`BEGINNINGS`

In 1865, the East London Special Services Committee asked the Reverend William Booth to conduct a series of evangelistic meetings in a tent erected on Mile End Road.

Booth had already been looking for a ministry and was preaching on the streets of the East End. He soon realized that this was his destiny. The beginning of these meetings, July 2, 1865, is considered the birth of The Salvation Army.

These meetings met with immediate success and, when the Special Service Committee's support expired, Booth formed a committee of his own backers as a Christian Revival Union.

Booth's intention was to send his converts to the churches. However, his desperately poor converts were neither welcomed by, nor comfortable with the members of the middle and upper class churches of London. He was not willing to abandon his spiritual children and formed them into congregations. The organization, which had been known variously as the East London Christian Revival Association, Society, or Union, took the name East London Christian Mission in 1867.

The work continued to spread rapidly. In 1868, the first Mission station outside of East London was established. In 1869, two stations were opened outside of London, and by the end of the year "East London" was dropped from the name of The Christian Mission.

Despite strong opposition to its aggressive methods and uncompromising message, The Christian Mission spread rapidly through England. Although the Mission had been organized on the Methodist model, military terms (which were popular in the general culture) were much used in its work. In 1878, the last Conference of The Christian Mission, tired of government by committee, transferred all of its powers to the General Superintendent, William Booth. By the end of the year, The Christian Mission had become The Salvation Army, and the General Superintendent was the "General". The adoption of military terminology and organization followed rapidly.

Founders

`Salvation Army history`

The Army comes to America

• Founders • Beginnings • The Army comes to America • National developments • International developments• Sources • International Heritage Centre website