A Conservative peer who is provost of Oriel College, Oxford will be the new chairman of Historic England.
Lord Mendoza, who was appointed to the role by Lucy Frazer, the culture secretary, is a former banker and businessman with a long track record of participation in heritage and the arts.
Mendoza served for three years as a commissioner of Historic England and has been a commissioner for culture at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) since 2020.
• Historic England: Snapshots of history from on high
He will also bring experience of divisive historical issues from his years at Oriel, where he dealt with controversy over its statue of the imperialist businessman Cecil Rhodes.