Religious Leader. Known as the "Prince of Preachers," Charles Spurgeon was among the most legendary ministers of the Christian Gospel in history. His theological viewpoints were largely Calvinistic, Reformed Baptist, and anti-Catholic. A world-renowned pastor at London's Metropolitan Tabernacle pulpit, Spurgeon preached eloquent, unforgettable, deeply-moving sermons to faithful Christians of all ages. In 1856, he was the founder of Spurgeon's College, an Evangelical school of historic significance in London, which is still in operation today. The college has supplied England with numerous pastors as well as missionaries around the world. He preached over 3,600 sermons in his lifetime, and penned nearly 50 Bible commentaries, which are in high circulation long after his passing and translated to numerous languages. Audiences would surpass over 10,000 at Exeter and Surrey Music Halls, where he led many to Christ as a result of his magnificently-delivered talks. At the close of 1857, a tragic event took place at Surrey Gardens Music Hall, when a visitor yelled, "Fire!" and a stampede resulted in several deaths. Spurgeon was devastated and mourned for the rest of his early life. Spurgeon's legacy has influenced hundreds of thousands of Christians worldwide, in many religious sects of the Protestant and Non-Denominational faiths. Born the oldest of seventeen children, he converted from Congregational to a fundamentalist Baptist minister, starting to preach at age sixteen. He distrusted the scientific methods and philological approach of modern Biblical criticism and, in 1887, left the increasingly-liberal Baptist Union. He married Susannah Thompson on January 8, 1856. In September of 1857, the couple became parents of twin sons. She supported her husband's efforts by obtaining monetary funds to supply 3,058 theological books to impoverished pastors by 1874, and nine years later, she distributed 71,000 more copies. He will be fondly remembered by all who were deeply moved by his works, and remain highly respected as one of the most noteworthy "giants of the faith" of times past. He suffered from painful arthritis and Bright's Disease before his death. "We shall soon have to handle truth, not with kid gloves, but with gauntlets, – the gauntlets of holy courage and integrity. Go on, ye warriors of the cross, for the King is at the head of you." - C.H. Spurgeon