The Diplomat
Pope Francis has appointed the Spanish priest Miguel Maury Buendía, titular archbishop of Italica (Santiponce), who until now held the same post in Romania, as his new Apostolic Nuncio to the United Kingdom.
Miguel Maury was previously, between July 2008 and December 2015, Apostolic Nuncio in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, until his appointment to take charge of the Nunciature in Romania and Moldova.
In addition to Spanish, the new Nuncio of His Holiness in London speaks five other languages: Italian, English, French, Slovenian and Russian, and has been a member of the Holy See’s Diplomatic Service since 1987. From that year until 1996 he served as secretary at the Apostolic Nunciatures in Rwanda, Uganda, Morocco and Nicaragua. Between 1987 and 1996 he was Counsellor in Egypt, Slovenia, Macedonia and Ireland.
Appointed Prelate of Honour to His Holiness on 8 June 1999, since 1 September 2004 he has followed the situation in the countries of South-East Europe in the Section for Relations with States of the Secretariat of State of the Holy See. He has also represented the Holy See at various international conferences and congresses.
Born in Madrid in 1955, Maury holds a degree in Geography and History from the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters of the Autonomous University of Madrid, specialising in History of Art. He also holds a degree in Dogmatic Theology from the Pontifical University of Salamanca and a doctorate in Canon Law from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas in Urbe (Angelicum) in Rome.
He studied Philosophy and Theology at the Conciliar Seminary in Madrid and was ordained priest on 26 June 1980 in the parish of San Francisco de Borja.
