A Christian interdenominational group formed in Wisconsin, USA, in 1899 by three travelling salesman. The mission of the Gideons is to make the Bible freely available to all people. They put Bibles in hotel rooms and hospital wards all over the world. The name Gideon is taken from the name of a Judge in the old testament who was a leader to a small army that fought and defeated the Midianites. Currently the Gideons worldwide membership is over 200 000.