The Archdeacon of Maidstone is an office-holder in the Diocese of Canterbury (one of the dioceses of the

Province of Canterbury The Province of Canterbury, or less formally the Southern Province, is one of two ecclesiastical provinces which constitute the Church of England. The other is the Province of York (which consists of 12 dioceses). Overview The Province consist ...

in the

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 Britain ...

). The

Archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that o ...

of Maidstone is an

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

priest who oversees the Archdeaconry of Maidstone, which is one of three subdivisions of the diocese.

History

The archdeaconry was created from the ancient Archdeaconry of Canterbury by Order in Council on 4 June 1841. , the current archdeacon is Andrew William Sewell. Born in 1961, Sewell was educated at the

University of Nottingham The University of Nottingham is a public university, public research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. The University of Nottingham belongs t ...

, and St John’s College, Nottingham. He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

in 1993, and

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

in 1994. He served in parishes in the

Diocese of Ripon and Leeds The Diocese of Ripon (Diocese of Ripon and Leeds from 1999 until 2014) was a former Church of England diocese, part of the Province of York. Immediately prior to its dissolution, it covered an area in western and northern Yorkshire as well as ...

until 1998 when he was appointed Priest in Charge of Otham with Langley in

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, becoming the

Rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

in 2001. He was Vicar of St Paul’s Maidstone from 2010 to 2020 and an Honorary Canon of

Canterbury Cathedral Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England. It forms part of a World Heritage Site. It is the cathedral of the Archbishop of Canterbury, currently Justin Welby, leader of the ...

from 2011.

Composition

The archdeaconry covers approximately the north-west and south-west corners of the diocese. , the archdeaconry of Maidstone consists the following deaneries in the Diocese of Canterbury: *Deanery of Maidstone *Deanery of North Downs *Deanery of Ospringe *Deanery of Sittingbourne *Deanery of the Weald

List of archdeacons

*4 June 1841 – 1845 (res.): William Lyall *4 December 1845 – 25 March 1887 (d.): Benjamin Harrison *1887–26 March 1900 (d.): Benjamin Smith *1900–1921 (ret.): Henry Spooner *1921–1934 (res.):

John Macmillan John Victor Macmillan Order of the British Empire, OBE Doctor of Divinity, DD (1877–1956) was the fifth Bishop of Dover in the modern era who was later Translation (ecclesiastical), translated to Bishop of Guildford, Guildford. Born into a Macm ...

(also Bishop suffragan of Dover from 1927) *1934–1939 (res.): Karl Sopwith *1939–1942 (res.):

Alexander Sargent Alexander Sargent (9 May 1895 – 5 January 1989) was an eminent Anglican clergyman in the mid 20th century. He was born on 9 May 1895, educated at The King's School, Canterbury and St Edmund Hall, Oxford and ordained in 1920. After curacies a ...

*1942–1958 (ret.):

Julian Bickersteth The Rev. Canon Kenneth Julian Faithfull Bickersteth, (5 July 1885 – 16 October 1962) was an English Anglican priest, military chaplain, and headmaster from the prominent Bickersteth family. He served as Archdeacon of Maidstone from 1942–58. ...

*1959–1965 (res.):

Gordon Strutt Rupert Gordon Strutt (known as Gordon; 15 January 1912 – 1 October 1985) was the Anglican Bishop of Stockport from 1965 to 1984. Strutt was educated at the London College of Divinity and Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. Ordained in 1943 he embarked on ...

*1965–1968 (res.):

Michael Nott Michael John Nott (9 November 1916 – 3 February 1988) was an Anglican priest. Nott was born in 1916, educated at St Paul's and King's College London and ordained in 1939. His first posts were at Abington, Reading and Kettering. Following thi ...

*1968–1972 (res.): Thomas Prichard *1972–1979 (ret.):

Niel Nye Niel (Nathaniel Kemp) Nye (4 November 1914 – 9 January 2003) was the Archdeacon of Maidstone from 1972 to 1979. Nye was educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood, King's College London and Ripon College Cuddesdon. He was ordained deac ...

(later archdeacon emeritus) *1979–1989 (res.):

Michael Percival Smith Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

*1989–2002 (res.): Patrick Evans *2002–13 March 2011 (res.):

Philip Down Philip Roy Down (born 28 March 1953) is a retired priest in the Church of England. He served as the Archdeacon of Maidstone and then the first Archdeacon of Ashford, both in the Diocese of Canterbury. Life in Australia Down was born and raised in ...

*18 September 201127 September 2020 (res.): Stephen Taylor (on leave 2019–2020; became an Archdeacon without territory and Senior Chaplain to the Bishop of Dover)
&

/ref> *27 September 2020present: Andrew Sewell (previously Acting, 30 November 201931 May 2020)

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Maidstone, Archdeacons of Archdeacons in the Diocese of Canterbury, * Anglican ecclesiastical offices Diocese of Canterbury Lists of Anglicans Lists of English people Church of England lists