Editing Randall Davidson (section)

===Rochester===
By 1890 it was clear that despite the Queen's reluctance to lose him from Windsor, Davidson's promotion to a bishopric was overdue.<ref>Bell (Volume I), pp. 189–190</ref> He was offered the choice between two vacant dioceses: [[Anglican Diocese of Worcester|Worcester]] and [[Diocese of Rochester|Rochester]].<ref>Bell (Volume I), p. 193</ref> At the time – before the creation of the [[diocese of Southwark]] – Rochester included all London south of the [[River Thames]], and was the third-largest in England. 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.<ref>Bell (Volume I), p. 194</ref>

[[File:Randall-Davidson-1890.png|thumb|upright=0.6|left|alt=Bald white man in middle age, wearing clerical collar and black clothing|Davidson in 1890]]

In [[Westminster Abbey]] on 25 April 1891 Benson consecrated Davidson as a bishop.<ref name=con>"Consecration of New Bishops", ''The Times'', 27 April 1891, p. 6</ref> Eleven days later Davidson fell dangerously ill from a [[perforated ulcer]], and was confined to his house in [[Kennington]] for six months.<ref name=odnb/> His enthronement at [[Rochester Cathedral]] had to be postponed until October, when he was able to resume his work.<ref>"Enthronement of the Bishop of Rochester", ''[[The Morning Post]]'', 23 October 1891, p. 3</ref> During a miners' strike in 1893 he was prominent in pleading for a decent standard of living as an essential condition for the settlement of labour disputes. His politics were not radical; he did not join the [[Christian Social Union (UK)|Christian Social Union]] set up by Westcott and others in 1889 to bring the tenets of Christianity to national economic and social affairs.<ref name=h21>Hughes, p. 21</ref> He focused on the role of the church: Christian charity, he believed, required it to do everything possible to help relieve the poor. He rejected the idea that "in any department of social life&nbsp;... we can safely brush aside even for an hour the consideration of what Christ would have us do".<ref>Hughes, pp. 20–21</ref> Appointed [[Clerk of the Closet]] immediately after his consecration, he remained in close touch with Queen Victoria. He continued to be Benson's close and loyal ally in the work of the church, particularly during 1894–95 when Halifax and other high churchmen attempted to draw the Archbishop into negotiation with [[Roman Catholic Church|Rome]] to seek [[papal]] recognition of Anglican [[holy orders|orders]].{{refn|Davidson warned Halifax that a mere recognition of Anglican orders by the papacy would do nothing to overcome the deeper divisions between Rome and Canterbury.<ref>Hughes, p. 22</ref> Halifax's intervention had the reverse effect from the one he intended: [[Pope Leo XIII]] formally made the Vatican's position explicit, declaring Anglican orders null and void in the eyes of the Roman Catholic Church.<ref>Bell (Volume I), p. 237</ref>|group=n}}

In 1895, towards the end of his time in the diocese, Davidson's seniority as a bishop entitled him to a seat in the [[House of Lords]].{{refn|The 26 senior diocesan bishops sat, and (2023) still sit, as [[Lords Spiritual]] as opposed to [[Lords Temporal]].<ref>[https://www.parliament.uk/site-information/glossary/lords-spiritual-and-temporal/ "Lords Spiritual and Temporal] Parliament.co.uk. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191105225619/https://www.parliament.uk/site-information/glossary/lords-spiritual-and-temporal/ |date=5 November 2019 }}. Retrieved 8 December 2019</ref> Davidson succeeded to a seat on the death of [[James Atlay]], [[Bishop of Hereford]].<ref>Bell (Volume I), p. 241</ref>|group=n}} He 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.<ref name=dnb/>