Millerism

Protestantism

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June 30, 2026

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Millerite Caricature (1843) of a Millerite, an adherent of the preacher William Miller, who predicted that the world would end between March 21, 1843, and March 21, 1844. The man sits in a large safe labeled “Patent Fire Proof Chest.”

Millerism was a religious movement in the 19th century led by William Miller. Miller, a farmer and former military captain, studied the Bible and concluded that the Second Coming of Christ was imminent, predicting it would occur around 1843. This belief was based on his interpretation of the Book of Daniel.1

The movement gained significant traction, with estimates of 50,000 to 100,000 followers. When the predicted date passed without event, some followers recalculated and set October 22, 1844, as the new date for Christ's return. This date marked a climax for the movement, though stories of extreme fanaticism are not historically supported.1

Following this disappointment, the movement did not form a single church organization. However, it influenced the development of various Adventist bodies, including the Advent Christian Church and the Seventh-day Adventists. Millerism's focus on the imminent return of Christ was part of a broader interest in biblical prophecy and the Second Coming within Protestantism during that era.12

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10 Failed Doomsday Predictions
Millerism
Religious leader William Miller began preaching in 1831 that the end of the world as we know it would occur with the second coming of Jesus Christ in 1843. He attracted as many as 100,000 followers who believed that they would be carried off…
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Religious leader William Miller began preaching in 1831 that the end of the world as we know it would occur with the second coming of Jesus Christ in 1843. He attracted as many as 100,000 followers who believed that they would be carried off…
Read More

William Miller
…leader of a movement called Millerism that sought to revive belief that the bodily arrival (“advent”) of Christ was imminent.
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…leader of a movement called Millerism that sought to revive belief that the bodily arrival (“advent”) of Christ was imminent.
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Adventist
History
…the leader of a popular movement. As the year 1843 approached, Miller predicted more specifically that Christ would return between March 21, 1843, and March 21, 1844.
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…the leader of a popular movement. As the year 1843 approached, Miller predicted more specifically that Christ would return between March 21, 1843, and March 21, 1844.
Read More