Booth, William

(1829–1912)

   Order Founder and Philanthropist.

   Booth was born in Nottingham. As a young man he served as a preacher for the Methodist New Connection Church, but he left in 1861. With his wife, Catherine, he started a mission in the East End of London in 1865, which was the starting point of the Salvation Army. This rapidly became an international organisation. Booth was its first General and it was organised on militaristic lines with uniforms, brass bands, military ranks and the requirement of ‘unquestioning obedience’. It presents an evangelical form of Christianity, and conversions are encouraged at mass meetings. Its philanthropic activities are remarkable. It maintains hostels, hospitals, schools, night shelters, soup kitchens and missing person bureaux. Booth and his children carried the organisation from Britain to the United States, Australia, Europe and India. His book, In Darkest England – And the Way Out, published in 1890, did much to publicise the deplorable social conditions in which the poor lived. When he died in 1912, there were sixteen thousand serving of- ficers in the Army. Since 1931, the General has been elected by a High Council, but the organisation’s commitment to the improvement of society has continued unabated.

   William Booth, In Darkest England – And the Way Out, 6th edition (1970);

   R. Collier, The General Next to God (1965);

   R. Sandall The History of the Salvation Army, 3 vols (1947–55).