George Bethune English

Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1787, George Bethune English studied at Harvard, where he earned recognition for his writing and completed advanced theological study. His early career took a dramatic turn when he published The Grounds of Christianity Examined, a work that stirred strong backlash and led to his excommunication from the Churches of Christ.

English did not stay in one world for long. He spent time in the American frontier, served as a U.S. Marine officer, and then traveled to Egypt, where he resigned his commission, converted to Islam, and joined the service of Muhammad Ali Pasha. He took part in the 1820 expedition up the Nile against Sennar and later wrote about it in Narrative of the Expedition to Dongola and Sennaar.

That mix of scholar, dissenter, soldier, traveler, and author makes him a striking figure in early American history. He died in 1828, but his life still stands out for the sheer range of places, beliefs, and causes he moved through.