Lords Spiritual

The Lords Spiritual form one part of the membership of the House of Lords - the Lords Temporal form the other.

The Lords Spiritual are the archbishops and bishops of the Church of England who sit in Parliament as representatives of the established Church of England.

There are 26 bishops and archbishops in the Lords.

The Archbishops of Canterbury and York and the Bishops of Durham, London and Winchester have an automatic right to sit in the House of Lords.

The 21 other bishops have seats according to their seniority.