- Home
- Speakers
- William Booth
- Salvation Army Marches And Evangelism
Salvation Army Marches and Evangelism
William Booth
William Booth (1829–1912). Born on April 10, 1829, in Sneinton, Nottingham, England, to Samuel and Mary Booth, William Booth was a British Methodist preacher and founder of The Salvation Army. Raised in poverty after his father’s bankruptcy, he apprenticed as a pawnbroker at 13 and converted to Methodism at 15, preaching to Nottingham’s poor by 17. In 1849, he moved to London, working as a pawnbroker and joining the Methodist New Connexion, ordained in 1858. Marrying Catherine Mumford in 1855, they had eight children, all active in ministry. Frustrated by church constraints, Booth left in 1861 to evangelize independently, founding The Christian Mission in London’s East End in 1865, renamed The Salvation Army in 1878. His fiery street preaching, military-style organization, and social reforms—like shelters and job programs—reached the destitute, growing the Army to 80 countries by his death. Booth authored In Darkest England and the Way Out (1890), advocating systemic aid for the poor, and published The War Cry newspaper. Knighted in 1907, he died on August 20, 1912, in London, saying, “While women weep, as they do now, I’ll fight; while men go to prison, in and out, in and out, as they do now, I’ll fight.”
Download
Topic
Sermon Summary
This sermon reflects on Salvationist meetings and the International Congress in London in 1904, showcasing the growth and expansion of the Army's activities over the years. It highlights the unity of different races in a common religious enthusiasm, as seen in the great march past at the Crystal Palace led by General William Bull.
Sermon Transcription
This is a typical London scene in perhaps 1904 or 5, showing a Salvationist meeting assembling outside a public house. Let us catch another glimpse of this world, half a century ago, in movement. This scene shows traffic outside the Mansion House in the City of London. Among the earliest motion pictures of the Army's activities that have been preserved are some scenes of the International Congress in London in the year 1904. Coming out of the Congress meeting are some of the puzzles who took part. The hall used was a temporary building in the Strand, specially erected for this purpose. A great expansion had taken place since the first Congress 20 years before. Years of consolidation in Britain and tremendous expansion into many other countries that had been invaded by the Army in those two decades. The General, accompanied by Commissioners Cadman, Pollard and Kitching, goes to the saluting base for the great march past. This took place at the Crystal Palace. The General acknowledged contingent after contingent from all parts of the world. To William Bull, taking the salute with such vigorous enthusiasm, the International Congress was an event of great importance, for he believed in associating all the races of the earth together in a common religious enthusiasm.
Salvation Army Marches and Evangelism
- Bio
- Summary
- Transcript
- Download
William Booth (1829–1912). Born on April 10, 1829, in Sneinton, Nottingham, England, to Samuel and Mary Booth, William Booth was a British Methodist preacher and founder of The Salvation Army. Raised in poverty after his father’s bankruptcy, he apprenticed as a pawnbroker at 13 and converted to Methodism at 15, preaching to Nottingham’s poor by 17. In 1849, he moved to London, working as a pawnbroker and joining the Methodist New Connexion, ordained in 1858. Marrying Catherine Mumford in 1855, they had eight children, all active in ministry. Frustrated by church constraints, Booth left in 1861 to evangelize independently, founding The Christian Mission in London’s East End in 1865, renamed The Salvation Army in 1878. His fiery street preaching, military-style organization, and social reforms—like shelters and job programs—reached the destitute, growing the Army to 80 countries by his death. Booth authored In Darkest England and the Way Out (1890), advocating systemic aid for the poor, and published The War Cry newspaper. Knighted in 1907, he died on August 20, 1912, in London, saying, “While women weep, as they do now, I’ll fight; while men go to prison, in and out, in and out, as they do now, I’ll fight.”