| Sunbury Court | |
|---|---|
 Sunbury Court (South West elevation). | |
| Location | Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey |
| Coordinates | 51°24′35″N0°23′45″W / 51.40972°N 0.39583°W [1] |
| Built | 1723 |
| Built for | John Witt |
| Current use | The Salvation Army |
| Owner | The Salvation Army |
Sunbury Court is a historic building in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, England. Since the 1920s the court has been owned by The Salvation Army and has been the meeting place of the High Council of The Salvation Army
The grounds used to be part of a larger estate that contained the Royal Manor of Kempton, a mansion frequented by Henry III, Edward I, and Edward II in the 13th and 14th centuries. [2] But the Royal Manon of Kempton was destroyed in 1374. [3]
In 1723 John Witt built the structure that exists today. The estate expanded more than one hundred acres along the Thames River. Witt sold the estate in 1735, and again in 1751 and 1755 by Anna Maria Delegard. In 1764 Delegard married George Fermor, who took ownership of the court until 1799. Between 1799 and 1863, the owners of the court refurbished the estate, including adding new wings to the building. Sunbury Court's last private owner was William Horatio Harfield. After Hatfield's death, the property was vacant for two decades until The Salvation Army purchased the property in 1921. [2]
The Salvation Army uses the venue to host the High Council, a group whose sole purpose is to elect the General of the Salvation Army. [4] British law requires that the High Council meets in the United Kingdom, although it does not specify where. [5] The first High Council met at Sunbury Court in 1929 for the purpose of determining whether General Bramwell Booth was unfit to remain general (or leader of the organisation) after he had fallen ill. [6] The most recent High Council met in May 2023 and elected Lyndon Buckingham as general of the Salvation Army. [7] All of the Army's High Councils have been held at Sunbury court except to elect generals Evangeline Booth in 1934, George Carpenter in 1939, and Andre Cox in 2013. [5]
Outside the High Council, the court serves as a conference center for Salvation Army activities. [8] In the 1990s, the Army expanded the court by adding an additional board room and housing for guests. [9]
In 1961 Emil Soderstrom authored a marched titled "Sunbury Court," in honor of the court. [10]
The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. It is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. The organisation reports a worldwide membership of over 1.7 million, consisting of soldiers, officers, and adherents who are collectively known as salvationists. Its founders sought to bring salvation to the poor, destitute, and hungry by meeting both their "physical and spiritual needs". It is present in 133 countries, running charity shops, operating shelters for the homeless, and disaster relief and humanitarian aid to developing countries.
Hampton is a suburb of Greater London on the north bank of the River Thames, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England, and the historic county of Middlesex. Hampton is bounded by Bushy Park to the east, the suburbs of Hampton Hill and Fulwell to the north, green belt to the west, and the Thames to the south.
Spelthorne is a local government district with borough status in Surrey, England. Its council is based in Staines-upon-Thames; other settlements in the area include Ashford, Sunbury-on-Thames, Shepperton, Stanwell and Laleham. It is named after the medieval Spelthorne Hundred which had covered the area.
Sunbury-on-Thames, known locally as Sunbury, is a town on the north bank of the River Thames in the Borough of Spelthorne, Surrey, England, 13 mi (21 km) southwest of central London. Historically part of the county of Middlesex, in 1965 Sunbury and other surrounding towns were initially intended to form part of the newly created county of Greater London, but were instead transferred to Surrey. Sunbury adjoins Feltham to the north, Hampton to the east, Ashford to the northwest and Shepperton to the southwest. Walton-on-Thames is to the south, on the opposite bank of the Thames.
Ashford is a town in Spelthorne, in Surrey, England, including some areas within the London Borough of Hounslow. The town lies 14 mi (23 km) west of central London. Its name derives from a crossing point of the River Ash, a distributary of the River Colne. Historically part of Middlesex, the town has been part of Surrey since 1965. Ashford consists of relatively low density low- and medium-rise buildings, none of them being high rise. If excluding apartments most houses are semi-detached. In 2011 it had a population of 27,382.
Shepperton is a village in the Spelthorne district, in north Surrey, England, around 15 mi (24 km) south west of central London. The settlement is on the north bank of the River Thames, between the towns of Chertsey and Sunbury-on-Thames. The village is mentioned in a document of 959 AD and in the Domesday Book.
General is the title of the international leader and chief executive officer 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 organization, the general is purported to be chosen 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 organization'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. The council 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.
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.
Shaw Clifton was a Salvation Army Officer born to Salvation Army officer parents stationed in Northern Ireland, who served as the 18th General of the Salvation Army. He succeeded John Larsson on 2 April 2006.
The Shepperton branch line is a 6-mile-51-ch (10.7 km) railway branch line in Surrey and Greater London, England. It runs from its western terminus at Shepperton to a triangular junction with the Kingston loop line east of Fulwell. There are intermediate stations at Upper Halliford, Sunbury and Hampton. The branch also serves a dedicated station at Kempton Park racecourse. All six stations are managed by South Western Railway, which operates all passenger trains. Most services run between Shepperton and London Waterloo via Kingston, but during peak periods some run via Twickenham.
Kempton Park, England formerly an expanded manor known as Kempton, Kenton and other forms, today refers to the land owned by the Jockey Club: Kempton Park nature reserve and Kempton Park Racecourse in the Spelthorne district of Surrey. Today's landholding was the heart of, throughout the Medieval period, a private parkland – and its location along with its being a royal manor rather than ecclesiastic, or high-nobility manor led to some occasional residence by Henry III and three centuries later hunting among a much larger chase by Henry VIII and his short-reigned son, Edward VI.
Sunbury Court Island is a long, pedestrianised residential island of houses and bungalows in the River Thames in England on the 'Sunbury and Hampton' or 'Molesey' reach, above Molesey Lock in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, England.
Linda Bond is a former General of the Salvation Army; she was the 19th person to hold the position. She was born in Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada.
General André Cox is the former chief executive officer (CEO) and 20th General of The Salvation Army. He was commissioned as an Officer in The Salvation Army on 25 May 1979. He was elected to the position of General by the 18th High Council of The Salvation Army on 3 August 2013 and retired on 3 August 2018; he was succeeded by Brian Peddle.
General Brian Peddle was the 21st General of The Salvation Army from 3 August 2018 to 3 August 2023. He was formerly the 26th Chief of the Staff of The Salvation Army from 1 November 2015 until 3 August 2018 under General André Cox.
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 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 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.
