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The Royal Order of Scotland is an appendant order within the structures of Freemasonry. Membership is an honour extended to Freemasons by invitation. The Grand Lodge of the Royal Order of Scotland is headquartered in Edinburgh, with a total of 88 subordinate Provincial Grand Lodges; of these, the greatest concentration (more than a third) is in the British Isles, with the rest located in countries around the world.
The order claims the King of Scots as hereditary Grand Master. The Deputy Grand Master and Governor of the order is currently Sir Ewan Rutherford. He was installed as Deputy Grand Master & Governor (the administrator) of the Royal Order of Scotland at Edinburgh on 1 July 2022. In times in which there is no King of Scots, the Deputy Grand Master and Governor is the worldwide leader of the Order.
The Immediate Past Deputy Grand Master and Governor of the order is Sir Archibald Donald Orr-Ewing, 6th Baronet (b. 20 December 1938). Orr-Ewing is the eldest son of Sir Ronald Archibald Orr-Ewing, 5th Baronet and was educated at Gordonstoun and Trinity College, Dublin. He was the Grand Master Mason of the Grand Lodge of Antient, Free and Accepted Masons of Scotland, until 27 November 2008, a post he held since 2005. He previously held the post between 1999 and 2004, being the only person to hold that office twice. He was installed as Deputy Grand Master & Governor (the administrator) of the Royal Order of Scotland at Edinburgh on 3 July 2009.
Each Provincial Grand Lodge has a Provincial Grand Master, who usually governs for 5 years consecutively. The Provincial Grand Master will appoint Provincial officers annually.
Uniquely within Freemasonry, the Royal Order of Scotland has no local (or 'private') Lodges, and the Provincial Grand Lodge is the lowest tier of organisation and activity. New members are admitted in a Provincial Grand Lodge, or even in the Grand Lodge in Edinburgh.
In London (but not elsewhere in England) the Order is administered at the Provincial level from Mark Masons' Hall, and the officers of the Provincial Grand Lodge of London and Metropolitan Counties are selected largely from amongst the senior members of the various other Orders administered from that building.
The Royal Order of Scotland's Grand Lodge and the Provincial Grand Lodges confer two degrees:
The ceremonies are usually learnt and rehearsed without scripts, and they include a considerable amount of rhyming verse. Elements of many other Masonic degrees and orders are incorporated into, or referenced within, the Royal Order of Scotland ceremonies.
The order has existed since at least 1741, based on records in the archive of the Grand Lodge demonstrating activity in London, with a further charter being granted in 1750 to work the degree at The Hague. The holder of that warrant, William Mitchell, moved to Edinburgh around 1752/3, using the charter to establish a Provincial Grand Lodge there. In 1767 this body became the Grand Lodge of the Royal Order of Scotland.
Activity appears to have dwindled, with the Order nearing extinction in the early 19th century, but a resurgence culminated in the establishment of further Provincial Grand Lodges by 1843.
By 1819, the order was on the verge of extinction, but was "resuscitated" in 1839 by Houston Rigg Brown, a coach maker from Edinburgh, and George A. Walker Arnott, a renowned botanist. [1]
The legends of the order date its origination to the reign of King David I in the 12th century in the Heredom degree, with the Rosy Cross degree originating in 1314 following the Battle of Bannockburn.
The essential and universal qualifications for applicants are membership of the three degrees of Craft Freemasonry, five years or more continuous subscription to a St John's Lodge as a Master Mason, and profession of the Trinitarian Christian faith, these requirements cannot be altered by any Province. Membership is by invitation only.
Within the British Federation of Le Droit Humain, an applicant must hold the 18th degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, Sovereign Prince of Rose Croix of H.R.D.M. and be a Past Master of a Craft Lodge. Crucially, they do not have to profess the Trinitarian Christian faith, as this is not in accordance with the principles of the wider international Order. [2]
In addition to these fundamental requirements, Provinces are free to impose additional conditions, and many do so, the most common being the requirement of membership of the Holy Royal Arch. Further qualifications for membership vary by provincial jurisdiction but may include a requirement of active membership of the 18th degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite or one of the other Christian Masonic Orders (such as Red Cross of Constantine, or Knights Templar).
In the United States candidates should hold the 32nd degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, or be a Knight Templar within the York Rite system. Evidence is also required of services performed for the Craft, the Church, or the public (such as work with the Boy Scouts, the Order of DeMolay, Community drives, or similar types of service).
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their descent from the guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 14th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities and clients. Modern Freemasonry broadly consists of two main recognition groups: Regular Freemasonry, which insists that a volume of scripture be open in a working lodge, that every member professes belief in a Supreme Being, that no women be admitted, and that the discussion of religion and politics do not take place within the lodge; and Continental Freemasonry, which consists of the jurisdictions that have removed some, or all, of these restrictions.
The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry is a Rite within the broader context of Freemasonry. It is the most widely practiced Rite in the world. In some parts of the world, and in the Droit Humain, it is a concordant body and oversees all degrees from the 1st to 33rd degrees, while in other areas, a Supreme Council oversees the 4th to 33rd degrees.
The York Rite, sometimes referred to as the American Rite, is one of several Rites of Freemasonry. It is named for, but not practiced in, York, Yorkshire, England. A Rite is a series of progressive degrees that are conferred by various Masonic organizations or bodies, each of which operates under the control of its own central authority. The York Rite specifically is a collection of separate Masonic Bodies and associated Degrees that would otherwise operate independently. The three primary bodies in the York Rite are the Chapter of Royal Arch Masons, Council of Royal & Select Masters or Council of Cryptic Masons, and the Commandery of Knights Templar, each of which are governed independently but are all considered to be a part of the York Rite. There are also other organizations that are considered to be directly associated with the York Rite, or require York Rite membership to join such as the York Rite Sovereign College but in general the York Rite is considered to be made up of the aforementioned three. The Rite's name is derived from the city of York, where, according to one Masonic legend, the first meetings of Masons in England took place.
The Swedish Rite is a variation or Rite of Freemasonry that is common in Scandinavian countries and to a limited extent in Germany. It is different from other branches of Freemasonry in that, rather than having the three self-contained foundation degrees and seemingly-endless side degrees and appendant bodies, it has an integrated system with ten degrees. It is also different in that, rather than moving through the offices or 'chairs', progress in the Swedish Rite is based on moving through the ten degrees. A fundamental difference is the Swedish Rite's position on religious affiliation: Anglo/American 'Regular' Masonry requires a belief in any theistic religion and Continental 'Liberal' Masonry does not require belief in any religion, whereas Swedish Masonry is specifically Christian, and requires a Christian trinitarian belief in all its members. Nonetheless, the main Swedish Rite constitutions are all recognised as regular by the United Grand Lodge of England, and stand in full amity.
Co-Freemasonry is a form of Freemasonry which admits both men and women. It began in France in the 1890s with the forming of Le Droit Humain, and is now an international movement represented by several Co-Freemasonic administrations throughout the world. Most male-only Masonic Lodges do not recognise Co-Freemasonry, holding it to be irregular.
The Knights Templar, full name The United Religious, Military and Masonic Orders of the Temple and of St John of Jerusalem, Palestine, Rhodes and Malta, is a fraternal order affiliated with Freemasonry. Unlike the initial degrees conferred in a regular Masonic Lodge, which only require a belief in a Supreme Being regardless of religious affiliation, the Knights Templar is one of several additional Masonic Orders in which membership is open only to Freemasons who profess a belief in Christianity. One of the obligations entrants to the order are required to declare is to protect and defend the Christian faith. The word "United" in its full title indicates that more than one historical tradition and more than one actual order are jointly controlled within this system. The individual orders 'united' within this system are principally the Knights of the Temple, the Knights of Malta, the Knights of St Paul, and only within the York Rite, the Knights of the Red Cross.
Freemasonry in Sweden was introduced by the Swedish Order of Freemasons, founded in 1735 as the oldest still active Swedish fraternal order, working the Swedish Rite of Freemasonry. It is under royal patronage of the King of Sweden and closely associated with the Lutheran Church of Sweden. It is a jurisdiction that admits Christian men only, and is recognised by the United Grand Lodge of England as a Regular Masonic jurisdiction, being the only Regular Grand Lodge that admits a 34th informal Masonic Degree. Its total membership is about 16,500.
There are many organisations and orders which form part of the widespread fraternity of Freemasonry, each having its own structure and terminology. Collectively these may be referred to as Masonic bodies, Masonic orders, Concordant bodies or appendant bodies of Freemasonry.
Freemasonry has had a complex relationship with women for centuries. A few women were involved in Freemasonry before the 18th century, despite de jure prohibitions in the Premier Grand Lodge of England.
Freemasonry in Denmark was first established in 1743 and is today represented by a number of Grand Lodges. The oldest and biggest Masonic Grand Lodge in Denmark is the Danish Order of Freemasons, in English also known as the Grand Lodge of Denmark.
The Royal Arch is a degree of Freemasonry. The Royal Arch is present in all main masonic systems, though in some it is worked as part of Craft ('mainstream') Freemasonry, and in others in an appendant ('additional') order. Royal Arch Masons meet as a Chapter; in the Supreme Order of the Royal Arch as practised in the British Isles, much of Europe and the Commonwealth, Chapters confer the single degree of Royal Arch Mason.
Royal Arch Masonry is the first part of the American York Rite system of Masonic degrees. Royal Arch Masons meet as a Chapter, and the Royal Arch Chapter confers four degrees: Mark Master Mason, Past Master, Most Excellent Master, and Royal Arch Mason.
Continental Freemasonry in North America is relatively rare, but there are a few continental-style organizations active.
The first known Freemasons in Portugal were the Swiss John Coustos and two other Portuguese members of his lodge, who were arrested by the Portuguese Inquisition and questioned under torture in the 1740s. Coustos wrote a book detailing his sufferings under the Inquisition and pointed to 1728 as being the year of the first Lodge, although nothing is known of the first years of this Lodge and it was not then recognised by the Grand Lodge of England. Today there are several Masonic Obediences in Portugal.
The history of Freemasonry in Mexico can be traced to at least 1806 when the first Masonic lodge was formally established in the nation.
Freemasonry in Germany started in several places during the second quarter of the Eighteenth century. After the extinction of the Rite of Strict Observance, which had a wide following and claimed Templar origins for its higher degrees, the several Grand Lodges in Germany defied all attempts at unification, although a largely ineffectual central organisation came into being with the unification of Germany. During the 1920s Freemasons were harassed alongside Jews by those taken in by the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, and blamed for the German surrender of 1918. This culminated with the suppression of Freemasonry by the Nazis in 1935, with many Masons in Germany and occupied countries being executed or sent to concentration camps. Freemasonry returned to Germany after World War Two. A single central body now represents five "regular" Grand Lodges. Liberal, women's, and mixed lodges also exist.
Freemasonry in Italy dates to the first half of the eighteenth century. Its success largely depended on the lack of enthusiasm with which Papal bans on the order were enforced in the various states, but after the end of the Napoleonic regime, Freemasonry was suppressed in most of the peninsula. The start of the unification process in 1859 saw a revival in Freemasonry. Giuseppe Garibaldi, a leader of Italian unification, was an active Mason and a keen supporter of the craft. In the 1920s Freemasonry was again suppressed under Fascism but revived again after the fall of Benito Mussolini. Today's Italy contains a wide variety of Masonic observances, regular, liberal, male, female and mixed.
Freemasonry in Scotland in lodges chartered by the Grand Lodge of Scotland comprises the Scottish Masonic Constitution as regular Masonic jurisdiction for the majority of freemasons in Scotland. There are also lodges operating under the Scottish Masonic Constitution in countries outside of Scotland. Many of these are countries linked to Scotland and the United Kingdom through the Commonwealth of Nations and prior colonies and other settlements of the British Empire although there are several lodges in countries such as Lebanon, Belgium, Chile and Peru, which do not have such connections.
The Rite of Baldwyn or Rite of Seven Degrees is one of several Rites of Freemasonry. It exists and is only practised in the Masonic Province of Bristol, England in Freemason's Hall. A Rite is a series of progressive degrees that are conferred by various Masonic organizations or bodies, each of which operates under the control of its own central authority. The Rite of Baldwyn specifically is a collection of separate Masonic Bodies and associated Degrees that would otherwise operate independently. The three primary bodies in the York Rite are the degrees of Craft Freemasonry, the Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch, and the Camp of Baldwyn.
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