– 31 October 1790 near Philadelphia) was an American German Reformed clergyman.

Biography

Schlatter was educated at the gymnasium

Gymnasium (school)

A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...

 of St. Gallen, after which he was tutored in theology, and then proceeded to the University of Leyden and then the University of Helmstedt

University of Helmstedt

The University of Helmstedt, official Latin name: Academia Julia , was a university in Helmstedt in the Duchy of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel that existed from 1576 until 1810....

 in Brunswick

Duchy of Brunswick

Brunswick was a historical state in Germany. Originally the territory of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel in the Holy Roman Empire, it was established as an independent duchy by the Congress of Vienna in 1815...

. He then returned to his tutor for some time before being ordained in 1739. He taught for several years in Holland and then entered the German Reformed ministry. He officiated a few months in Switzerland, and then offered his services as a missionary to the German Reformed emigrants in Philadelphia in 1746, and went to Pennsylvania in that year, arriving on 6 August. He served as pastor of the united churches of Germantown and Philadelphia in 1746-51, organized a synod

Synod

A synod historically is a council of a church, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. In modern usage, the word often refers to the governing body of a particular church, whether its members are meeting or not...

 which met in Philadelphia in 1747, and made extended missionary tours among the German Reformed settlers in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

, Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

, Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

, New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

 and New York State.

In 1751, he returned to Europe to report on his work. In Amsterdam

Amsterdam

Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...

, he published (1751) a journal of his experiences and transactions in America, with an account of the Reformed congregations and their dearth of pastors. Of this book, he made a German translation (Frankfort, 1752), and afterward it was rendered into English by Rev. David Thomson, of Amsterdam, and distributed throughout Great Britain

Great Britain

Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

. As a result of Schlatter's appeal, £20,000 was raised in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and Holland for the establishment of free schools among the Germans in America. He also secured the assistance of six young preachers, and 700 Bible

Bible

The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...

s.

In March 1752, Schlatter returned to Philadelphia with the money and preachers, and in 1755 withdrew from his pastoral activities to become superintendent of the establishment of the schools among the Germans under the auspices of the Society for the Propagation of the Knowledge of God among the Germans, a group of people from 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...

, of whom William Smith

William Smith (Anglican priest)

William Smith was the first provost of the University of Pennsylvania.thumb|300px|right|Dr William Smith's residence as it appeared circa 1919-Biography:...

 was secretary. The schools were unpopular with the Germans, and in 1757 Schlatter resigned his superintendency. He then accepted an offer by Lord Loudoun

John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun

Major-General John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun was a British nobleman and army officer.-Early career:Campbell inherited the peerage on the death of his father in 1731, becoming Lord Loudoun. The earl raised a regiment of infantry that took part in the Jacobite Rising of 1745 on the side of the...

 to become chaplain of the Royal American regiment, which he accompanied on an expedition to Louisburg

Louisbourg Expedition (1757)

The Louisbourg Expedition was a failed British attempt to capture the French fortress of Louisbourg on Île Royale during the Seven Years' War ....

. He remained with the army until 1759, and then preached at Chestnut Hill

Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Chestnut Hill is a neighborhood in the Northwest Philadelphia section of the United States city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-Boundaries:Chestnut Hill is bounded as follows:...

 and surrounding places. In 1764 he was a chaplain to the 2nd Pennsylvania Battalion under Henry Bouquet

Henry Bouquet

Henry Bouquet was a prominent British Army officer in the French and Indian War and Pontiac's War. Bouquet is best known for his victory over Native Americans at the Battle of Bushy Run, lifting the siege of Fort Pitt during Pontiac's War.-Early life:Bouquet was born into a moderately wealthy...

 on a mission against the Indians

Indigenous peoples of the Americas

The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...

.

In 1777, while still attached to the royal army, he refused to obey orders on account of sympathy with the colonial cause. He was imprisoned, and his house was plundered.

Family

He married Maria Henrica Schleidorn of New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, and they had nine children, six of whom survived them.

Further reading

• J. I. Good, History of the Reformed Church in the United States, 1725-1792, 1899
• M. Pritzker-Ehrlich, Michael Schlatter von St. Gallen (1716-1790), 1981

External links