The Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons, also known as the Speaker's Chaplain, is a

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...

priest who officiates at services held at the

Palace of Westminster The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parliament, the Palace lies on the north b ...

and its associated chapel, St Mary Undercroft. The Chaplain also acts as

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intelligence ...

to the

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...

and

Members of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

. The first Speaker's Chaplain was appointed in 1660. The current officeholder is

Patricia Hillas Patricia Dorothy Hillas (called Tricia; born 1966) is a Church of England priest. She has served as Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons since 2020 and a Canon of Westminster since 2021. Early life Hillas was born in 1966 in Kua ...

. From 1972 to 2010, the Speaker's Chaplain also held the position of Rector of

St Margaret's, Westminster The Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey, is in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, London, England. It is dedicated to Margaret of Antioch, and forms part of a single World Heritage Site with the Palace of Westminster ...

, the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

of the Palace of Westminster.

List of Chaplains to the Speaker of the House of Commons

;17th century * Edward Voyce (1660) *Henry Carpenter (1661) *Henry Wotton (1663) *Mr. Barker (1675) *Mr. Willet (1689) * Peter Birch (1689) *

Thomas Manningham Thomas Manningham (1651?-1722) was an English churchman, bishop of Chichester from 1709. Life He was born about 1651 in the parish of St. George, Southwark, the son of Richard Manningham (d. 1682), rector of Michelmersh, Hampshire, and grandso ...

(1690–1694) *Maurice Vaughan (1694–1695) *Samuel Barton (1695–1697) *William Hallifax (1697–1698) *William Galloway (1698–1700) ;18th century *John Herne (1701) *

Francis Gastrell Francis Gastrell (10 May 1662 – 24 November 1725) was Bishop of Chester and a writer on deism. He was a friend of Jonathan Swift, mentioned several times in ''A Journal to Stella'', and chaplain to Robert Harley, when Harley was Speaker of ...

(1701–1702) *William Stratford (1702–1705) *Thomas Goddard (1705–1708) *Laurence Brodrick (1708–1710) *

Jonathan Kimberley Jonathan Kimberley (7 June 1651 – 7 March 1720) was Dean of Lichfield from 1713 until his death. Born in Bromsgrove, Smallwood was educated at Pembroke College, Oxford. He migrated to Cambridge in 1776. He held livings at Stadhampton, Cov ...

(1710–1713) *John Pelling (1713–1714) * Henry Barker (1715–) *Thomas Manningham (1718–1723), son of the previous Thomas Manningham *

George Ingram George Morby Ingram, VC, MM (18 March 1889 – 30 June 1961) was an Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest decoration for gallantry "in the face of the enemy" that can be awarded to members of the British and Commonwealth ...

(1723–1728) *

Scawen Kenrick Scawen Kenrick (3 June 1694 – 2 May 1753) was an English clergyman who served as Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons and Archdeacon of Westminster. Life Kenrick was the son of John Kenrick, a London merchant. He was educated at M ...

(1728) *

William Burchett William Burchett (1694 - 27 December 1750) was a Canon of Windsor from 1739 to 1750. Career He was educated at Eton College and Peterhouse, Cambridge and graduated BA in 1716, and MA in 1719. He was appointed to the second stall in St George's ...

(1736–1739) * Richard Terrick (1739–1742) * Arthur Young (1742–1746) *

John Fulham John Fulham M.A. (1699–1777) was an English cleric, Canon of Windsor from 1750 to 1777 and Archdeacon of Llandaff from 1749 to 1777 Career He was educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford where he graduated B.A. in 1720. He was appoi ...

(1746–) * Richard Cope (1751–1754) *Reeve Ballard (1754–1758) *Charles Burdett (1758–1762) * Richard Cust (1762–1765) * Richard Palmer (1765–1769) *

William Barford William Barford (died November 1792) was an English scholar and Anglican clergyman. Life Barford was educated at Eton College, and elected to King's College, Cambridge in 1737. He proceeded B.A. in 1742, M.A. in 1746, and D.D. in 1771. He became t ...

(1769–1770) * James King (1770–1774) * Arthur Onslow (1774–1779) *Cuthbert Allanson (1779–1780†) *William Welfitt (1780) *

Folliott Cornewall Folliott Herbert Walker Cornewall (bapt. 9 May 1754 – 5 September 1831) was an English bishop of three sees. Life Folliott (or Folliot) Herbert Cornewall was baptised in Ludlow on 9 May 1754, the second surviving son of Captain Frederick Cornew ...

(1780–1784) *Philip Williams (1784–1789) * Charles Moss (1789–1791) *Thomas Hay (1791–1795) *Thomas Causton (1795–1796) * William Busby (1796–1801) ;19th century *John Barton (1801–1802) * Samuel Smith (1802–1806) *Frederick Barnes (1806–1807) *Charles Proby (1807–1812) *

James Webber James Webber (1772 – 3 September 1847) was an English churchman, Dean of Ripon from 1828 until his death. Webber was the son of Rev. William Webber, canon of Chichester Cathedral, and his wife Anne . He was educated at Westminster School and ...

(1812–1815) * Robert Stevens (1815–1818) *

Christopher Wordsworth Christopher Wordsworth (30 October 180720 March 1885) was an English intellectual and a bishop of the Anglican Church. Life Wordsworth was born in London, the youngest son of Christopher Wordsworth, Master of Trinity, who was the youngest b ...

(1818–1820) *William Frederick Baylay (1820–1824) * Thomas Manners-Sutton (1824–1827) *Evelyn Levett Sutton (1827–) *Frederick Vernon Lockwood (1830–1832) *Edward Repton (1832–1833) *Temple Frere (1833–1835) *John Vane (1835–) *Gerrard Thomas Andrewes (1839–1849) *

Thomas Garnier Thomas Garnier (1776–1873) was an English churchman and botanist, Dean of Winchester from 1840 to 1872. Life He was the son of George Garnier of Wickham, Hampshire, educated at Hyde Abbey School. He matriculated at Worcester College, Oxford ...

(1849–1857) * Henry Drury (1857–1862) *

Charles Merivale Charles Merivale (8 March 1808 – 27 December 1893) was an English historian and churchman, for many years dean of Ely Cathedral. He was one of the main instigators of the inaugural Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race which took place at Henle ...

(1863–1869) * Henry White (1869–1874, 1889–1890†) * Francis Byng (1874–1889) * Frederic Farrar (1890–1895) *

Basil Wilberforce Albert Basil Orme Wilberforce (14 February 1841 – 13 May 1916) was an Anglican priest and author in the second half of the 19th century and the first two decades of the 20th. He was the Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons and Archde ...

(1896–1916†) ;20th century *

William Hartley Carnegie William Hartley Carnegie (27 February 1859 – 18 October 1936) was an Anglican priest and author. In addition to parish ministries and chaplaincy, he served as Archdeacon of Westminster from 1918 to 1919 and as sub-dean of Westminster Abbey from 1 ...

(1916–1936) *

Alan Don Alan Campbell Don (3 January 1885 – 3 May 1966) was a trustee of the National Portrait Gallery, editor of the Scottish Episcopal Church's 1929 '' Scottish Prayer Book'', chaplain and secretary to Cosmo Lang, Archbishop of Canterbury, from ...

(1936–1946) *Christopher Cheshire (1946–1955) *

John McLeod Campbell John McLeod Campbell (4 May 1800 – 27 February 1872) was a Scottish minister and Reformed theologian. In the opinion of one German church historian, contemporaneous with Campbell, his theology was a highpoint of British theology during the n ...

(1955–1961) *

Michael Stancliffe Michael Staffurth Stancliffe (8 April 1916 – 26 March 1987) was a Church of England priest who served as the Dean of Winchester from 1969 to 1986. Career Stancliffe trained for ordination at Lincoln Theological College, and was ordained d ...

(1961–1969) *

Thomas Nevill Sir Thomas Neville or Nevill (by 1484 – 29 May 1542) was a younger son of George Neville, 4th Baron Bergavenny. He was a prominent lawyer and a trusted councillor of King Henry VIII, and was elected Speaker of the House of Commons in 1515. ...

(1969–1972) * David Edwards (1972–1978) * John Baker (1978–1982) *

Trevor Beeson Trevor Randall Beeson (born 2 March 1926) was Dean of Winchester in the last two decades of the 20th century. He is also an ecclesiastical obituarist. Beeson was educated at King's College London, studied theology at St Boniface College, W ...

(1982–1987) * Donald Gray (1987–1998) * Robert Wright (1998–2010) ;21st century *Robert Wright (1998–2010) *

Rose Hudson-Wilkin Rose Josephine Hudson-Wilkin, (born 19 January 1961) is a British Anglican bishop, who has been suffragan Bishop of Dover in the diocese of Canterbury - deputising for the Archbishop - since 2019: she is the first black woman to become a Chur ...

(2010–2019) *

(2019–present) - now the 80th Speaker's Chaplain.

References

{{reflist House of Commons of the United Kingdom Church of England lists Anglican ecclesiastical offices London religion-related lists London politics-related lists