George Whitefield

George Whitefield (27 December 1714 – 30 September 1770), also known as George Whitfield, was an English Anglican minister and preacher who was one of the founders of Methodism and the evangelical movement. Born in Gloucester, he matriculated at Pembroke College, Oxford in 1732. There, he joined the "Holy Club" and was introduced to John and Charles Wesley, with whom he would work closely in his later ministry. Unlike the Wesleys, he embraced Calvinism.

Whitefield was ordained after receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree and immediately began preaching. He did not settle as the minister of any Church of England parish, but became an itinerant preacher and evangelist. In 1740, Whitefield traveled to British North America where he preached a series of Christian revivals that became part of the First Great Awakening. His methods were controversial, and he engaged in numerous debates and disputes with other clergymen.

Whitefield received widespread recognition during his ministry and is thought to have preached at least 18,000 times to perhaps ten million people in the British Empire.