On July 9, 1856, James Jesse Strang, mortally wounded by those were once his allies, died, leaving behind a story at once tragic, and yet fascinating in reflecting a life fully lived, having some important impact on the developing Mormon faith.

Many Mormons today do not appreciate the amazing variety of Mormonism in its early days. With the death of its prophet, Joseph Smith Jr., pretenders to the throne were not hard to find. And while many followed Brigham Young to the Salt Lake valley, others accepted the leadership claims of men whose names were well known, and who claimed the late Prophet's blessing in their inheriting of his mantle.

Strang's appeal was, in retrospect, attractive to many. His goal to resettle the Saints in rural Wisconsin sounded like a much better idea than a trek to the untested West. And Strang even had his own set of plates, handled and seen by his followers, telling the story of "a man called the Rajah Manchou of Vorito" [p. 26], a fallen leader who managed to keep a record of his people. With the help of his own Urim and Thummim, Strang was able to translate the plates.

From the establishment of the Strangite community in Voree, Wisconsin Territory, the gathered Saints experienced their own growing pains, welcoming to their ranks such as John Bennett, whose well-publicized separation from Joseph Smith should have altered Strang to potential problems. Others also joined him, many later rebelling and creating a difficult environment for the burgeoning sect.

The success of the Voree community led Strang to establish another community in the Beaver archipelago in Lake Michigan, the infamous "Beaver Island." With this expansion, we see some interesting parallels in the development of the Strangite faith. Ultimately, such practices as polygamy and the establishing of the United Order would emerge.

Before long, the charismatic leader would be accused of sexual impropriety and other ignoble acts. One reads with some amusement the tales of his "secretary," presumably a man, but graced with womanly curves. Wagging tongues could not be stopped, and all this talk of sex and deceit would take its toll on Strang and his movement.

Gradually, Strang's odd ways would catch up with him. Rumors of polygamy and concubinage were rife; several women would be publicly identified as being involved with the prophet. In addition, residents in the area of the Beaver Islands were becoming more suspicious of the emerging Mormon community, and planned to expel them from the land:

The plan was to transport men and guns on board several small vessels from Mackinac Island, to arrive at Whiskey Point on the night of July 3. The next morning, carrying concealed weapons, the men would go to the meeting the Strangites had scheduled. They would arrive either alone or in small groups and find seats as close as possible to each other near the speaker's stand and clerk's table. The fishermen were to start "talking, drinking and swearing" during the service and initiate a fight with anyone who tried to stop them. Then they would surprise the congregation with their pistols and bowie knives, scatter the crowd, and kill the Mormon leaders before their people had time to organize a defense. This was to be followed by a general debauching of the women and burning of houses. (p. 117)

One gets a sense from the preceding paragraph that things were not going well for the Strangites. Charges against them even included child abduction and piracy, well described in chapter 11 of this book. But ultimately, it would be betrayal from among the ranks that would bring Strang's reign to an end.

Two of his erstwhile followers (read "apostates") would be the appointed executioners when it was decided that Strang had to die:

...Thomas Bedford and Alexander Wentworth joined about forty other men, including a number of marines, on the porch of Johnson's store at the foot of the pier. Strang and his escort stepped onto McCulloch's dock and started to walk down the narrow passageway between piles of cordwood. Bedford and Wentworth stepped behind them and followed for about fifteen or twenty feet, just far enough to clear the crowd, then simultaneously fired at Strang. One shot struck the king in the left side of the head behind his ear and traveled up through his high silk hat. [snipping other details of the shooting, some quite gory (JN)] Wentworth made the remark that they had got rid of the "damned rascal." Someone asked, "Who?" and Wentworth replied, "Strang, the damned Son of a Bitch." (218)

The death of Strang, however, would not mark the end of the movement, although it would never reach the heights it had while Strang was alive.

Speek's opus is a compellingly readable account, fair to a fault, of a remarkable man whose existence is barely known among the rank and file of Latter-day Saints. Yes, it represents but one of the many trajectories of the Mormon faith after Joseph Smith's death, but it certainly stands out as one of the more vibrant, vocal and controversial of the groups.

So much of this story illustrates what life was like in the U.S., I think more so than the Utah group, since the Strangites settled among established communities, making few friends in the process. Yes, the Brighamites (as Strangites will call them) faced great challenges in the unsettled west, but the Strangites found themselves face to face with an angry populace, fearing the worst from this emerging group, appalled by their leader's sexual practices, and fearful of the financial status of their thriving fishing industry.

There's so much story here, so much to tell, it's impossible to get it all out in a brief review. But this much I believe -- Speek has brought together the most comprehensive account of the Strangite movement to date. At least I know of nothing that tells the story so completely and compellingly.

Mormon historians, both professional and amateur (as am I) will no doubt dive in to this excellent work and be enriched by its wealth of information and its genuine fairness toward that controversial Mormon leader, James J. Strang.

God Has Made us a Kingdom is enthusiastically recommended to all.

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Jeff Needle
March 27, 2006