Supreme Governor of the Church of New England
| Supreme Governor of Church of New England Gobernador Supremo de la Iglesia de Nueva Inglaterra (es) Gouverneur suprême de l'Église de la Nouvelle-Angleterre fr 新英格蘭教會最高統治 (zh) 新英格蘭教會最高統治 (tn) Thống đốc tối cao của Giáo hội New England (vn) 뉴 잉글랜드 교회 총재 (kr) ニューイングランドの最高知事 (ja) Oberster Gouveneur von Neuengland (de) | |
|---|---|
 Flag of the Church of New England, the Royalist Party of Sierra and Sierran monarchists | |
| Style | His/Her Majesty |
| Residence |
 Occidental Palace, Porciúncula, Gold Coast, Sierra |
| Inaugural holder | Charles I of Sierra |
| Formation | November 30, 1858 |
The Supreme Governor of the Church of New England is a title held by the Monarch of Sierra which signifies their titular leadership and authority over the Church of New England. While the title is mostly ceremonial, the monarch's leadership of the church is very important to its structure and is observed in a symbolic capacity. While the Church of New England is not the official state church due to the separation of church and state doctrine found within the Constitution of Sierra, the Church of New England plays a major role due to its ties with the ruling House of Columbia. As the Supreme Governor, the Sierran monarch is responsible for appointing members to the church based off of the advise of the Prime Minister of Sierra, who is in turn advised by church leaders in the General Synod on religious matters and Church-Royal ties.
None of the Sierran monarchs have ever personally been members of the Church of New England or New Anglicans. All have been practicing Catholics, a contradiction which is resolved by placing de facto executive authority and leadership roles to the Archbishop of Cheshire, the Primate of the New Anglican Communion. As the monarchs are not members of the Church, they are not permitted to interfere with the affairs of the Church without the express approval of its leaders. In practice, the Church invests the Monarch with the sole responsibility of appointing the Archbishop of Cheshire and other senior ecclesiastical leaders through the advice of the Prime Minister. The advice of the Prime Minister is by convention determined by informal elections held by the General Synod, thus ensuring the Monarch's appointment is always in-line with the Church's decisions. Nonetheless, the position of the Supreme Governor has been a statutory authority accorded to the Sierran Monarchy due to the mutual respect and historical connection between the two institutions. Both are rooted in opposition to the current ruling house in the United Kingdom and are influenced by the Jacobite legacy.
History
A strong Anglican community had existed in Sierra well before the kingdom's creation. The church was large and had a large and strong following amongst the general public during the days of the California Republic. During the 1858 Constitutional Convention, the church had sided with Smith Charles Miller, later christened as Charles I of Sierra, in establishing a monarchy. When both the monarchy and the kingdom were formally established in November 1858, the Anglican community was divided due to Smith's claims to the British throne and those loyal to Smith swearing their allegiance to him accepting his offer to break off from the Church of England and establish a new one in Sierra. The church was established on November 30, 1858 with Charles I taking position as Supreme Governor. In order to strengthen his position and rally his supporters within the Anglican community in Sierra, Smith founded the New Anglican Communion and established the position of Archbishop of Cheshire to serve as its functioning leader. As a result of his actions, Charles I had strengthened the position and legitimacy of the monarchy and had managed to rally support for the new kingdom while those opposed to him, mainly Anglican Christians still aligned with the traditional Anglican Communion, fled up north towards Astoria and the Canada.
Since Charles I's ascension, the honorific title of "Lord Protector of the Faith" has been part of the Style of the Sierran sovereign and symbolizes the view of the church that the monarchy is a legitimate institution and is one that is vital to the defense of the identity, faith and security of the Sierran nation, people and the Church of New England. The title was also created as a means of cementing Charles I's claim as the rightful sovereign and monarch of the United Kingdom as well with the title being based off of the honorific title of "Defender of the Faith" (Fidei Defensor). Smith's position was further elaborated on on December 2, 1858 when the church documents states that:
"Our new king, Charles I, Defender of the Faith, Representative of Our Lord and Lord Protector of the New Anglican Community. We the Church of New England, recognize Charles I as the first Supreme Governor of our sacred church and recognize the authority of the Archbishop of Cheshire."
Church of Alaska
In accordance with religious doctrine, the Sierran monarch vows to uphold the constitution and sovereign authority of the Church of Alaska (a New Anglican church in Alaska), but holds no formal leadership over the church. Nonetheless, the Sierran monarch is responsible for appointing the Royal Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Alaska, the representative of the monarch, with a ceremonial role. The monarch also has the ability fill the role if necessary as was done in 1980.
List of Supreme Governors
| Name | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Charles I | 1858–1893 | Recognized the Church as the true Church in England and became the Church's first Supreme Governor. Remained a Roman Catholic despite pressure by church leaders and congregants. |
| Louis I | 1893–1927 | Oversaw the establishment of the Church of Alaska |
| Louis II | 1927–1945 | |
| Louis III | 1945–1991 | |
| Elizabeth I | 1991–2005 | First female Supreme Governor |
| Charles II | 2005–2015 | |
| Elizabeth II | 2015–present |
