uprising across large parts of England in 1381. The revolt had various causes, including the socio-economic and political tensions generated by the Black ...

of 1381, the palace was attacked. Cardinal Pole lay in state in the palace for 40 days after he died there in 1558. The palace was again attacked in May 1640 during a period of popular discontent with the Arminianist theology of the

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

William Laud William Laud (; 7 October 1573 – 10 January 1645) was a bishop in the Church of England. Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury by Charles I of England, Charles I in 1633, Laud was a key advocate of Caroline era#Religion, Charles I's religious re ...

, in the hope of capturing him. The palace was ransacked and partially demolished by the Parliamentarians in the

English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...

of the 1640s, necessitating major reconstruction, especially of the great hall, in 1660-63. New construction was added to the building in 1829–1834 by

Edward Blore Edward Blore (13 September 1787 – 4 September 1879) was a 19th-century English landscape and architectural artist, architect and antiquary. Early career Blore was born in Derby, the son of the antiquarian writer Thomas Blore. Blore's backg ...

(1787–1879), who rebuilt much of

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...

later, in neo-Gothic style and it fronts a spacious quadrangle. Blore's large extensions to house the archbishop meant that the original buildings could be converted to the archdiocese's library, record office and secretariat. The palace was damaged in the Blitz of 1941. The buildings form the home of the archbishop, who is regarded as the first among equals in the

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is a Christian Full communion, communion consisting of the Church of England and other autocephalous national and regional churches in full communion. The archbishop of Canterbury in England acts as a focus of unity, ...

, and is ''

ex officio An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, or council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by r ...

'' a member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

Buildings

The building is listed in the highest category, Grade I, for its architecture. The palace consists of two main structures: the residence itself, which is built round a

cloister A cloister (from Latin , "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open Arcade (architecture), arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle (architecture), quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cat ...

, and Morton's Tower, which forms the main entry. The medieval building had three more courtyards, which have since disappeared, as has the moat that surrounded the complex. The unusual inclusion of a cloister may be because Archbishop Hubert Walter initially intended to found a

Premonstratensian The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular in the Catholic Chur ...

abbey on the site, before settling on a palace. The original timber cloister, which held the archbishop's library, was replaced by the present structure in 1830. The oldest remaining part of the palace is the 13th-century chapel which was built in the Early English Gothic architectural style. It stands above a vaulted undercroft, which has a central line of columns. This part had to be heavily restored after the Blitz, so most of its fittings are of 1954–55. The medieval

great hall A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages. It continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the great cha ...

, now gone, appears to have been rebuilt following damage in the Peasants' Revolt. The south end of the hall joined the kitchen and offices, while a stair at the north end led to the archbishop's apartments. One 14th-century room of these apartments, now known as the Guard Chamber, still stands, with its original elaborate roof. Further private accommodation was added when the Water or

Lollards Lollardy was a proto-Protestantism, proto-Protestant Christianity, Christian religious movement that was active in England from the mid-14th century until the 16th-century English Reformation. It was initially led by John Wycliffe, a Catholic C ...

' Tower, built of Kentish Ragstone with

ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...

quoins, was built at the north-west corner in 1434–35. It was extended and heightened later in the century, and again in the early 16th century when Laud's Tower was built next to it. At the top of the stair was the Archbishop's prison, a room also seen at Winchester Palace in Southwark. The massive five-storey brick

gatehouse A gatehouse is a type of fortified gateway, an entry control point building, enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a town, religious house, castle, manor house, or other fortification building of importance. Gatehouses are typically the most ...

was built by

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

John Morton and completed in 1495 and housed eight lodgings for the Archbishop's household. Improvements continued into the 16th century, when Archbishop Cranmer built a brick tower north-east of the chapel to house his study. The most serious damage done by the Cromwellians in the late 1640s was the demolition of the great hall and the sale of its materials. After the Restoration, it was completely rebuilt by Archbishop William Juxon in 1663 (dated) with a late Gothic hammerbeam roof. The choice of a hammerbeam roof was evocative, as it reflected the High-Church Anglican continuity with the Old Faith (the King's ( Charles II)

brother A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a family, familial relationship, it is sometimes used ende ...

was an avowed Catholic) and served as a visual statement that the

Interregnum An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of revolutionary breach of legal continuity, discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one m ...

was over. As with some Gothic details on University buildings of the same date, it is debated among architectural historians whether this is "Gothic survival" or an early work of the "Gothic Revival". The diarist

Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys ( ; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English writer and Tories (British political party), Tory politician. He served as an official in the Navy Board and Member of Parliament (England), Member of Parliament, but is most r ...

recognised it as "a new old-fashioned hall". Major work was done by Blore in 1829–1833, with large parts of the medieval palace being rebuilt, and an extensive new wing in Gothic revival style added. Among the portraits of the archbishops in the palace are works by Hans Holbein,

Anthony van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (; ; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Flemish Baroque painting, Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Spanish Netherlands and Italy. The seventh child of ...

William Hogarth William Hogarth (; 10 November 1697 – 26 October 1764) was an English painter, engraving, engraver, pictorial social satire, satirist, editorial cartoonist and occasional writer on art. His work ranges from Realism (visual arts), realistic p ...

and Sir

Joshua Reynolds Sir Joshua Reynolds (16 July 1723 – 23 February 1792) was an English painter who specialised in portraits. The art critic John Russell (art critic), John Russell called him one of the major European painters of the 18th century, while Lucy P ...

. File:Westminster Bridge and Lambeth Bridge 1897.jpg, Map of the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...

between

and Lambeth Bridges, with Westminster Palace on the west bank and Lambeth Palace on the east, 1897 File:Microcosm of London Plate 048 - Lambeth Palace edited.jpg, The Guard Room File:'Lambeth Palace', c1685 MoL.jpg, Lambeth Palace from the south File:Lambeth Palace main entrance.jpg, Main entrance File:Lambeth Palace London - geograph.org.uk - 1092465.jpg, The 19th-century range File:A View of the Archbishop's Palace, Lambeth.jpg, ''

Lambeth Palace Lambeth Palace is the official London residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury. It is situated in north Lambeth, London, on the south bank of the River Thames, south-east of the Palace of Westminster, which houses Parliament of the United King ...

'' by J. M. W. Turner, 1790

Gardens

The fig tree in the palace courtyard is possibly grown from a slip taken from one of the ''White Marseille'' fig trees here for centuries (reputedly planted by Cardinal Pole). In 1786, there were three ancient figs, two "nailed against the wall" and still noted in 1826 as "two uncommonly fine... traditionally reported to have been planted by Cardinal Pole, and fixed against that part of the palace believed to have been founded by him. They are of the white Marseilles sort, and still bear delicious fruit. ...On the south side of the building, in a small private garden, is another tree of the same kind and age." By 1882, their place had been taken by several massive offshoots. The notable orchard of the medieval period has somewhat given way to a mirroring public park adjoining and built-up roads of housing and offices. The palace gardens were listed grade II in October 1987.

Library

Within the palace precincts is Lambeth Palace Library, the official library of the archbishop of Canterbury, and the principal repository of records of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

. It describes itself as "the largest religious collection outside of the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

". The library was founded as a public library by Archbishop Richard Bancroft in 1610. It was historically located within the main palace complex, but in 2021 a new purpose-built library and repository building opened. This is located at the far end of the palace gardens, with its entrance on Lambeth Palace Road, and was designed by Wright & Wright. In addition to the existing library collections, it houses the archival collections of various Church of England institutions formerly held at the Church of England Record Centre (opened 1989) in

Bermondsey Bermondsey ( ) is a district in southeast London, part of the London Borough of Southwark, England, southeast of Charing Cross. To the west of Bermondsey lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe and Deptford, to the south Walworth and Peckham, ...

. The library contains an extensive collection of material relating to ecclesiastical history, including the archives of the archbishops dating back to the 12th century, and those of other church bodies and of various

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

missionary and charitable societies. Manuscripts include items dating back to the 9th century. The library also holds over 120,000 printed books. In 1996, when Sion College Library closed, Lambeth Palace Library acquired its important holdings of manuscripts, pamphlets, and pre-1850 printed books. Topics covered by the collections range from the history of art and architecture to colonial and

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

history, and numerous aspects of English

social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives fro ...

, political and economic history. The library is also an important resource for

local history Local history is the study of history in a geographically local context, often concentrating on a relatively small local community. It incorporates cultural history, cultural and social history, social aspects of history. Local history is not mer ...

and

genealogy Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kin ...

. For online catalogues, see

External links An internal link is a type of hyperlink on a web page to another page or resource, such as an image or document, on the same website or domain. It is the opposite of an external link, a link that directs a user to content that is outside its d ...

below.

Highlights of the collection

12th-century painters - The Tree of Jesse - WGA15728

Notable items in the collections include: * Mac Durnan Gospels (late 9th/early 10th centuries) * Minuscule 473 (11th century) * Minuscule 559 (11th century) * Lambeth Apocalypse (12th century) * The Romanesque Lambeth Bible (12th century) * Lambeth Homilies () * Book of Hours of

King Richard III Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...

(mid 15th century) * '' A Short English Chronicle'' (mid 15th century) * A rare copy of the

Gutenberg Bible The Gutenberg Bible, also known as the 42-line Bible, the Mazarin Bible or the B42, was the earliest major book printed in Europe using mass-produced metal movable type. It marked the start of the "Printing Revolution, Gutenberg Revolution" an ...

(1450s) * Lambeth Choirbook (16th century) * Book of Howth (late 16th century) * Archives of the Commission for Building Fifty New Churches (1711–1759) * Archives of the Incorporated Church Building Society (1818–1982)

St Mary-at-Lambeth

Immediately outside the gatehouse stands the former parish church of St Mary-at-Lambeth which was preserved by a campaign led by John and Rosemary Nicholson. The tower dates from 1377 (repaired in 1834); while the body of the church was rebuilt in 1851 to the designs of Philip Hardwick. Older monuments were preserved, including the tombs of some of the gardeners and plantsmen John Tradescant the elder and his son of the same name, and of Admiral

William Bligh William Bligh (9 September 1754 – 7 December 1817) was a Vice-admiral (Royal Navy), Royal Navy vice-admiral and colonial administrator who served as the governor of New South Wales from 1806 to 1808. He is best known for his role in the Muti ...

. St Mary's was deconsecrated in 1972, when the parish was absorbed into the surrounding parish of North Lambeth which has three active churches, the nearest being St Anselm's Church, Kennington Cross.Lambeth Mission St Mary
A Church Near You church finder –

The Museum of Garden History (now the Garden Museum) opened in the building in 1977, taking advantage of its Tradescant associations. During renovation works in 2016, a previously unknown crypt was discovered, containing 30 coffins. Amongst these were those of five archbishops of Canterbury— Richard Bancroft, Thomas Tenison, Matthew Hutton, Frederick Cornwallis, and John Moore—as well as that of John Bettesworth, Dean of the Arches.

Resident community

Lambeth Palace is home to the Community of Saint Anselm, an

Anglican religious order Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

that is under the patronage of the archbishop of Canterbury.

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links

*
Lambeth Palace Library official website

Detailed architectural description
– from the Survey of London online
Library catalogue of printed books

Library catalogue of manuscripts and archives
{{Authority control Archives in the London Borough of Lambeth Buildings and structures on the River Thames Edward Blore buildings Episcopacy in Anglicanism Episcopal palaces in London Episcopal palaces of archbishops of Canterbury Grade I listed buildings in the London Borough of Lambeth Grade I listed houses in London Historic house museums in London History of the London Borough of Lambeth Houses in the London Borough of Lambeth Libraries in the London Borough of Lambeth Museums in the London Borough of Lambeth Museums on the River Thames Tourist attractions in the London Borough of Lambeth Townhouses in the United Kingdom