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.
Commissioners are given the rank for a number of reasons, being given command of a Territory being the most common. [1] Other reasons may include appointments to International Headquarters Secretarial positions or other top roles [2] and less commonly other high-responsibility positions throughout the world.
All active Commissioners are called upon to take part in The Salvation Army High Council [3] 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. [4]
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.
William Booth was an English Methodist preacher who, along with his wife, Catherine, founded the Salvation Army and became its first General (1878–1912). The Christian movement with a quasi-military structure and government founded in 1865 has spread from London to many parts of the world and is known for being one of the largest distributors of humanitarian aid.
General is the title of the international leader and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Salvation Army, a Christian denomination with extensive charitable social services that gives quasi-military rank to its ministers. The General is elected by the High Council of The Salvation Army and serves a term of five years, which may be extended to seven years. According to the organisation, the General is purported to be appointed by God, and the council identifies that person. Lyndon Buckingham is the current general, who assumed office on 3 August 2023 upon the retirement of Brian Peddle. The organisation's founder, William Booth, was the first and longest-serving general. There have been 22 generals as of 2023.
The High Council of The Salvation Army elects a new General in the event of a vacancy or prior to the retirement of the existing office holder. It can also remove a General who can no longer fulfil their duties. It is made up of the Chief of the Staff, active commissioners who are territorial commanders or who hold an international or national headquarters or territorial leadership appointment, territorial commanders with the rank of colonel, and territorial leaders with the rank of colonel. It is not a governing body of the Salvation Army, and is regarded as having no continuity of existence between meetings.
The Chief of the Staff of The Salvation Army is a Commissioner appointed by the General of The Salvation Army as the second in command internationally. The Chief of the Staff is stationed at International Headquarters in London.
William Bramwell Booth, CH was a Salvation Army officer, Christian and British charity worker who was the first Chief of Staff (1881–1912) and the second General of The Salvation Army (1912–1929), succeeding his father, William Booth.
Evangeline Cory Booth, OF 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.
Edward John Higgins was the third General of The Salvation Army (1929–1934).
Bramwell Harold Tillsley was a Canadian salvationist and writer, who was the 14th General of The Salvation Army (1993–1994). General Tillsley died on Saturday, November 2, 2019, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Commissioner Catherine Bramwell-Booth, born Catherine Booth Booth, Salvation Army officer, was one of seven children born to General Bramwell Booth and Florence Eleanor Soper, and was the granddaughter of the Salvation Army's Founder, General William Booth and his wife Catherine Mumford, known as the 'Mother of the Salvation Army'. In her later years Bramwell-Booth became well-known through her books and various radio and television appearances. Bramwell-Booth lived to be 104.
George Scott Railton was a Scottish-born Christian missioner who was the first Commissioner of The Salvation Army.
Commissioner Thomas Henry Howard OF 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.
Commissioner Frederick St. George de Lautour Booth-Tucker, 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 founders.
Commissioner Charles Henry Jeffries was a British pioneer Salvationist and notable convert, after he left the Skeleton Army and attained the third highest rank possible as an Officer in The Salvation Army.
An officer in The Salvation Army is a Salvationist who is an ordained minister of the Christian faith, but who fulfills many other roles not usually filled by clergy of other denominations. They do so having been trained, ordained and commissioned to serve and lead and given a title which uses the terms of typical military rank.
Commissioner John Lawley 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 Salvation Army in 1877 when it was still called The Christian Mission. He was aide-de-camp to General William Booth from 1890 to 1912 as well as to General Bramwell Booth from 1912 to 1921.
Commissioner William Ridsdel 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 Salvation Army in 1873 when it was still called The Christian Mission.
Lyndon Vernon Wayne Buckingham is a Salvation Army officer and Christian minister from New Zealand, currently serving as the General of The Salvation Army since 3 August 2023. He is the first person from New Zealand to hold the office.
The Salvation Army Act of 1980 is the legislation that governs the International Headquarters of The Salvation Army. The act limits and regulates the authority of the general of The Salvation Army, who serves as the organisation's chief executive officer (CEO). The legislation gained royal assent from Elizabeth II on 1 August 1980 and took immediate effect.
The Salvation Army Act of 1931 was an act of the parliament of the United Kingdom that was passed in 1931. Until it was amended in 1963 and again in 1980, the legislation governed the International Headquarters of The Salvation Army. The act limited and regulated the authority of the general of The Salvation Army, who serves as the organisation's chief executive officer (CEO), and removed his ability to act as the sole owner of Salvation Army trusts. The legislation gained royal assent from George V on 31 July 1931 and took immediate effect.
Henry Mapp was a British minister and Salvation Army officer who served as the 4th Chief of the Staff of The Salvation Army.
