This volume provides an authoritative account of evangelicalism from the 1790s to the 1840s, skilfully balancing British and American developments and also encompassing Canada, Australia, the West Indies and elsewhere.

An account of the formative impact of revivalism is followed by discussion of spirituality and worship, and the place of evangelicalism in the lives of women, men and the family. The book then explores the broader social and political impact of the movement, giving particular attention to the slavery question. Major figures, such as Lyman Beecher, Thomas Chalmers, Charles Finney, Hannah More and William Wilberforce, are surveyed alongside other fascinating, lesser-known personalities.

The concluding coverage of the 1846 London meeting of the Evangelical Alliance - one of the few grand gatherings of evangelicals from the Atlantic world and beyond - contributes key insights into the movement as a whole.