Charles Haddon Spurgeon (June 19, 1834 - January 31, 1892) came to faith in Christ in 1850 at the age of 15. He started preaching shortly thereafter, and by 19 he was the pastor of what would become the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London, England. He had no formal theological education, but Spurgeon has become affectionately known in church history as "the prince of preachers." He was a man of rich theology, humor, and gospel centrality. In his pastor's college he emphasized to his students the necessity of preaching the gospel clearly and plainly saying, "Our preaching must not be put on the high shelf of our fine language, but in the use of great plainness of speech." Before his death at age 57 he had started a pastor's college, several orphanages, saw his church grow from 200 to 5,000, and baptized 15,000 new believers. He is a hero to preachers, and considered by many historians as the greatest gospel preacher since the Apostle Paul.