The Archbishop of Canterbury, the principal leader of the Church of England, resigned on Tuesday after a report into a child abuse scandal involving a barrister associated with the church.
Reverend Justin Welby said he had sought the permission of King Charles III, the titular head and supreme governor of the Church of England, to step down after a review found barrister John Smyth's abuse of boys and young men had been covered up.
Smyth died aged 75 in Cape Town in 2018 while still under investigation by Hampshire Police in the UK.
"The Makin Review has exposed the long-maintained conspiracy of silence about the heinous abuse of John Smyth,” said Welby in his resignation statement.
"When I was informed in 2013 and told that police had been notified, I believed wrongly that an appropriate resolution would follow. It is very clear that I must take personal and institutional responsibility for the long and re-traumatising period between 2013 and 2024,” he said.
"The last few days have renewed my long-felt and profound sense of shame at the historic safeguarding failures of the Church of England. For nearly 12 years I have struggled to introduce improvements. It is for others to judge what has been done,” he added.
The bishop said he would meet victims as previously agreed as he delegates all other responsibilities until a successor is in place.
The controversy has been brewing for some time, with pressure mounting on Welby to resign from the influential post. The Makin Review concluded last week that Smyth "could and should" have been reported to the police in 2013 when church leaders, including Welby, were presented with details of his abuse.
Inaction from the church represented a missed opportunity to bring him to justice, the report said.
Dr Joanne Grenfell, the Bishop of Stepney and Church of England's lead safeguarding bishop, said the failings identified in the report meant it was "now necessary for others to take up the baton".
"With sadness, I fully respect and understand Archbishop Justin's decision today to resign," she said.
Smyth was a prominent barrister as well as an unordained preacher who ran summer camps for young Christians. The review accused him of attacking up to 30 boys he had met at the camps during the 1970s and 1980s.
The Archbishop of Canterbury leads 85 million Anglicans across 165 countries around the world and Justin Welby’s replacement will now be found following a UK-wide consultation asking people in and outside the Church of England what they want from the next Archbishop. The process is expected to run into several months.
The shortlisted candidates will be interviewed by a committee of 17 people, with a chair appointed by the Prime Minister and members including representatives from around the global Anglican Communion, the General Synod as well as at least one bishop.
