Randall Thomas Davidson, 1st Baron Davidson of Lambeth, GCVO, PC was an Anglican priest who was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1903 to 1928. He was the longest-serving holder of the office since the Reformation, and also the first to retire from it. Born in Edinburgh to a Scottish Presbyterian family, Davidson was educated at Harrow School, and at Trinity College, Oxford. He rose through the Church hierarchy, becoming Dean of Windsor, Bishop of Rochester and Bishop of Winchester.
About Randall Davidson in brief
Randall Thomas Davidson, 1st Baron Davidson of Lambeth, GCVO, PC was an Anglican priest who was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1903 to 1928. He was the longest-serving holder of the office since the Reformation, and also the first to retire from it. Born in Edinburgh to a Scottish Presbyterian family, Davidson was educated at Harrow School, and at Trinity College, Oxford. He rose through the Church hierarchy, becoming Dean of Windsor, Bishop of Rochester and Bishop of Winchester. In 1903 he succeeded Frederick Temple as Archbishop, and remained in office until his retirement in November 1928. Davidson was a consistent advocate of Christian unity, and worked, often closely, with other religious leaders throughout his primacy. On his retirement he was made a peer; he died at his home in London at the age of 82, eighteen months later. He had hoped to study at Oxford, but he had been injured in a rabbit-shooting accident. His chief aim was to complete his studies and go on to be ordained as a priest, but as a result of his injuries he had to drop out of the Greats as he had wanted to study liturgical literature. He died in London in 1936, aged 82. He is buried in St Paul’s Cathedral, London. He has a daughter, Margaret, who was a member of the Royal College of Physicians and Psychiatrists, and a son, Richard, who is a barrister. He also has a son and a daughter-in-law, both of whom are members of the House of Lords, and he is buried at St Paul’s, London, where he also served as a vicar until his death in 1936.
His great-grandfather, Henry Davidson, was a Presbyterian minister. His father, grandfather, and great- grandfather were Presbyterian ministers. His family was deeply religious without being solemn, and that it was a happy household. The family was, nonetheless, in Davidson’s words, ‘very undenominational … I have no recollection of receiving any teaching upon Churchmanship, either Episcopal or Presbyterian, the religion taught us being wholly of the personal sort but beautiful in its simplicity.’ He was inspired by Henry Montagu Butler, the headmaster, and Brooke Foss Westcott, his second housemaster. Davidson and Westcott became lifelong friends, and each came to turn to the other for advice. The school was Anglican in its religious teachings and practices, and Davidson took part in confirmation classes. In 1862, at the aged of 14, Davidson became a pupil atHarrow School. Scarlet fever prevented him from being confirmed in June 1865 at St George’s, Hanover Square by the Bishop of London, Archibald Campbell Tait, a longstanding friend of Henry Davidson. In the summer holidays of 1866, Davidson suffered an accident that affected the rest of his life. The wound was severe and could have been fatal, but Davidson slowly recovered. Although Davidson made an unexpectedly good recovery, the accident marred his chances to compete for several senior prizes at Oxford.
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