In 1917, five years after the death of the founder of the

Salvation Army Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...

William Booth, his son, General Bramwell Booth, inaugurated the Order of the Founder to recognise

Salvationists The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestant church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. The organisation reports a worldwide membership of over 1.7million, comprising soldiers, officers and adherents col ...

who had rendered distinguished service, such as would have specially commended itself to the Founder.The Salvation Army Yearbook, 2010 pp. 35 The first awards were made in 1920 to 15 officers and one soldier. Three years later, seven officers and one local officer were honoured, but since then the awards have been made much more sparingly and, to date, 104 officers and 106 lay Salvationists have been recognised with the Army's highest honour, a mere 210 in total over 83 years. The first presentation was to a soldier, Private Herbert Bourne, for outstanding Christian witness and service during military service in the First World War. A few senior leaders like Commissioner

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 ...

, General

Evangeline Booth Evangeline Cory Booth, OF (December 25, 1865July 17, 1950) was a British evangelist and the 4th General of The Salvation Army from 1934 to 1939. She was the first woman to hold the post. Early life She was born in South Hackney, London, Engla ...

and Commissioner Catherine Bramwell-Booth have been picked out but, much more commonly, faithful and devoted service by less well known personalities has been acknowledged. Some of the early awards went to people in the United Kingdom, Australia, Indonesia, Russia, France and the United States, but very quickly recipients from Japan,

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

, Switzerland, Denmark, The Netherlands, China and Norway were picked out. New Zealand has probably had a higher than average recognition for the size of its population, but other territories such as Korea, South America West and Zimbabwe have also been featured. The honour is rarely given because every nomination is carefully and painstakingly scrutinised by a panel of senior leaders at IHQ. Salvationists have every reason to be proud of those who have been awarded this outstanding recognition for meritorious Christian example, witness and service. The recipients of the order are:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Order Of The Founder The Salvation Army Christian orders, decorations, and medals

See also

References