The Archbishop of Canterbury has a history of making headlines with public
comments on controversial subjects, from sex abuse in the Catholic Church to
the killing of Osama bin Laden.
2002 Dr Rowan Williams confirmed as the new Archbishop of Canterbury. He is
enthroned at Canterbury Cathedral the following year.
2008 Dr Williams provokes outrage by claiming it seems “inevitable” that
elements of Islamic Sharia law, such as divorce proceedings, will be
incorporated into the British legal system.
2009 He attacks the Labour government over the Iraq War, saying politicians
had failed to “measure the price” of the conflict.
April 2010 The Archbishop expresses “deep sorrow and regret” after suggesting the Catholic Church in Ireland had lost “all credibility” over the clerical child abuse scandal.
July 2010 Dr Williams gives “two and a half cheers” for David Cameron’s “big society” plans but says they must not simply be “an alibi” for cuts.
5 May 2011 Archbishop criticises the United States over the killing of Osama bin Laden, saying that shooting "an unarmed man" left him feeling "very uncomfortable". He says the White House's changing account of the raid on the al-Qaeda leader's compound has made matters worse.
28 May 2011 Dr Williams expresses sympathy for public figures who take out “super-injunctions”. In a Telegraph interview, he criticises the “miasma of gossip and prurience” that surrounds celebrities.
9 June 2011 He attacks the Coalition in a wide-ranging article in his role as guest editor of the New Statesman magazine.