Catherine Bramwell-Booth
Encyclopedia
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, OF
Order of the Founder
In 1917, five years after the death of the founder of the Salvation Army William Booth, his son, General Bramwell Booth, inaugurated the Order of the Founder to recognise Salvationists who had rendered distinguished service, such as would have specially commended itself to the Founder. The first...
, born Catherine Booth Booth (20 July 1883 – 3 October 1987), Salvation Army
The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....
officer
Officer in The Salvation Army
An Officer in The Salvation Army is a Salvationist who is in essence a minister of the Christian faith, but who fulfills many other roles not usually fulfilled by clergy of other denominations...
, was one of seven children born to General
Generals of The Salvation Army
thumbnail|left|1st General, William BoothGeneral is the title of the international leader of The Salvation Army, a Christian denomination with extensive charitable social services that gives quasi-military rank to its ministers .Usage of the term General began with the Founder of The Salvation...
Bramwell Booth
Bramwell Booth
Bramwell Booth, CH was the first Chief of Staff and the second General of The Salvation Army , succeeding his father, William Booth.-Biography:...
and Florence Eleanor Soper
Florence Eleanor Soper
Florence Eleanor Soper was the wife of Bramwell Booth, Second General of The Salvation Army.- Early life :...
, and was the granddaughter of the Salvation Army's Founder, General William Booth
William Booth
William Booth was a British Methodist preacher who founded The Salvation Army and became its first General...
and his wife Catherine Mumford
Catherine Booth
Catherine Booth was the wife of the founder of The Salvation Army, William Booth. Because of her influence in the formation of The Salvation Army she was known as the 'Army Mother'....
, the 'Mother of the Salvation Army'. In her later years Bramwell-Booth became well-known through her books and various radio and television appearances. She lived to be 104.
Early years
At birth she was dedicated by her grandfather, GeneralGenerals of The Salvation Army
thumbnail|left|1st General, William BoothGeneral is the title of the international leader of The Salvation Army, a Christian denomination with extensive charitable social services that gives quasi-military rank to its ministers .Usage of the term General began with the Founder of The Salvation...
William Booth
William Booth
William Booth was a British Methodist preacher who founded The Salvation Army and became its first General...
, and from her infancy she was involved in the demands which the Salvation Army service made upon her parents, being taken with them to their various appointments whenever their busy schedules required it. More settled periods during her childhood were spent at Hadley Wood
Hadley Wood
Hadley Wood is a suburb of North London, close to the border with Hertfordshire. It is located in the London Borough of Enfield, about north north-west of Charing Cross and is situated close to Barnet...
, which was ‘so perfect that I have never written about it, as no-one would believe me’. Her mother, Florence Eleanor Soper
Florence Eleanor Soper
Florence Eleanor Soper was the wife of Bramwell Booth, Second General of The Salvation Army.- Early life :...
, disapproved of outside influences acting on the tender minds of her children and taught them all herself for two hours every morning. Her own involvement in Army service began in the Corps at High Barnet, playing in the band and singing trios with her sisters in the open-air meetings. She was sworn-in as a Salvation Army soldier
Soldier in The Salvation Army
A soldier is a Salvationist who is at least 14 years of age and has, with the approval of The Salvation Army Pastoral Care Council in each local Salvation Army corps , been enrolled as a warrior in the Christian denomination - The Salvation Army - after signing the Salvation Army Articles of War...
on her 15th birthday and was later given responsibility for the newly-formed 'Band of Love'.
The Salvation Army officer
In her late teens she became aware of the call to officershipOfficer in The Salvation Army
An Officer in The Salvation Army is a Salvationist who is in essence a minister of the Christian faith, but who fulfills many other roles not usually fulfilled by clergy of other denominations...
but her natural shyness made her reluctant to respond; however, eventually realising that God's power would help her, she added her father's Christian name
Given name
A given name, in Western contexts often referred to as a first name, is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name...
to her surname and entered the Salvation Army Training College at Clapton in 1903, aged 19. She was a lively cadet with a great sense of fun but she also applied herself to training. Later, as a cadet-sergeant, she was remembered for her individual care of cadets.
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
work. In 1904 she joined her grandfather, General Booth
William Booth
William Booth was a British Methodist preacher who founded The Salvation Army and became its first General...
, as he travelled in a motorcade
Motorcade
A motorcade is a procession of vehicles. The term motorcade was coined by Lyle Abbot , and is formed after cavalcade on the false notion that "-cade" was a suffix meaning "procession"...
around the country, preaching from his car in village and town centres. From 1907 to 1917 she was involved in the training of women officers at the Army's International Training College in Clapton
Lower Clapton
Lower Clapton is a district within the London Borough of Hackney.It is immediately adjacent to central Hackney - bounded, roughly, by the western side of Hackney Downs , the Lea Valley , Clifden Road and the Lea Bridge Road...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
In 1913 she preached in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and in 1917 made headlines when she led a rescue team into the area devastated by the Silvertown
Silvertown
Silvertown is an industrialised district on the north bank of the Thames in the London Borough of Newham. It was named after Samuel Winkworth Silver's former rubber factory which opened in 1852, and is now dominated by the Tate & Lyle sugar refinery and the John Knight ABP animal rendering...
TNT explosion
Silvertown explosion
The Silvertown explosion occurred in Silvertown in West Ham, Essex on Friday, 19 January 1917 at 6.52 pm. The blast occurred at a munitions factory that was manufacturing explosives for Britain's World War I military effort...
at the Brunner-Mond munitions factory in what has become known as the Silvertown explosion
Silvertown explosion
The Silvertown explosion occurred in Silvertown in West Ham, Essex on Friday, 19 January 1917 at 6.52 pm. The blast occurred at a munitions factory that was manufacturing explosives for Britain's World War I military effort...
, when seventy-three people died and hundreds were injured. Later, she was to be involved with relief work in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
after both World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
She left the International Training College in 1917 to become the Under Secretary for Europe for Salvation Army work in Europe, being attached to the International Headquarters
International Headquarters of The Salvation Army
The International Headquarters of the Salvation Army is located in London at 101 Queen Victoria Street, EC4P 4EP.This is a modern building on a site used by the Army for its headquarters since 1881.-External links:*...
in London. In 1926 she was promoted to Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
, and from then until 1946 she was in charge of the Army's social work among women in Great Britain. In 1927 she was promoted to Commissioner
Commissioner
Commissioner is in principle the title given to a member of a commission or to an individual who has been given a commission ....
, and became closely involved in the Salvation Army's social welfare activities, dealing with everything from orphaned children to the elderly residents of the Salvation Army eventide homes. From 1946 she was international secretary for Europe until her retirement in 1948.
Bramwell-Booth was nominated three times for the generalship of the Salvation Army, in 1934, 1939, and 1946. However, on each occasion she was unsuccessful, it possibly being felt that leadership of the Salvation Army should not appear to be exclusive to the Booth 'dynasty', as both her father and aunt Evangeline Booth
Evangeline Booth
General Evangeline Cory Booth was the 4th General of the Salvation Army from 1934 to 1939. She was its first female General.-Early life:...
had previously been Generals.
Later life
Bramwell-Booth wrote several books, including biographies of her grandmother, Catherine MumfordCatherine Booth
Catherine Booth was the wife of the founder of The Salvation Army, William Booth. Because of her influence in the formation of The Salvation Army she was known as the 'Army Mother'....
, and of her father Bramwell Booth
Bramwell Booth
Bramwell Booth, CH was the first Chief of Staff and the second General of The Salvation Army , succeeding his father, William Booth.-Biography:...
. This brought her a certain fame, and, because of her engaging personality, during the 1970s and 1980s she made frequent appearances on radio and television programmes, being interviewed by, among others, Malcolm Muggeridge
Malcolm Muggeridge
Thomas Malcolm Muggeridge was an English journalist, author, media personality, and satirist. During World War II, he was a soldier and a spy...
, Russell Harty
Russell Harty
Russell Harty was an English television presenter of arts programmes and chat shows.-Early life:Born Frederick Russell Harty in Blackburn, Lancashire, he was the son of a fruit and vegetable stallholder on the local market...
and Roy Plomley
Roy Plomley
Francis Roy Plomley , OBE was an English radio broadcaster, producer, playwright and novelist.-Early life:Plomley was the son of a pharmacist and was educated at King's College School, Wimbledon...
on Desert Island Discs
Desert Island Discs
Desert Island Discs is a BBC Radio 4 programme first broadcast on 29 January 1942. It is the second longest-running radio programme , and is the longest-running factual programme in the history of radio...
in 1979. She reached her greatest audience through her appearance on Parkinson
Parkinson (TV series)
Parkinson is a British television talk show that was presented by Sir Michael Parkinson. It was first shown on the BBC from 1971 to 2004, and on ITV from 2004 to 2007.-Background:...
, hosted by Michael Parkinson
Michael Parkinson
Sir Michael Parkinson, CBE is an English broadcaster, journalist and author. He presented his interview programme, Parkinson, from 1971 to 1982 and from 1998 to 2007.- Early life :...
. In 1971 she was appointed CBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, and in 1977, at the age of 93, as a life long teetotaller, she was delighted to receive the Guild of Professional Toastmasters best speaker award. She was presented with the Humanitarian Award of 1981 by the Variety Clubs International
Variety, the Children's Charity
Variety, the Children's Charity is an organisation founded in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on October 10, 1927, when a group of eleven men involved in show business set up a social club which they named the "Variety Club". On Christmas Eve 1928, a small baby was left on the steps the Sheridan Square...
, and in 1983 was awarded the Salvation Army's prestigious 'Order of the Founder
Order of the Founder
In 1917, five years after the death of the founder of the Salvation Army William Booth, his son, General Bramwell Booth, inaugurated the Order of the Founder to recognise Salvationists who had rendered distinguished service, such as would have specially commended itself to the Founder. The first...
' (OF).
Bramwell-Booth died at the age of 104 on 4 October 1987 at her home, North Court, in Finchampstead
Finchampstead
Finchampstead is a civil parish near Wokingham in the English county of Berkshire. Its northern extremity is situated south of Wokingham, west of Bracknell, south-east of Reading, and west of Central London.-Geography:...
, Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
, where she lived with two of her sisters. She never married.
Publications
- Bramwell-Booth, Catherine: 'Bramwell Booth' Pub. by Rich and Cowan, 1933.
- Bramwell-Booth, Catherine: 'Catherine Booth: the Story of Her Loves' Pub. by Hodder & Stoughton, London, 1970.
- Bramwell-Booth, Catherine: 'Fighting for the King' Pub. by Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1983.
- Bramwell-Booth, Catherine: 'Letters: Catherine Bramwell-Booth' Pub. by Lion, 1986.
- Bramwell-Booth, Catherine, with Ted Harrison: 'Commissioner Catherine' Pub. by Darton, Longman and Todd, London, 1983.
Books about Bramwell-Booth
- Batchelor, Mary: 'Catherine Bramwell-Booth' Pub. by Lion, 1986.
- Swift, Catherine M.: 'Catherine Bramwell-Booth' Pub. by Marshall Pickering, 1989.