81 Facts About Randall Davidson

Randall Davidson was the longest-serving holder of the office since the Reformation, and the first to retire from it.

Randall Davidson was ordained in 1874, and, after a brief spell as a curate, he became chaplain and secretary to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Archibald Campbell Tait, in which post he became a confidant of Queen Victoria.

Randall Davidson rose through the church hierarchy, becoming Dean of Windsor, Bishop of Rochester and Bishop of Winchester.

Randall Davidson was conciliatory by nature, and spent much time throughout his term of office striving to keep the church together in the face of deep and sometimes acrimonious divisions between evangelicals and Anglo-Catholics.

Randall Davidson was a consistent advocate of Christian unity, and worked, often closely, with other religious leaders throughout his primacy.

Randall Davidson was born in Edinburgh on 7 April 1848, the eldest of the four children of Henry Randall Davidson, a prosperous grain merchant, and his wife Henrietta, nee Swinton.

Randall Davidson was educated by his mother and a succession of governesses and private tutors, before being sent, aged 12, to a small private school at Worksop in the English Midlands.

The teaching there was inadequate; in particular, Randall Davidson regretted all his life his lack of grounding in Latin and Greek.

In 1862, at the age of 14, Randall Davidson became a pupil at Harrow School.

Randall Davidson was inspired by Butler's sermons and by Westcott's wide-ranging instruction on topics from architecture and poetry to philosophy and history.

Randall Davidson went up as a commoner to Trinity College, Oxford, in October 1867.

The college was undistinguished at the time, and Randall Davidson found the Trinity faculty disappointingly mediocre.

Randall Davidson's health affected his studies; he had hoped to study Greats, but as a result of his injuries he had, he later said, "intense difficulty in concentrating thought on books" and opted for the less demanding subjects of law and history.

Randall Davidson graduated with a third class Bachelor of Arts degree, conferred in November 1871.

Randall Davidson's health was still precarious, and after three months he was obliged to abandon his studies.

Late in 1876 Craufurd Tait, who was working as his father's resident chaplain and private secretary, wished to move on and the Archbishop chose Randall Davidson to succeed him.

In May 1877 Randall Davidson began work at Lambeth Palace, the Archbishop's home and headquarters, beginning what Bell describes as "an association with the central life of the Church of England which lasted more than fifty years".

On 12 November 1878 Randall Davidson married Edith Murdoch Tait, the nineteen-year-old second daughter of the Archbishop.

Edith Randall Davidson became known as a gracious hostess and a supportive wife.

Randall Davidson grew to know Tait's mind thoroughly, and the Archbishop placed complete confidence in his son-in-law, delegating more and more to him.

Randall Davidson took the lead on Tait's behalf in the controversy in 1881 between high-church proponents and evangelical opponents of ritualism; in 1882 he played an important part in discouraging Anglican overtures to the Salvation Army, an organisation in which he thought too much power was in the hands of its general.

Tait did not think it correct to make his preference known to Queen Victoria or the Prime Minister, W E Gladstone, but after Tait's death in December 1882 Davidson ensured that the Archbishop's views became known to the Queen.

Randall Davidson remained at Lambeth Palace as chaplain and secretary to Benson, but in May 1883 the new Dean of Windsor, George Connor, died suddenly after only a few months in office.

Randall Davidson became increasingly attached to him; they developed closer personal relations after the death of her youngest son, Leopold, Duke of Albany, in March 1884.

Randall Davidson wrote in his diary, "There is a good deal more difficulty in dealing with a spoilt child of sixty or seventy than with a spoilt child of six or seven", but he later said, "my belief is that she liked and trusted best those who occasionally incurred her wrath, provided that she had reason to think their motives good".

Randall Davidson's biographers cite his tactful but resolute counsel that Victoria would be imprudent to publish another volume of her Leaves from the Journal of a Life in the Highlands.

Randall Davidson helped to influence church and public opinion by writing in The Times; he helped Benson by liaising with Lord Halifax, a prominent Anglo-Catholic layman.

Randall Davidson was offered the choice between two vacant dioceses: Worcester and Rochester.

Randall Davidson chose it in preference to Worcester, explaining to the Prime Minister, Lord Salisbury, that from his years at Lambeth he knew the area and its clergy so well that he was certain he could do more there than in Worcester, which he hardly knew.

Eleven days later Randall Davidson fell dangerously ill from a perforated ulcer, and was confined to his house in Kennington for six months.

Randall Davidson's politics were not radical; he did not join the Christian Social Union set up by Westcott and others in 1889 to bring the tenets of Christianity to national economic and social affairs.

Randall Davidson focused on the role of the church: Christian charity, he believed, required it to do everything possible to help relieve the poor.

Randall Davidson relished the ability to contribute to debates, but he had suffered three more spells of illness during his four years in south London, and it became plain that his health was too poor for him to continue in the exceptionally demanding post of Bishop of Rochester.

In 1895 Randall Davidson accepted the offer of translation to the largely rural diocese of Winchester, where the workload was less onerous.

Randall Davidson renewed his regular contact with the Queen, who spent much time in the diocese, at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight.

Randall Davidson greatly regretted his sudden exclusion from national church affairs.

Randall Davidson discovered that Dolling had installed a third altar at his newly built church, to be reserved for masses for the dead.

Randall Davidson saw Dolling and tried to reach a compromise that would bring the latter's practices within Anglican rules.

Randall Davidson's supporters were critical of Davidson; Mews cites a high-church journalist who concluded that the episode left its mark on Davidson "in forming his determination not to be the archbishop who drove the high-church party out of the Church of England".

Randall Davidson was at the bedside of the dying Queen Victoria, and played a major role in the arrangements for her funeral in early 1901.

Randall Davidson spoke frequently in the House of Lords, particularly on such topics as education, child protection, alcohol licensing, and working hours in shops.

Randall Davidson involved himself when he could in national church policy.

Behind the scenes, Randall Davidson was a key contributor to the coronation of Edward VII in August 1902; the Dean of Westminster was ill, and Randall Davidson was called on to arrange the order of service and to act as the link between Buckingham Palace and Lambeth Palace.

When Temple was appointed in 1896 there had been three candidates under consideration for the Archbishopric; in 1902 Randall Davidson was the only one.

Randall Davidson was enthroned at Canterbury on 12 February 1903.

Randall Davidson was a prime mover in efforts to update the Book of Common Prayer to make it comprehensible to 20th century congregations, and he aimed to accommodate all the clergy of the Church of England within Anglican doctrine, bringing the few high-church extremists back into obedience to church rules.

Randall Davidson was neither a diehard conservative nor an adventurous reformer, but steered a middle course.

Randall Davidson met many church leaders in the US and Canada, and established closer links between the Anglican churches of England and North America.

In 1907 Randall Davidson disappointed some Liberals by not explicitly backing state old-age pensions, but he declined to do so merely in the abstract, insisting on detailed proposals before expressing support.

Randall Davidson was much more forthcoming on atrocities by the Belgians in the Congo and the Bulgarians in Macedonia, which he condemned vehemently.

In July and August 1908 Randall Davidson presided over the fifth Lambeth Conference of bishops from the world-wide Anglican communion; 241 bishops were present.

Randall Davidson, having unsuccessfully striven to bring the party leaders to compromise, voted for the bill.

Randall Davidson believed that were the bill not passed, the creation of what he called "a swamping majority" of peers would make Parliament and Britain a worldwide laughing-stock, and would have grave constitutional implications for church and state.

On 22 June 1911, Randall Davidson presided at the coronation of the new sovereign.

The service largely followed the form he had arranged for the 1902 service, except for a revised coronation oath, less offensive to the King's Roman Catholic subjects, and Randall Davidson's crowning of both King George and Queen Mary.

Randall Davidson was backed by the Bishop of Oxford, Charles Gore, the most vociferous of the Anglo-Catholic bishops.

The outbreak of the First World War was a severe shock to Randall Davidson, who had held that war between Britain and Germany was inconceivable.

Randall Davidson was reconciled to allowing clergy to serve as non-combatants, but not as combatants.

Randall Davidson donated to a fund to help Germans and Austro-Hungarians in Britain, where they were classed as enemy aliens.

Randall Davidson spoke against the death sentence passed on Sir Roger Casement for his part in the Easter Rising, and later condemned the violence of the Black and Tans.

Randall Davidson, who hated unnecessary conflict, was distressed by the controversy, and even considered resigning.

But, despite Henson's fear that the Archbishop might weaken, Randall Davidson stood by him, and the two agreed that Henson would issue a statement of faith to silence the critics.

Randall Davidson then stated publicly that no fair-minded man could read Henson's sermons without feeling that they had in him a brilliant and powerful teacher of the Christian faith.

The Enabling Act, strongly backed by Randall Davidson, gave the church the right to submit primary legislation for passage by Parliament.

Randall Davidson was against disestablishment, but Parliament finally voted for it in 1914 and after considerable delay it came into effect in 1922.

Randall Davidson expressed disapproval of the strike but called on the Government to act to end the industrial bitterness.

Randall Davidson wished to make the appeal known to the whole country by making a radio broadcast, but John Reith, the general manager of the BBC, refused to allow it, fearing reprisals from the government.

Randall Davidson considered that a modern Prayer-book would enrich Anglican services and make them relevant to 20th-century needs unforeseen when Cranmer and his colleagues wrote the original version in the 16th century.

Some of Randall Davidson's colleagues felt that Parliament's rejection of the Prayer-book would have grave consequences.

The historian Adrian Hastings writes that "by adroitness of manoeuvre and delay" Randall Davidson led his fellow bishops away from such a drastic outcome.

In June 1928 Randall Davidson announced his retirement, to take effect on 12 November.

Randall Davidson had served as Archbishop of Canterbury for longer than anyone since the Reformation.

Randall Davidson was the first holder of the post to retire, and to deal with this unprecedented event the King appointed a four-man commission to accept Davidson's formal resignation.

Randall Davidson died there on 25 May 1930, aged 82.

The Dean of Westminster offered interment in Westminster Abbey, but Randall Davidson had made it known that he hoped to be buried at Canterbury, and his wishes were followed.

Randall Davidson's widow died in June 1936, and was buried with him.

Bell's conclusion is that Randall Davidson "immensely increased the influence of the Anglican communion in Christendom, and he saw the Church of England taking far more of a world view than it had taken previously".

Randall Davidson's capacities were essentially those of a chairman, and a chairman of extraordinary fairness.

Randall Davidson was a most able administrator, while at the same time a man of great simplicity of character, and this won him the friendship and trust of men of widely different points of view.

Randall Davidson's achievement was to maintain the comprehensiveness of the Church of England and to ensure liberty of thought.

Randall Davidson maintained a Christian vision in British society at a time when international and class conflict could have obliterated institutional religion.