The Archbishop of New Zealand is the primate

Primate (religion)

Primate is a title or rank bestowed on some bishops in certain Christian churches. Depending on the particular tradition, it can denote either jurisdictional authority or ceremonial precedence ....

, or head, of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia

Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia

The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia is a church of the Anglican Communion serving New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, and the Cook Islands...

. However, since Whakahuihui Vercoe

Whakahuihui Vercoe

Whakahuihui "Hui" Vercoe PCNZM MBE was an Anglican bishop in New Zealand. He was the Archbishop of New Zealand from 2004 to 2006, the first person from the Maori church to hold that office...

 stepped down at the end of his two-year term as archbishop in 2006, the church has decided that three bishops shall share the position and style of archbishop, each representing one of the three tikanga, or cultural streams of the church: Te Pihopatanga o Aotearoa (the Bishopric of Aotearoa, serving Maori), the Dioceses in New Zealand (serving Pakeha

Pakeha

Pākehā is a Māori language word for New Zealanders who are "of European descent". They are mostly descended from British and to a lesser extent Irish settlers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, although some Pākehā have Dutch, Scandinavian, German, Yugoslav or other ancestry...

) and the Diocese of Polynesia.

History

George Selwyn became Bishop of New Zealand in 1841. In his lifetime, as the Anglican ministry in New Zealand grew, his original single diocese

Diocese

A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...

 was divided several times. By 1868, New Zealand had seven dioceses, and Selwyn's Diocese of New Zealand had been renamed as the Diocese of Auckland (the Diocese of Waikato

Diocese of Waikato

The Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki is one of the thirteen dioceses and hui amorangi of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia...

 was still then part of the Diocese of Auckland, and the Diocese of Melanesia

Church of the Province of Melanesia

The Church of the Province of Melanesia is part of the Anglican Communion, and includes 8 dioceses. The Primate of the Church is the Archbishop of Melanesia The Most Rev'd David Vunagi.- Official name :...

 was still part of the province). After Selwyn, the leadership of the church was chosen from among the diocesans, and occasionally used the style Archbishop of New Zealand. However, from the primacy of Churchill Julius

Churchill Julius

Churchill Julius was an Anglican cleric in England, then in Australia and New Zealand, becoming the first Archbishop of New Zealand.-Biography:...

 in 1902, this title became usual for the head of the church. The archbishop could be bishop of any of the dioceses of the province, and remained a diocesan while carrying out the duties of archbishop.

Throughout the 20th century, the church in New Zealand developed an understanding for the different cultures within it. In 1925, the Diocese of Polynesia

Diocese of Polynesia

The Diocese of Polynesia, or the Tikanga Pasefika, headed by Archbishop Winston Halapua, serves Anglicans in Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, and the Cook Islands, within the Anglican Church of Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. The diocese's first bishop was consecrated in 1908. The diocese's cathedral is...

 began as a missionary diocese of the church. In 1928, the first Bishop of Aotearoa

Bishop of Aotearoa

The Bishop of Aotearoa is a bishop in the Anglican Church of New Zealand.-List of holders:#The Rt. Rev. Frederick Augustus Bennett - first Māori people Bishop in the Anglican Communion#The Rt. Rev. Wiremu Netana Panapa...

, ministering to the Maori, was consecrated as suffragan bishop

Suffragan bishop

A suffragan bishop is a bishop subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop. He or she may be assigned to an area which does not have a cathedral of its own.-Anglican Communion:...

 to the Bishop of Waiapu. In the 1970s, Melanesia became a separate ecclesiastical province

Ecclesiastical Province

An ecclesiastical province is a large jurisdiction of religious government, so named by analogy with a secular province, existing in certain hierarchical Christian churches, especially in the Catholic Church and Orthodox Churches and in the Anglican Communion...

 from New Zealand, and the Bishop of Aotearoa became a full-ranking diocesan, with a diocese covering all of New Zealand. Under the primacy of Brian Davis, Polynesia became a fully fledged diocese and a review of church structures was begun. In 1992, the General Synod of the church set up five hui amorangi, or regional bishoprics, to serve under the Bishop of Aotearoa. The Church of the Province of New Zealand also adopted its current name, the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia, to demonstrate its ownership by the three tikanga. There was also a move towards the use of the title presiding bishop for the head of the church rather than archbishop, and John Paterson, Davis' successor, became the first bishop so to be styled. Further changes to the office of primate were its limitation to a two-year term, to allow for greater participation in leadership, and its establishment as a triumvirate of bishops. Currently, Archbishop Brown Turei, who is Bishop of Aotearoa, is recognised as leader of the church, but he shares the style archbishop and the title Co-Presiding Bishop with David Moxon

David Moxon

David Moxon is the Bishop of Waikato, Senior Bishop of the New Zealand Dioceses, Co-presiding Bishop and Archbishop of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia.-Education:...

 (Bishop of Waikato, representing the Dioceses in New Zealand) and Winston Halapua (Bishop of Polynesia).

List of primates of New Zealand

Primate Bishops of New Zealand
From	Until	Incumbent	Notes
1856	1867	George Selwyn, Bishop of New Zealand	Sole bishop from 1841 until 1856.
1867	1890	Henry Harper, Primate of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Christchurch since 1856.
1890	1893	Octavius Hadfield Octavius Hadfield Octavius Hadfield was Archdeacon of Kapiti, Bishop of Wellington from 1870 to 1893 and Primate of New Zealand from 1890 to 1893. A missionary for thirty years, he was recognised as an authority on Maori customs and language... , Primate of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Wellington Diocese of Wellington The Diocese of Wellington is one of the thirteen dioceses and hui amorangi of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. The Diocese covers the area between the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand up to the area of Mount Ruapehu....  since 1870.
1893	1902	William Cowie, Primate of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Auckland since 1869; died in office.
1902	1922	Churchill Julius Churchill Julius Churchill Julius was an Anglican cleric in England, then in Australia and New Zealand, becoming the first Archbishop of New Zealand.-Biography:... , Primate of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Christchurch since 1890; became Archbishop of New Zealand.
Primate Archbishops of New Zealand
1922	1925	Churchill Julius, Archbishop of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Christchurch since 1890.
1925	1940	Alfred Averill, Archbishop of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Auckland since 1914.
1940	1951	Campbell West-Watson Campbell West-Watson Campbell West-Watson was successively an Anglican suffragan bishop, diocesan bishop and archbishop over a 40 year period during the first half of the 20th century.... , Archbishop of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Christchurch since 1926.
1952	1961	Reginald Owen, Archbishop of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Wellington since 1947.
1961	1971	Norman Lesser, Archbishop of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Waiapu Diocese of Waiapu The Diocese of Waiapu is one of the thirteen dioceses and hui amorangi of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. The Diocese covers the area around the East Coast of the North Island of New Zealand, including Tauranga, Taupo, Gisborne, Hastings and Napier. It is named for the...  since 1947.
1972	1980	Allen Johnston, Archbishop of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Waikato Diocese of Waikato The Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki is one of the thirteen dioceses and hui amorangi of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia...  since 1969.
1980	1985	Paul Reeves Paul Reeves Sir Paul Alfred Reeves, ONZ, GCMG, GCVO, CF, QSO was Archbishop and Primate of New Zealand from 1980 to 1985 and the 15th Governor-General of New Zealand from 22 November 1985 to 20 November 1990... , Archbishop of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Auckland since 1979; afterwards Governor-General of New Zealand Governor-General of New Zealand The Governor-General of New Zealand is the representative of the monarch of New Zealand . The Governor-General acts as the Queen's vice-regal representative in New Zealand and is often viewed as the de facto head of state.... .
1986	1997	Brian Davis, Archbishop of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Wellington since 1986.
1998	2004	John Paterson, Presiding Bishop of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Auckland since 1994.
2004	2006	Whakahuihui Vercoe Whakahuihui Vercoe Whakahuihui "Hui" Vercoe PCNZM MBE was an Anglican bishop in New Zealand. He was the Archbishop of New Zealand from 2004 to 2006, the first person from the Maori church to hold that office... , Archbishop of New Zealand	Also Bishop of Aotearoa Bishop of Aotearoa The Bishop of Aotearoa is a bishop in the Anglican Church of New Zealand.-List of holders:#The Rt. Rev. Frederick Augustus Bennett - first Māori people Bishop in the Anglican Communion#The Rt. Rev. Wiremu Netana Panapa...  since 1981.
2006	present	Brown Turei, Archbishop of New Zealand	Senior Bishop of the Maori Tikanga; also Bishop of Aotearoa since 2006.
2006	present	David Moxon David Moxon David Moxon is the Bishop of Waikato, Senior Bishop of the New Zealand Dioceses, Co-presiding Bishop and Archbishop of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia.-Education:... , Co-archbishop of New Zealand	Senior Bishop of the New Zealand Dioceses; also Bishop of Waikato since 1993.
2006	2010	Jabez Bryce Jabez Bryce Jabez Leslie Bryce was the Tongan-born bishop of the Anglican Church. Bryce served as the Bishop of Polynesia in the Province of New Zealand, which includes most of the South Pacific, from 1975 until his death in 2010. He was elevated to Archbishop of the diocese in 2006.Bryce was the first... , Co-archbishop of New Zealand	Pacific primate; also Bishop of Polynesia Diocese of Polynesia The Diocese of Polynesia, or the Tikanga Pasefika, headed by Archbishop Winston Halapua, serves Anglicans in Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, and the Cook Islands, within the Anglican Church of Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. The diocese's first bishop was consecrated in 1908. The diocese's cathedral is...  since 1975.
2010	present	Winston Halapua, Co-archbishop of New Zealand	Born 1945. Pacific primate; also Bishop of Polynesia since 2010.

External links

• The official website of Anglican Church in Aotearoa
• Historical documents on Anglicanism in New Zealand