The rank of Commissioner in The Salvation Army is the second highest rank attainable by Officers in the organisation, and many of the Army's Territorial Commanders and even the Chief of the Staff hold this rank (the highest rank in The Salvation Army, the rank of General, is by election). The rank of Commissioner has been an active rank since 1880, and is one of the original ranks created by General William Booth, the first appointed Commissioner being George Scott Railton.

Purpose

Commissioners are given the rank for a number of reasons, being given command of a Territory being the most common. Other reasons may include appointments to International Headquarters Secretarial positions or other top roles and less commonly other high-responsibility positions throughout the world. All active Commissioners are called upon to take part in The Salvation Army High CouncilHow a High Council Works
/ref> in which a new General is elected upon the pending retirement or removal of the previous General. Notably, the only time a General has been forcibly removed from office was at the first High Council in 1929 when Bramwell Booth was deposed. In 1984, spouses of Commissioners, who previously were not promoted to that rank when their partners were, were given the rank in their own right, effectively increasing the amount of Commissioners by two-thirds.

Notable Commissioners

Theodore Kitching Commissioner Theodore Hopkins Kitching CBE (29 December 1866 – 10 February 1930) was a prominent officer in The Salvation Army, acting as Secretary and confidant to Generals William Booth and Bramwell Booth, and was The Salvation Army's I ...

* George Scott Railton *

Frederick Booth-Tucker Commissioner Frederick St. George de Lautour Booth-Tucker, (21 March 1853 – 17 July 1929) was a senior Salvation Army officer of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and the son-in-law of Willam and Catherine Booth, the Army's f ...

Arthur Booth-Clibborn Commissioner Arthur Sydney Booth-Clibborn (''né'' Clibborn) (1855 – 20 February 1939) was a pioneering Salvation Army officer in France and Switzerland. He was the husband of Kate Booth, the oldest daughter of General William and Catherine ...

* Charles Jeffries *

Elijah Cadman Commissioner in The Salvation Army, Commissioner Elijah Cadman (10 December 1843 – 12 December 1927) was an Evangelicalism, evangelist, an early member of The Salvation Army and the originator of the idea that Officer of The Salvation Army, Sal ...

* Israel Gaither *

Samuel Logan Brengle Samuel Logan Brengle (1 June 1860 – 19 May 1936) was a Commissioner in The Salvation Army and a leading author, teacher and preacher on the doctrine of Holiness. His books include ''The Soul Winner's Secret, Helps to Holiness'' and ''Heart ...

* Catherine Bramwell-Booth *

T. Henry Howard Commissioner Thomas Henry Howard OF (July 17, 1849 – July 1, 1923) was the Second Chief of the Staff of The Salvation Army, succeeding Bramwell Booth on his appointment as General on the death of his father William Booth in 1912. Biograph ...

John Lawley Commissioner John Lawley (31 December 1859–9 September 1922) was a Commissioner in The Salvation Army, the second highest rank attainable by Officers in the organisation, and the highest 'appointed' rank. An early Salvationist, he joined The ...

* William Ridsdel * Helen Clifton * Barry Swanson *

William A. Roberts Commissioner William A. Roberts (born 26 February 1946) is a retired American Salvation Army officer who served as the Chief of the Staff of The Salvation Army from October 2013 to November 2015 under General Andre Cox. Commissioned as an offic ...

* Walter Stanley Cottrill * Anna Hannevik * Harry Read

References

{{reflist The Salvation Army

Purpose

Notable Commissioners

See also

References