December 16, 1714

Gloucester, England

September 30, 1770

Newburyport, Massachusetts

Evangelical preacher and leader of the Great
Awakening

Portrait: George Whitefield. Reproduced by permission of Archive Photos, Inc.

"I drove 15 mad."

George Whitefield.

George Whitefield (pronounced Whitfield) was an Anglican minister and leader of the early Methodist movement. Although he was ordained in the Anglican Church (also known as the Church of England, the official religion of the country), he preached Calvinist methodism to people of all Christian denominations in England, Scotland, Ireland, and America. (Calvinism is a religion that placed strong emphasis on the supreme power of God, the sinfulness of humankind, and the doctrine of predestination, which states that all human events are controlled by God.) Embarking on a series of evangelical revivals, he used improved transportation and a developing communications network to spread his message. In public he set aside his sweet and gentle personality to become...