A Concise History of Freemasonry
Source - The above text was copied from here,
mostly verbatim, with minor editing for context. The original page
includes pictures and references, please visit it. Alki Lodge #152
of Washting should also be given credit for providing this text on
their site as well. A very relevant portion of text regarding the
evolution of American Freemasonry via the introduction of Prince
Hall Masonry has also been added.
Is there a Proven History?
Empirical evidence supporting the history of Freemasonry prior to
the 18th Century is hard to find. Theories vary wildly from the plausible
to the sensational. Most masons believe that Freemasonry is derived
from the early medieval stonemasons guilds and enquire no further.
However, a well rounded study in Freemasonry should look more deeply
at all possible roots, even if only to be able to dismiss most of them.
There is no commonly accepted Ancient History of Freemasonry – even
the United Grand Lodge of England (the Premier or Mother Grand Lodge)
does not publish a house view prior to its own initial conception in
1717. This is curious because a resemblance of modern Freemasonry (judging
from a corpus of medieval manuscripts) was already in place beforehand,
even if its pedigree was lost.
The Conventional Explanation
Most historians concur that Freemasonry, in its current form, probably
developed as an adjunct from medieval stonemasons through the ages
leading up to the Operative Stone Masons Guilds. Just how or when the
transition took place from Operative Guild Free-Stone Masonry to Speculative
intellectual Freemasonry (using stonemasons tools, clothing and customs
as allegorical aids to teach their precepts) is not clear, although
Scottish Lodge Kilwinnings records showing non Operatives being admitted
by at least 1672 and some Lodges in England were entirely non Operative
by the time of Elias Ashmole in 1646.
What was so special about stonemasons? They possessed great skill
to create the castles, cathedrals and palaces and the necessary sculpted
works and ornaments demanded of their masters. Such skill must have
seemed almost magical to the vast illiterate masses. They were clearly
the elite of the labor force, had secret customs and marks and would
have attracted some of the brightest non-educated recruits. However,
given the complexity and the emphasis on morality of the various Masonic
rituals and teachings, this simple explanation of Freemasonry seems
inadequate. To obtain a deeper historical appreciation, one could consider
the various ancient and medieval legends with an open mind and then
decide for yourself which ones are a better fit.
Legends of Masonic Heritage
Legend: The Ancient Scientific Perspective
It has recently been suggested (by Knight and Lomas) that Freemasonry
ultimately evolved from Megalithic tribes who, having discovered science
and astronomy, constructed numerous astounding astronomical observatories
including Newgrange on the river Boyne, Bryn Celli Ddu and Stonehenge
between 7100 BC and 2500 BC. It is believed that these sites enabled
those tribes to chart the seasons and years by observing the rotations
of the sun and the third brightest object in the sky, Venus. These
were essential skills as without such timekeeping, civilization would
be hopelessly unable to plan or progress beyond mere day to day subsistence.
Indeed, the Book of Enoch, discovered amongst the Dead Sea Scrolls
from the Qumran and from which many higher Masonic Orders draw their
inspiration, explains the scientific principles by which those earliest
observatories (or Uriels Machines) operate. It is then argued that
this knowledge was shared and taken to the East prior to a predicted
and devastating comet impact and subsequent world flood in 3150 BC.
Many survivors maintained Enochian and Noachide customs and when
the Enochian-Zadokite priests were expelled from Jerusalem in 70 AD
by the Romans, having first hidden their scrolls and treasures deep
under the ruins of Solomons Temple as recorded in the Qumran Copper
Scroll, it seems possible that their alledged descendants, the founding
Knights Templar families led by Hugues de Payens, would return in 1140
AD to dig them up and retrieve them.
A great story, but it is doubtful whether this theory will take hold
in serious academic circles.
Legend: The Ancient Stone Mason Perspective
Whilst Freemasonry draws much imagery from the history and construction
of King Solomons Temple (@ 945 BC) by masons from the Phoenician city
of Tyre, it seems fanciful to claim direct Stone-Mason links from that
era. Nevertheless, skills in the manipulation of stone had been well
established by then and had been handed down through the ages and through
the hands of many peoples including craftsmen from the Greek, Byzantine
and Roman eras.
Certain present day Masonic words and meanings seem rooted from the
time of the early Egyptians of this era: The virtues of truth and justice
were said by them to be “on the square”. Confucius in 500BC
referred to the squareness of actions; even Aristotle in 350 BC associates
square actions with honest dealings. The square and its symbolism is
very old and has maintained a remarkable consistency of meaning over
the centuries. However, it does not necessarily follow that Freemasonry
began in those eras any more than trying to assert that Euclid was
a Freemason because his 47th Proposition (as shown on the WMs jewel)
has relevance in modern Freemasonry!
Legend next informs us that Athelstan, having subjugated most of
the minor kingdoms of England, gathered together many skilled masons
and established York Rite Masonry in 926 AD by granting them a Royal
Charter. The charter enabled the stonemasons to meet in general assembly
once a year and seems to have been a catalyst for a host of construction
projects including numerous abbeys, castles and fortresses. Athelsans
importance to Stonemasons is mentioned in both the Regius and Cooke
Manuscripts. The Scottish Rite, by contrast, was established many centuries
later by Chevalier Andrew Ramsay (Ramsays Oration of 1737) and other
exiled Stuart Scots in France who were plotting the restoration of
James II. This has led to a diversity of subsequent Orders following
the three basic Craft Degrees.
The Medieval Operative Masonic Guilds
We have evidence that Operative Masonic guilds (or gilds) existed
in Scotland as early as 1057 and possibly in England from 1220 when
we know the Masons Livery Company was in existence. Those guilds, associations
or Compagnonnage as they were known in France and mainland Europe,
were conscripted to produce sufficient masons of all qualities to satisfy
the aspirations of Kings and the Church in their respective building
programs.
In days where travel and communication for all but King and Church
was highly restricted, the guilds are believed to have developed their
own methods of introduction and secret modes of recognition when working
on various programs around the country. These were essential in order
to distinguish a skilled master from the aspiring apprentice. This
was important because there were no written credentials in those days
because only top Master Masons could read, let alone write letters
of introduction on expensive parchment. However, some historians (chief
among them John J Robinson) argue it is difficult to prove English
stone masons guilds (unlike Scottish guilds) existed at all given the
relative lack of evidence available to corroborate them.
Box Club Charity Theory
A more recent theory suggests modern Freemasonry developed from charitable
beginnings. In the 1600s many trades operated what have become known
as box clubs where their members would set aside earnings for the group
or individual members to fall back on if they suffered hard times.
Those without such assistance usually starved through lack of other
reliable welfare support. Evidence indicates these box clubs began
to admit members outside their trade and had many of the characteristics
of early Masonic lodges. Perhaps Freemasonry arose from an early and
successful box club framework which was later taken over by the leading
intellectual lights that emerged in the seventeenth century?
The Knights Templar
Masonic legend and some tradition is borrowed from the fanciful stories
of the Knights Templar, an enigmatic and powerful military Order of
fighting monks set up by Hugues de Payens in 1118. Their illustrious
history has been the subject of numerous fascinating books and their
effect upon the course of world history, religion and commerce is much
greater than generally recognized. They were also responsible for the
erection of many churches (eg Middle Temple on the Embankment in London)
and the assembly of numerous large estates and would themselves have
employed a great many stone masons.
Although their effect upon Freemasonry is very uncertain, they had
amassed considerable wealth and influence in London, Scotland and throughout
the United Kingdom that cannot be overlooked. Most serious historians
dismiss a direct link to the Knights Templars for lack of evidence.
However, is it possible that the Knights Templars might have shared
some of their knowledge and rituals with their more senior stone masons
with whom they employed who later incorporated them into their own
traditions?
The Knights Templars ostensible purpose was the protection of pilgrims
on their journey from the coastal port of Jaffra to Jerusalem. Initially
however, there were too few of them to be an effective escort. In any
event, for the first nine years of their existence, they were far too
busy purposefully digging under the ruins of King Solomons Temple to
be offering any support to Pilgrims. It seems clear that during their
excavations they discovered something of immense spiritual or material
value for they swiftly became very rich and powerful and enjoyed this
position for nearly two hundred years until the fall of the Holy Lands.
Evidence of Templar excavations was found by Lieutenant Warren, Royal
Engineers in 1867. The Knights Templars were effectively extinguished
on Friday 13th October 1307 by King Philippe of France who (hence
the idea that any Friday on the 13th day of the month is “unlucky”),
broke at the time, stole their lands and possessions (a fate he inflicted
upon French Jews two years earlier) and with collusion from the Pope,
instructed the Inquisition to torture any Templars he managed to round
up to gain evidence to legitimize his grand theft. Many of the fit
and able Knights (and their entourage) and most of their wealth managed
to escape. It is from their exodus from France and other parts of Europe
that much of Masonic folklore stems.
Many Knights possibly settled in the comparative backwaters of Scotland,
a land ruled by the excommunicated Robert The Bruce and therefore considered
comparatively safe, being largely beyond the reach of the Pope and
the Inquisition. No doubt they brought with them their treasures, relics,
knowledge and ceremonies as depicted on the ground floor South West
window stone carving at Roslin Chapel. Some knights are believed to
have traveled much further than the known lands of the times and even
managed to find America. Certain corn carvings at Roslin Chapel appear
to confirm this.
Given a background of organized secrecy, could it have been possible
that Stonemasons guilds became convenient, if not unwitting, conduits
of social refuge through the ages? Templars, who required a degree
of privacy from State or Church in their thoughts, discussions or travel
arrangements would have found stonemasons guilds attractive. History
however, contains virtually no written references linking Knights Templars
and Freemasonry until the 18th C. Most serious historians believe that
a link with the Knights Templars only came about through marketing
skills displayed by Ramsay in his Oration in 1737 when he attributed
(in error) the origins of Freemasonry to Crusaders and the Knights
of St John. Ramsey, a talented self-publicist, would have known that
such a pedigree was bound to impress the French audience whom he was
addressing. Robert Brydon, in his book The Masons and the Rosy Cross,
informs us that Alexander Duechar confused the issue still further
by his attempts to revive Scottish Templarism and integrating it within
the ambit of Freemasonry.
Rosslyn Chapel
No discussion on Masonic history would be truly complete without a
reference to Rosslyn Chapel, situated 5 miles south of Edinburgh and
built in 1446 by Sir William St Clair whose family had deep Templar
ancestry and alleged family ties back to Hugues de Payens. Rosslyn
Chapel took 40 years to build and is highly embellished with Templar,
Enochian and possibly some Masonic imagery. Given that it was constructed
in an age when books could be censored or burned, it seems that William
St Clair was intent on leaving permanent and peculiar encoded messages
in the fabric of the chapel for posterity.
The chapel contains the astounding “Apprentice Pillar” and
numerous other intriguing stone carvings – one, on an external
window even depicts some form of initiation. Curiously, the official
Rosslyn Chapel guidebook states that the William St Clair, brother
of Edward, was granted the Charters of 1630 from the Masons of Scotland,
recognizing that the position of Grand Master Mason of Scotland had
been hereditary in the St Clair family since it was granted by James
II in 1441, the original charter having been destroyed in a fire. Whilst
the relevance of Rosslyn Chapel within Freemasonry is highly controversial,
its architectural features and carvings are outstanding and well worth
a visit.
Proven History: Pre 1700
So much for legend, what about the facts? It is acknowledged that
the Regius Manuscript held in the British Museum is the oldest genuine
record of Masonic relevance and was written in @ 1390. Its author was
probably a priest and this MS takes the form of an historical and instructional
poem. Interestingly, the phrase “So Mote it be” is first
quoted from this text. Next, it is important to consider the Cooke
Manuscript (also in the British Museum) written by a Speculative mason
in 1450. This is an important document because many current Masonic
usages (eg the Constitutions written by Anderson in 1723) have obviously
borrowed heavily from its content, which includes reference to the
seven Liberal Arts and Sciences and the building of Solomons Temple.
There are approximately 100 manuscripts, collectively known as the
Old Charges, grouped together in four families held by various museums
worldwide.
Next, we know that the London Company of Freemasons were granted Arms
in 1473 and their coat included three castles and compasses and were
incorporated within Metropolitan Grand Lodge of London’s arms
upon inauguration in 2003.
In 1583, a William Schaw was appointed by King James VI (later James
I of England) as Master of the Work and Warden General. In 1598 he
issued the first of the now famous Schaw Statutes which set out the
duties its members owed to their Lodge. It also imposed penalties for
unsatisfactory work and prohibited work with unqualified masons. More
importantly for Freemasons today, Schaw drew up a second Statute in
1599. The importance of this document lies in the fact that it makes
the first veiled reference to the existence of esoteric knowledge within
the craft of stone masonry. It also reveals that The Mother Lodge of
Scotland, Lodge Kilwinning No. 0 existed at that time. His regulations
required all lodges to keep written records, meet at specific times
and test members in the Art of Memory. As a consequence he is regarded
by some as the founder of modern Freemasonry as we know it today.
The earliest known record of a Masonic initiation anywhere is that
of John Boswell, Laird of Auchenleck, who was initiated in the Lodge
of Edinburgh according to the lodge minutes of 8 June 1600. That lodge
was Operative and Boswell appears to be an example of one of the earliest
Speculative initiations and adds weight to a case for the Transition
Theory of Freemasonry, at least in Scotland. The earliest records of
an initiation in England include Sir Robert Moray in 1641 and Elias
Ashmole in 1646. Abroad, the first native-born American to be made
a Mason was probably Jonathan Belcher, in 1704, who was then the Governor
of Massachusetts.
Ashmole was a renowned author and scholar and knew contemporary Great
Thinkers of the day including Robert Boyle, Sir Robert Moray, Christopher
Wren, Isaac Newton and Dr John Wilkins – all early members of
the Royal Society, which began its life as the Invisible College, an
organization at one time led by Francis Bacon, before securing a Royal
Charter from Charles II in 1662. It is understood the Invisible College
often met in the early years in the Compton Room at Canonbury Tower
in North London, a room embellished with wood panel carvings of Masonic
significance commissioned by Bacon.
One can imagine the level of secrecy that must have surrounded the
Invisible College in its early days and in the notoriously treacherous
years before and after the Reformation – the consequences of
taking the wrong sides or inviting criticism of any kind in those days
was often fatal and is commented on frequently enough by Pepys in his
famous diary. To get a flavor of the times in mid Seventeenth Century
England, bear in mind that slavery was still universal and the gunpowder
plot was in recent memory. Galileo was in deep trouble with the Catholic
Church by insisting that the earth revolved around the sun, Bacon’s
works were banned by Rome and The Inquisition and the Courts, at least
in Scotland, were still burning witches and heretics. These were still
times of fear, state control and comparative intolerance. Personal
safety therefore probably demanded that discussion of anything with
an esoteric, moral or scientific flavor take place underground.
So why would thinkers and educated classes quietly develop or promote
the concept of Freemasonry? Might it be possible that those opposed
to intellectual and political suppression went underground and retained
their anonymity and safety by clothing themselves with the appearance
of an operative organization afforded by an early Masonic lodge structure?
It is then easy to see that embellishment of that structure by the
adoption of old stonemasons Manuscripts and a perceived pedigree dating
back to King Solomon would have given their membership a certain degree
of authenticity and appeal.
Given that non stone-masons (or speculatives) were clearly being initiated
from this time in England, some historians believe that Freemasonry
was in transition at this point from pure Operative Masonry to Non
Operative or Speculative Freemasonry. Equally, it could be argued that
around this time, England copied the Scottish Masonic structure and
set up an entirely Speculative form of Freemasonry which merely bore
allegorical likeness to much earlier Scottish Operative lodges. This
opinion has value when one considers that a disproportionate number
of early Premier Grand Masters were Scottish and that the Constitutions
were written by a Scotsman, Anderson.
Proven History: Post 1700
Little is known of Masonic activity for seventy years after Ashmole’s
initiation in 1646 except that general London Club life became very
popular. In 1717, four London lodges (the Apple Tree Tavern in Charles
Street, the Goose & Gridiron Ale-house in St. Pauls Churchyard,
Crown Ale House near Drury Street and the Rummer & Grapes Tavern
in Channel Row, Westminster) formed The Premier Grand Lodge of England.
The date was St John The Baptists Day, 24 June 1717. The Inaugural
Festive Board was held at the Goose and Gridiron, St Pauls.
Anthony
Sayer (shown left) presided over this feast as Grand Master and the
Premier Grand Lodge took on the Coat of Arms first granted to the London
Company of Freemasons in 1473. Interestingly, those founding lodges
had a very small membership of 15 Freemasons each except for “Rummer & Grapes
which had 70 members. In 1723 the Constitutions were written by Anderson
whose father was PM of a lodge in Aberdeen. Clearly, our Scottish brethren
had a lot to contribute towards the initial development of English
Freemasonry.
Interestingly, it has been suggested that Premier Grand Lodge only
came about as a result of the threat by the Scottish Jacobite revolt
in 1715. Anti-Scottish sentiment in those days might have prompted
nervous London Freemasons to disassociate themselves from their Scottish
roots, hide their history and strategically create a governing body
allied to the Hanoverian Crown. If so, little wonder that Freemasonry
now prohibits discussion of religion and politics at meetings!
In 1730, Masonic ritual having been learned parrot-fashion up until
then was widely published for the first time in Prichard’s exposure
entitled Masonry Dissected. Ritual prior to that point followed a two-degree
system and took the form of a combination of catechisms, some simplified
symbolism and the Old Charges (see Jones and Hamer's The Early Masonic
Catechisms edited by Henry Carr). Some historians (eg Murray Lyon)
believe that this two-tier degree system was expanded when Desaguliers
(Grand Master in 1719) wrote the Third Degree and grew again when Laurence
Dermott (probably) introduced the Fourth (ie Royal Arch) Degree in
1752.
It seems reasonably clear that by this time (ie the period between
1690 and 1725), owing to a spate of exposures, that numerous current
Masonic usages, customs and ritual were already in practice: The words “hele” and “conceal” and “points
of fellowship” are both found in the Edinburgh Register House
Manuscript of 1696; the Square Compass and Bible are mentioned together
in the Dumfries MS No. 4 of @ 1710, a London newspaper in 1723 salaciously
described the five Noble Orders of Architecture and Brotherly Love,
Relief, and Truth, made its appearance in print in a pamphlet printed
in London in 1724. The word Tyler probably came into usage around this
time and is thought to be derived from the French Tailleur, ie one
who cuts.
The popularity of Freemasonry grew with great speed throughout the
UK and around the world from 1717 following in the wake of British
settlers, merchants and the military. In 1731 the first American Grand
Lodge obtained its Constitution, The Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, making
it the first Grand Lodge in the United States of America. Over the
next 100 years, Freemasonry attracted many leading lights forming the
cream of the intellectual and scientific establishment including Sir
Robert Walpole, Robert Burns, Mozart, Darwin, Frederick the Great and
from the USA, Franklin, and Washington.
However, initial successes in the UK were followed by a bad patch.
This was caused by Premier Grand Lodge making drastic changes to the
ritual and passwords and the creation of a third degree out of the
previous two-degree ritual system. The reason for this change is unclear.
One explanation might be Premier Grand Lodge’s exasperation with
increasing requests for alms from poor and distressed immigrant freemasons
arriving in increasing numbers from Ireland and Scotland prompted by
the Industrial Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. Fraudulent claims
exploiting Masonic charity from information gleaned from the recent
media “exposures” probably also upset them. Either way,
the changes in the ritual effectively barred most Scottish and Irish
Freemasons because they no longer had the right passwords; however,
what they saved in misappropriated charity was lost in the goodwill
of the established membership. Some traditionalists were so upset,
they broke away and set up splinter groups.
The minor splinter groups included the “Grand Lodge of All England
held at York”. They claimed roots from the Saxon King Edwin who
supposedly presided over masons meeting at York. Other freemasons simply
never recognised Premier Grand Lodge in the first place and remained
on their own.
The next and much more significant group broke away in 1751 and was
called The Grand Lodge of England, nicknamed The Antients, Those whom
they left behind in The Premier Grand Lodge of England were nicknamed
The “Moderns”. The break-away group called themselves “Antients” because
they felt they were adhering more faithfully to the old ritual, passwords
and customs. They also welcomed and heard numerous charitable petitions
from Scottish and Irish Freemasons which contrasts markedly with Premier
Grand Lodge priorities.
We know that Grand Lodge certificates were in circulation by 1755.
The Antients met initially in the Turks Head Tavern, (in what is now
Gerrard Street), Soho. Their Constitutions, predominantly written by
their Grand Secretary, Laurence Dermott, in 1756 were entitled Ahiman
Rezon and it is commonly believed that under his influential regime,
the RA ritual was augmented to include new esoteric texts now delivered
by the three Principals. In 1775, Freemasons Hall in London was first
built by Thomas Sandby. Freemasons Hall as we know it today was built
on the same, but enlarged site in 1932 and is dedicated to the Glorious
Dead who fought in the Great War.
The motto “Vide Aude Tace” made its first appearance in
the Free-Masons Calendar from 1777. It is derived from a line of “leonine” verse
(of a type much used in the Middle Ages) and in full is “Audi,
Vide, Tace, Si Vis Vivere In Pace” meaning Hear, see and hold
your tongue, if in peace you would live on.
From this time onwards, new degrees and rituals proliferated which
fuelled fierce argument between the “Antients” and the “Moderns”.
Indeed, French Freemason, JM Ragon estimated that at one point, there
were over 1400 separate Masonic degrees complete with additional invented
or regionalised symbolism. Consequently, sixty years of bitterness
followed after the Antient and Modern schism. An example of dispute
between these two Grand lodges would be that the Antients worked a
four-degree system whilst the Moderns only recognised a three Degree
system. To the irritation of the Moderns, they often found their members
sympathetic to the fourth or Royal Arch Degree, to the point where
it became regarded as an extension to the Third Degree.
Eventually a compromise was negotiated and on St John The Evangelists
Day, 27 December 1813, United Grand Lodge of England was formed, largely
though the combined efforts of the Earl of Moira presiding over the
Duke of Sussex (Moderns Grand Master) and the Duke of Kent (Antients
Grand Master). The unification of these two bodies had enormous consequences
for the ritual which had to be hurriedly reconciled, mainly in favour
of the “Antients”. Most of the regulations and ritual determined
then still apply to this day, with the exception that in 1832, the
Triple Tau and new banners were introduced into the Royal Arch degree
as the symbols of that order.
More recently of course, certain colourful parts of RA and Craft texts
have been toned down to satisfy the politically correct lobby. Further
modernisation was undertaken in 2003 with the Inauguration of the Metropolitan
Grand Lodge of London. This enabled some 50,000 London Freemasons to
have a separate identity from United Grand Lodge of England and enabled
UGLE to concentrate on its worldwide affairs and duties.
There is another aspect of the history of Freemasonry that should
not be completely overlooked: The objection to Freemasonry by the Catholic
Church. Freemasonry has been banned by the Catholic Church several
times beginning in 1738 by the Papal Bull issued by Pope Clement 12th;
this was followed by another Bull in 1751 and again in 1884. Finally
these Bulls were rescinded in 1974 and the Vatican has since adopted
a more tolerant stance towards Freemasonry.
The reasons the Vatican gave for their objections were varied. However,
according to Matthew Scanlan (Freemasonry Today issue 25, 2003), the
reason for the first Papal Bull was not based on any ideological objection
to Freemasonry as is often supposed. Indeed in the wake of the 1738
Bull, the Popes brother, Cardinal Corsini wrote stressing that Freemasonry
in England was merely an innocent amusement. The main objection, according
to Corsini, was that a lodge in Florence founded by Freemason Baron
Von Stosch had become corrupt. Stosch, it should be noted, was employed
by the Foreign Office in London and was possibly using Freemasonry
as a cover to spy on the exiled Stuart cause in Rome, of whom Pope
Clement was sympathetic. The ensuing ban caused widespread misunderstanding
for centuries with the assumption being that it was based purely on
theological grounds.
Indeed, it is recorded that such was the ill feeling towards freemasons
in some Catholic countries that in Portugal in 1810, for example, the
Duke of Wellington had to curtail his officers public Masonic activities
whilst stationed there for fear of public unrest (Yasha Beresiner MQ
Magazine April 2004). In more recent times most dictatorships (including
those of Hitler, Franco and Mussolini) and certain zealous politicians
have shown aggression towards bodies of men, including Freemasons,
who might frustrate their fanatical plans by upholding freedom of thought,
law and order and tolerance for ones neighbor.
In modern times, it is therefore somewhat gratifying that the EU has
now drafted legislation that coincides with and to a degree protects
Masonic principles, namely Articles 9 (right to freedom of thought),
10 (freedom of expression) and 11 (freedom of assembly and association)
of the European Convention which are maintained by the European Court
of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
Conclusion
So, on reflection, do we consider Freemasonry originated from Megalithic
times, King Solomon, Athelstan, the Knights Templars, Medieval Stone
Masons, Schaw, Box charities, the Invisible College or the Rosicrucians?
Moreover, do we consider the roots of modern Freemasonry to be more
vested in Scotland or England or perhaps France? We can only speculate.
Whatever course Freemasonry actually followed, it has inspired millions
of people across many countries for more than three centuries and has
attracted famous personalities from Europe, United States of America
and other Continents. Providing Freemasonry adapts to the times, explains
its positive purpose more effectively (a task incumbent on each freemason)
and learns how to handle media savvy opponents, it will doubtless continue
to do so for several centuries more.
