Brigham Young was an early Mormon leader. He is often known as the "American Moses" for leading a group of persecuted Mormon settlers on an exodus through the desert to Utah, the "Promised Land". As the leader of the church he was believed to be guided by the Hand of God and to speak with the voice of the Prophet, and held nearly complete control over the Mormon territories. He features as a secondary antagonist in A Study in Scarlet, where his actions with regard to the marriage of Lucy Ferrier are the catalyst for the story.