Joseph Smith

Joseph Smith (1805-1844), American religious leader, who was the founding prophet of Mormonism.

Smith was born of poor parents in Sharon, Vermont, on December 23, 1805. The family moved near the town of Palmyra, in upstate New York, where between the ages of 14 and 25 Smith experienced visions calling him to restore the true Christian religion. According to his account, an angel guided him to a set of golden plates buried in a hill; these contained a narrative written in a hieroglyphic script, which he translated, “by the gift and power of God”. The result was published in 1830 as the Book of Mormon, which he believed to be a religious record of the ancient inhabitants of North America.

The Church Smith founded on April 6, 1830, soon known officially as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, quickly attracted followers, many of whom served as lay missionaries. It also aroused violent opposition, with Smith as its focus. After establishing a new headquarters at Commerce (which they renamed Nauvoo), Illinois, in 1839, Smith continued to provide charismatic leadership. His Doctrines and Covenants (1835) recorded his revelations on matters of sect organization. Soon, however, rumours, later confirmed, that the Mormons had begun to practise polygamy provoked a schism in the Mormon community and intensified the opposition outside the Church. Smith himself is believed to have had more than 27 wives, although he publicly acknowledged only one.

In February 1844, Smith announced his candidacy for the United States presidency. He was by now one of the most famous men of the American West. He was finally charged with treason and conspiracy and placed under arrest in the Carthage, Illinois, jail. There, despite the Illinois governor's promise of safety, he and his brother Hyrum were assassinated by a mob on the night of June 27, 1844.

The main body of Mormons subsequently settled in and around Utah under Brigham Young. One of Smith's sons, Joseph Smith III, accepted leadership of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (now known as the Community of Christ), which was presided over by direct descendants of Joseph Smith until 1996.