The Salvation Army is a British non-profit organization, which was established in 1865 by William and Catherine Booth. It is not just an organization that helps people in need, but also a Church, which was almost two million members all over the globe today.
The visual identity of The Salvation Army is probably one of the most consistent ever, as today the organization still uses the badge, designed for it in 1901. There are actually two different emblems, and the one that is considered to be added today has been the main logo from 1865 until 1901.
The very first logo for The Salvation Army was composed of an ornate circular badge in a geometric sharp framing. The white and blue rounded medallion, enclosed in yellow triangular rays, looked like a royal medal and had a massive yellow and black crown with five four-pointed stars on top.
Around the blue perimeter of the badge there was a white bold “Blood and Fire” let-tering, and in the middle, on a white background, a red letter “S”, standing for “Sal-vation”, intertwined with the Red Cross and two swords.
The main wordmark was written in white on a red ribbon, which was arched under the rounded badge.
In 1901 another emblem was created and is still used by the organization as its main insignia. It is a simple yet elegant red crest with a double red and white outline and a diagonally located wordmark on it. The white wordmark, set in three levels, is written in an elegant old-style serif typeface with some lines elongated and slightly curved.
The red and white combination of The Salvation Army logo stands for passion and love, and accents on the loyalty and togetherness.